A year later they contacted me about re-upping on their platform after they said they fixed the problems that were causing the fraudulent bookings (which appears to be true, since I haven't had a fraud one on there since I reopened). 

This whole short-term rental thing was starting to sound too good to be true, you know?

.- Research the Flipper:Look into the history of the flipper or the company that did the renovations to assess their reputation and track record.Be Skeptical of the Cosmetic: Look beyond the surface-level improvements to understand the true condition of the home.Taking these steps can help ensure that you are making a well-informed decision and investing in a quality home.

Again, this may not be true in your market so you'll want to do some research/post a test ad.Hope this helps a bit!

I am not saying it cannot be successful, I'm saying you're not the only one's these agents are pushing on.I'd target true destination spots, without a hotel presence, and be ready to weather the storm with the volatility of STR.

Rates and terms to good to be true in todays market for instance there is no 5% money for anyone not even from banks.. rates should be 9 to 15% with 2 to 5 points plus fees. 6.

There's oddly a lot of This is very true, with this large amount of capital, need to think big like NFL player level.I read financial proforma of class B hotel in Maui, it's pretty darn good, in fact it's perhaps the top ten best performing hotel in US in term of vacancy and RevPAR.STR and stuff like that is more for small investor like us with half to 1 mil buying power, but when it is above 5% you really need to talk to some serious developer/realtor in the island and understand the business.If I have that size of capital I would import contractor from California to finish my project in Kukio LOL Currently in kona there're only few new construction that can still being built, I guess it is selling for 1.5mil and above.

If the deals sounds to good to be true, it probably is.

It seems like one of those "too good to be true" things, but I have purchased 3 out of 5 properties that I currently own/rent out through people I know bringing friends, relatives, their distant friends etc.best of luck! 

As someone who has been providing these services for years now, you want to be very careful who you go with (and that is especially true if you go the DIY route).