I would encourage house hacking, you won't be cash flowing but it helps you save while you get your foot in the door with low DP.

and if you don't have enough money to house hack in San Diego... save up until you do.and if you want to move somewhere else, house hack there. 

I am only in two syndications and my GP just refinanced us and got 5.7 I think plus 3 mil cash out that is going into further reserves..

There was an article published in Sept 2024 that showed the average consumer would save over $10,000 by working with a broker vs a direct lender over the life of their loan. 

You don't want to lose your rate on the house you are living in now unless you want to sell it so since that is an owner-occupied, you need to stay there and save up the 20 percent for the second property based on what you said.

They all cash flow and are easy to manage (so far).

Some high and lowlights:- I had one tenant that brought German cockroaches in and then blamed it on me- Same tenant asking if her daughter can visit but failed to mention it was 5 more very noisy people- another tenant having constant loud arguments with his gf- tenant saved some of my stuff when the house flooded due to a pipe burst and another time during a monster rain storm.

I'm not sure I'd want to go past 10 STRs ever and I'm trying to decide if it's worth Co-Hosting or just save up for the next one.

You can save a lot on costs if you do many repairs yourself.Look into hard money lenders or private lenders for the initial purchase and rehab.Connect with wholesalers, agents specializing in investment properties, and other BRRRR investors to find deals and learn more.

Keep building the business and focusing on saving money.