Johnson City could be a great spot for STRs, especially if you focus on hospital staff rotations, visiting professors, or traveling professionals, which would balance out any seasonal dips in tourism.For STRs, consider targeting weekend travelers exploring the Appalachian Trail, Boone Lake, or local festivals.

For instance, cities like Chicago are known for landlord-tenant laws that skew heavily in favor of tenants, and that risk should be baked into your underwriting.What’s your take on balancing short-term cash flow with long-term equity growth?

AND The balance on one statement is < 100 and other not enough to cover the first months rent and deposit.

There are significant details that I'm choosing to leave out regarding rent payments and balance left for the owner as you terminated the lease early. 

At the heart of effective property management lies the ability to balance the competing interests of three critical stakeholders: owners, tenants, and vendors.

Combining these strategies often gives investors the best balance of cost, simplicity, and security.

We will pay off a few more loans with smaller balances, even though they are lower interest than what we are getting on new acquisitions.

As noted, commission are always negotiable as are brokerage options (full service to discount companies that pretty much just post it on the MLS and you work with all calls, offers, etc) and an agent can go over likely net out scenarios with you and give you an idea what you likely will be able to net after closing expenses and paying off the mortgage balance. 

The idea is to find a pocket or neighborhood that offers the right combination of estimated ROI and rental demand, giving a balance of cash flow and tenant demand.In my view, this approach provides a more reliable signal of demand than relying solely on pricing adjustments or short-term market trends.

A six-month supply is typically considered a balanced market.