STRs also have the seasonal aspect to it for the winter time in COS and long term rentals are steady. 

Great for Iowa winters.  

I love the idea of fix & flip right now @Abigail King, especially right now here in Chicago and I am sure it is similar for you in central Illinois -- it's winter so there are way less buyers and if you can get under contract soon you can likely rehab over the winter months and hit the spring market!   

My husband and I (ok...my husband) are pretty handy, so we aren't afraid of doing a lot of work ourselves, and I know dealing Iowa winters will mean we need to take some precautionary measures, but it seems like low cost of entry for investing (we just got our first SFH this fall)

Rents that are significantly lagging market go up $75.I chose the Winter timeframe because no one wants to pack and move during the holidays and cold.

Be humble, be honest, be direct and HAVE FUN.

Markets generally slow during the fall/winter season.

Also you'll need to winterize a vacant property in the Midwest. 

Regardless; real estate is my dream and working with others on their deals has been so fun!

Sounds like a fun project.