How about showings for vacant properties if you are a DIY investors that live outside the state. 

I run a real estate data venture that pulls from various private and public sources and curates these reports, so it's not a simple answer.Social Sentiment: Search demand and what people are saying online.Neighborhood Class: Cleanliness, crime, graffiti, and overall health.Demographics: Identify market segments & trends.GDP & Economic Growth: County-level GDP changes to assess economic vitality.Poverty Metrics: Analyze economic challenges.Construction Activity: Easily predict market supply.Occupational Diversity: Forecast housing & commercial needs.Education Insights: Understand community stability.Real Estate Trends: Identify property value & rental cycles.Houston was just a place where I felt like sharing some knowledge.

Often the equity partner has a lot more risk in the venture (losing all the investment money) where the work partner could walk away with the loss of time and effort.

Is DIY cost segregation allowed?

If you have a  solid reserve and lose  a bit of money (like about 2000)  still it would be worth to get the experience and  network with first flip.. or first flip see if you can do a  joint venture with a successful and very experienced investor or flipper

I live in the area but don’t venture out that way too often.

Embracing the investor mindset is crucial for anyone venturing into real estate.

My friend ran into some unexpected zoning issues when he started adding RV spots, which set him back a few months.Since this is your first STR venture, it might be helpful to connect with others who've walked this path.

Joint Ventures (JVs): Partner with other real estate developers, construction companies, or financial backers to co-develop projects.

Private lenders for sure and also joint ventures with other investors to pool money and  resources