There was an STR boom when many people bought homes here thinking they could have passive income, but that is not the case here as much as it is in places like Asheville (which is still seasonal, but not as much).

Rentals generate passive income, so an S-Corp offers no added tax benefit.

Also, focus on 2 years of job/income stability.Class D Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, all cashflow with little, maybe even negative, relative rent & value appreciationVacancy Est: 20%+ should be used to cover nonpayment, evictions & damages.Tenant Pool: majority will have FICO scores under 560 (almost 30% probability of default), little to no good tradelines, lots of collections & chargeoffs, recent evictions.

@Derick JenningsRecommend 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 I would love some passive income or at least someone to pay my mortgage until we can pay it off maybe.

Instead of a 1 to 1 ratio, the required ratio can be 1 to 1.2 or 1 to 1.25.More on DSCR loans: DSCR loans won't use your income to underwrite the loan.

That gives you options to expand, hold, or sell land if the income isn't there. 

Embarrassingly, I listed our property with the usual $50 pet fee (which can only be $35 now) and asking for income 3x rent (which is now 2x).

I have been investing in trust deeds for over a decade and will continue to do so because I believe this is one of the best ways to invest your retirement funds.

You get a Capitalization Rate (CAP Rate), which equals your annualized return by dividing the Net Operating Income (you had gross in your narrative) by the purchase price.