Also make sure you have quality insurance with an umbrella policy.

It’s a short dead end road so I have this notion to own the whole street and control the look and quality of the neighborhood . 

Appliances supplied mean better rents and a higher quality tenant.The location of the rental and the type of tenant you want will dictate what you supply.Finding a good supplier of new appliances will get your cost down to the point that used doesn't make sense.

@Joy McQuearyRecommend you first figure out the property Class you want to invest in, THEN figure out the corresponding location to invest in.Property Class will typically dictate the Class of tenant you get, which greatly IMPACTS rental income stability and property maintenance/damage by tenants.If you apply Class A assumptions to a Class B or C purchase, your expectations won’t be met and it may be a financial disaster.If you buy/renovate a property in Class D area to Class A standards, what quality of tenant will you get?

I get quicker responses, guidance, relationship building, more trust, and overall feel like their quality is a lot better in terms of inventory/customer service.

Plus, it gives you more control over quality and timelines.

I had the sense to record the conversation with himself and the project engineer and the audio quality is quite good.

Take for example the lack of productivity where construction projects often experience time and cost overruns, rework or quality concerns. 

You haven't given many details so it's difficult to give you a quality answer for your situation.

If you ask nicely and promise not to share, you can usually get good financial information on the properties that are currently operating as a STR.If you're just starting out looking, you may not be aware of just how many cabins out there are poor quality builds due to the lack of codes.