The STR Loophole (materially participate & less than 7 day rental) vs. providing substantial services.  

So we have legitimate rentals and we legitimately materially participate in the STR business too.

So here is the issue:I don't know how your market works, but I would argue that is a material fact to disclose to the next buyer.

Your best bet is to ensure that there are no material modifications that would in any way harm or even moderately delay the ability to rent it out and qualify as a normal SFR (one lease, one family) or sell on the market to an owner-occupant

I've been researching this quite a bit and am looking into acquiring an STR that I would actively manage and would keep average stay at 7 days or less. I would like to meet the requirement of spending over 100 hours o...

Water is short-term issue, it won't be a material one.

I have a knack for saving on materials while providing some unique flair that will stand out in the market. 

IMHO this isn't an acceptable trait in a flooring material. 

However, this is a difficult qualification to meet, especially if you have a full-time job outside of real estate.Don’t worry if you aren’t able to qualify for REPS status, because there is another strategy that is referred to as a “loophole”, which is the STR strategy.Per Section 1.469-1T(e)(3)(ii)(A): there are six exceptions where your rental property income is not automatically considered to be “rental activity” and thus may unlock the door for being able to offset these losses against your active income.The average customer use is seven days or less.The average customer use is 30 days or less and significant personal services were provided (for example, daily housekeeping).Extraordinary personal services are provided, regardless of the duration of customer use.The rental is incidental to a non-rental activity.The property is available during defined business hours for non-exclusive use by various customers.The property is used in an activity conducted by an S Corporation, partnership or joint venture in which the taxpayer holds an interest.If your property qualifies by meeting one of the exceptions above, the next step is to demonstrate material participation in the rental activity.

The bigger programs raised their rates ridiculously and provide a lot of generic outdated material.