You don’t just need a general admin—you need someone who understands tenant turnover, screening multiple tenants per unit, handling lease coordination, and managing communication between roommates (which can get messy fast).A solid VA for this model should be able to:Screen inquiries and prequalify tenants based on house rules.Manage listings on platforms like Facebook Marketplace, Zillow, and Roomster.Coordinate move-ins/move-outs and track leases for each tenant.Handle maintenance requests and keep an eye on potential conflicts between tenants.Chase rent payments if needed.If you’re thinking about hiring one, I’d focus on VAs with property management or co-living experience—not just someone who has worked in real estate generally.

Capital ExpendituresNo Property management because I manage my own.

that we’ve learned in our 24 years, managing almost 700 doors across the Metro Detroit area, including almost 100 S8 leases:Class A Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, 3-5 years for positive cashflow, but you get highest relative rent & value appreciation.Vacancy Est: Historically 10%, 5% the more recent norm.Tenant Pool: Majority will have FICO scores of 680+ (roughly 5% probability of default), zero evictions in last 7 years.Class B Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, decent amount of relative rent & value appreciation.Vacancy Est: Historically 10%, 5% should be applied only if proper research done to support.Tenant Pool: Majority will have FICO scores of 620-680 (around 10% probability of default), some blemishes, but should have no evictions in last 5 yearsClass C Properties:Cashflow vs Appreciation: Typically, high cashflow and at the lower end of relative rent & value appreciation.

would love some commentary from peer cities in the midwest especially property managers or STR managers.

The problem with apps running comps is that they can't see inside the homes (or smell them lol), or evaluate the exact location, or understand the local market on an intimate level to know what's next door or around the corner and predict the market value and ARV accurately like only an experienced local Realtor, appraiser or expert investor can.

If I were starting over as an out-of-state investor, I’d focus on building a strong network from day one—especially a great agent, property manager, and contractor.

A manager will roughly cost $100-$150 a month to take over a unit (it could be more or less in your market) and manage the units.

@Michael Baum how many Short-term rentals do you manage this way where you are on call all the time?

We manage them ourselves in VRBO and Airbnb.

Centralize your back office / use remote employees / VA where appropriate to cut costs and improve service levels / responsiveness.  5.