While short-term rentals in areas like Kissimmee, Florida, can pay for themselves and offer lifestyle benefits, the ROI typically doesn’t match what I see from my traditional portfolio of long-term rentals in North Texas.That said, short-term rentals can still be a great choice, especially if you're drawn to the area and the opportunity to combine personal use with investment income.

Sounds like he was feeding you a line of garbage. 

As others have said, the best thing your son can do is run far from this deal, buckle down, save his pennies (he probably already is doing this), house-hack, and improve a property with sweat, hard work, developing a DIY skillset, and self-managing tenants. 

If you are considering buying short term rental properties I suggest reading "Short-term rental Long-term wealth" by Avery Carl. 

Quote from @Marc Shin: @John Underwood those are some great tips! 

What type of properties are you looking to acquire for your fix/flips?

In '23 the state set records for tourism revenues and visitors to the state, a hat tip to your point about year-round demand. 

I think every investor who takes the time to read and understand what he said would agree with @Andre Brock.

I’ve done my research with (reading books, podcasts, etc) but still feel like I’m not doing enough.

Typically people think FHA because it's what's thought of as the least amount down which is commonly the goal when we all get started.