You'll simply sit vacant for a few months, lower the price then get a tenant.

The implication is your ex-wife cannot simply choose to stay beyond a 60 day notice.  

Leverage will not change the effort or risk in the areas OP identified.  

I found similar patterns between all 5 companies: namely, they had taken on too many units, were over-charging me for things I didn't need, and weren't handling issues correctly (they would send out vendors who didn't know what they were doing, mis-diagnose issues etc.)No disrespect to the PMs on this chain or BP in general, but any third-party manager won't perform exactly the way you would like them to simply because of the constraints they are faced with as far as having so many units and owners to keep tabs on. 

(Hands-off or hands-on.)I like STRs as a way to make money while you wait for a property to gain value, but at least for us, cash flow is simply the icing.

There is a lot of variability in this answer and, like all things in real estate, it simply depends. 

While I’m more financially stable, that hasn’t translated into feeling more secure—I simply take bigger risks now.That said, I’m incredibly proud of what I’ve accomplished.

Below are some actionable steps I plan to take after identifying a market:- find a rock star agent by referral and/or calling brokerages and asking to connect with their top producing agents- find a rock star contractor by referral and/or yelp- have control over construction by setting per diems to incentivize contractor to finish the project on time, within budget, and with good quality- leverage my rock star agent's time to check up on the construction process (checks and balances)- hire independent handymen/inspectors to check up on the construction process for a flat fee (checks and balances) There's competition everywhere, you won't escape that in any market. 

I've found deals in local online groups on Facebook, simply asking people for what I want. 

I thought this was simply the right thing to do and did not give a second thought to undergoing this process until after the repairs were completed.