To improve your approval chances, use rental income from your first property, consider co-signers, and explore lenders that use Income-Based Repayment (IBR) for student loans.

When scouting for properties, explore areas on the west side as well as some parts of the east for potential opportunities.

This vary heavily town to town. 20% down is great if buying strictly as investment but if you have a way of owner occupying I would explore that route and apply the 20% down to increasing value of property and instead using low money down loan. 

@Ike Okwerekwu Recommend exploring as many sources as possible to get referrals AND cross-reference them to get as much accurate information as possible.Check out NARPM.com, BP’s Property Manager Finder (BiggerPockets: The Real Estate Investing Social Network), etc.Also, encourage you to learn from the mistakes of others - by reading posts here on BiggerPockets about owners not having their expectations met by their current Property Management Company.

@Steven NguyenThe BRRR method is a solid strategy, but careful planning is key.

While BRRRR works for scaling, explore turnkey rentals or creative financing in cash flow-heavy markets to accelerate growth.This post does not create a CPA-Client relationship.

I have heard the summer time season peak is not as large as the winter time but I would still think you would get travelers looking to explore the Colorado Mountains in the summer. 

I'm currently exploring opportunities in real estate, particularly in accounting roles.

However, they can sometimes be higher due to the additional risk taken on by the lender.With a hard money loan, you typically make interest-only payments during the loan term.No, you wouldn't owe any more interest beyond what has already accrued if you finish the project in 3 months and pay off the hard money loan earlyIt's great that you're exploring different strategies for your real estate investments!

If you are open to non-traditional methods of financing, you could use a debt service loan to bypass that requirement.