I visited 6 apartment complexes this week across two Midwest metro area and saw only one EV, which was owned by the regional manager, not a resident.  

There are definitely pros and cons to each so I figured I would just lay out a few benefits and personal thoughts: Small banks/brokerages:Pros:- Some regional knowledge of the market- Possibility of more creative lending guidelines with bank specific programs- Sometimes they have competitive rates for their areaCons: - weak balance sheet (more strict on some guidelines, no wiggle room, inability to be flexible or grant exceptions because they cannot afford to hold less than perfect loans)- Can't scale with clients to different markets- Usually limits exposure to individual investors (they don't want one investor to be too big of a portion of their balance sheet)- Lack of experience with multiple solutions (tend to have 2 or 3 loan products they sell and are too niche to provide tailored solutions)Large banks/brokerages:Pros:- Large compliance departments that understand individual market guidelines (typically each state has specific lending guidelines that augment the national baseline)- Ability to scale into multiple markets with same lender (licensed in many states)- Impossible for individual investors to "outgrow" a large bank's balance sheet (not concerned with one investor's concentration)- More lending solutions available for different scenarios- Often comparable or better rates given the game is volume basedCons:- Can be more difficult to get fast responses if the bank/brokerage does not have good follow up systems in place (or if the underwriting/processing staff gets overwhelmed)- Bad large banks can feel less like a relationship and more like a cog in a factory (less personal)Overall, I have worked from both and worked with both as a loan officer, branch manager, and as an investor/client myself. 

They're open through the end of the year, which gives the area surrounding it 10-15% higher nightly occupancy than the regional average. 

I am weighing different strategies in the Chattanooga area and wanted to gain more insight into new construction cost structure in the region. 

Unfamiliar with Huntsville but heard great things about the Alabama coast and have several friends investing in the region..a healthy first step will be connecting with an investor focused and friendly lender. .check in with @Joseph Chiofalo he's my go to investor lender for 20+ years. 

. - 1 regional lender (Pima + 1 other county), 1 state-wide lender (AZ), and 1 national lender, not in that order, is represented here. 

Some are more regional or local builders.

Airbnb is also very region specific, so picking a place with low vacancy (high demand) is very important.

Often, you can negotiate purchasing the note in addition to the property if it is a local or regional lender.

I was going down to Belize next week to check it out through BuyBelize(Placencia region), I want to see about the real estate guys too.