You can often get better rates with a national lender, but the customer service is non-existent, communication probably sucks, they may ask for the same documents multiple times, etc.

No but keep track of those repairs as it will add to your cost basis when you go to sell it and have to pay capital gains.

Your construction skills can give you a significant advantage, allowing you to save on rehab costs or even flip properties for capital.

I want to exit as I don't get any personal use from the STR being 20 mins from home and would rather apply the capital to another opportunity in multifamily (LTR) or another STR in Hawaii where my brother is a broker and now manages STRs.

Since new builds require upfront capital, you might not see immediate returns, but lower maintenance costs and higher rents typically make up for it long term.If you're serious about scaling with BTR, make sure you connect with experienced builders, property managers, and lenders who understand the strategy.

It might cause me financial harm as I have to sell more stocks and might pay short term capital gains vs long term capital gains.

If you’re interested in investing in real estate, you can consider doing so with a Self-Directed IRA to defer taxes on capital gains until you actually withdraw the funds from your IRA.

You also have to build in holding costs, investor capital, operating costs etc.

I'm also concerned older homes have already seen their biggest jump in capital appreciation and don't have as much potential for price growth compared to newer homes.What are your thoughts on older homes?

At least comparatively to properties in California, Washington, Montana and Idaho, investors seemingly still get a lot of value for their capital.