I.e. if you bring in partners, you are splitting your profits.  

Having a patio or a deck in a home will always bring more value.

Unless you plan to pair it with a construction division or can build out a brokerage and the property management is utilized to bring in and/or retain business, it's not a great business to be in if you plan to manage 3rd party assets.

I just get the feel that you have spent more time on zillow than you have walking properties. 

, or you feel it's more hassle (liability, tenants complaints, etc) than benefits?

That being said if you feel we can help - do reach out, would be glad to help and give further guidance on do’s and donts based on my 5 years of experience working with dozens of VAs overtime.

This one is tricky because not only is it "tenants" but it is family so they will feel more entitled to the house, more than normal. 

She lives in Oregon, and after taxes and other things taken out of her check she brings in $4,800 a month.

Feel free to ask any more questions as you delve deeper into the world of real estate investing!

I do not want to go into another vacation market but rather a metro area with a more diversified economy again just to get into a different type of asset.That being said I do want to continue to short term rent the next few properties we get at least in the first few years of ownership in order to increase cash flow to combat these higher prices and carrying costs before potentially converting to more passive long terms down the line.Therefore I am looking for markets that 1) have a decent draw of visitors year round 2) have regulations that allow strs in some parts of the city 3) Are in growing cities in the west or south.Below is a list of markets I have identified as potential places to look and I was hoping to get some insight from either other investors doing the same thing or agents/investors in any of these markets on whether this is potentially a good market to explore or not.1) Salt Lake City (this is right at the top of my list due to its proximity to ski resorts, expanding of the airport and long term strategic business planning of the area but I have very little knowledge of this market)2) Denver 3) Phoenix (used to live in AZ and like the fact that the state of AZ seems to look favorable on strs)4) Tucson (see above but lower home prices/potentially less appreciation)5) San Diego/LA (these are attractive because of their proximity to my home in Irvine)6) San Antonio (love that it is very close to the booming Austin and feel that this is a market that could see some real growth in the future)7) Tampa/St Pete (I have always been very interested in this market for both short term and long term rentals)8) Raleigh (have invested in Charlotte and love NC but again very little knowledge on this area)Any insights or advice on any of this would be greatly appreciated.