Would the 9-year balloon concern you, knowing you'd need to refinance or pay off the balance at potentially higher market rates in the future?

I'm looking forward to the future with everyone!

It’s a great tool to remember for your future scaling goals.

With the future being so uncertain I realized there was a need to do more than just rely on my job for financial security. 

Interestingly I saw they’re still in existence with a stock price of $3,105 per share.  

Your taxes are none of the ex wife's business and this would seem to address your concerns.I would also put her on notice that future requests for financial discovery will be two-way and if a discrepancy is seen in the other direction you will seek support from her.

My concern is whether I’d then be locked into only larger deals in the future. 

Most STR markets have seasonality, and there are untold issues in the future that will effect cashflow. 

My only concern to look out for is that things can go 'rural' pretty quickly if you start venturing outside of town, and most lenders are going to put the brakes on financing if the appraisal lists the property as 'rural' (has to do with what they perceive as the availability of future tenants).Watertown, NY - It probably is as good as you believe, but the lending licensing is pretty tricky up there, so its just  bit more difficult to find lenders that operate up there.

You might use the word in the future to explain your idea.