The current average rent on the new buy is $925.

I'm interested in flipping, and short-term rentals at the moment to build good cash flow, then pivot into more of a buy-and-hold/appreciation play 10-15 years from now.

Buying a house near the comps would be a bad deal since they would be buying at a premium.

This does not align with buying most buildings in cash.Once you progress in your investing efforts you may come across more UHNW individuals, family offices and institutions who would take the lower return for limiting risk (all cash deal).

Quote from @Rachel Vann: Investment Info:Other buy & hold investment.

Turnkey, buy-and-holds, flips, or something else?

Recommend you first figure out the property Class you want to invest in, THEN figure out the corresponding location to invest in.Property Class will typically dictate the Class of tenant you get, which greatly IMPACTS rental income stability and property maintenance/damage by tenants.If you apply Class A assumptions to a Class B or C purchase, your expectations won’t be met and it may be a financial disaster.If you buy/renovate a property in Class D area to Class A standards, what quality of tenant will you get?

And there are no counties that ban out of state investors buying investment properties.  

Joint ventures entail utilizing your own money to buy properties with others.

.: As a contractor and flipper, I dont buy materials from retailers or online.