I've established a very stable  I've determined that local properties should be my first choice and by local I mean within 1.5 hours of my primary residence.

Instead of contributing to retirement at work, put that money into the next house.

Rents will go up and your biggest mistake was to buy a nice house in a desirable neighborhood.The real threat is buying in the hood, leveraged up to the gills, maybe even with hard money, tenants are bleeding you dry, while you are writing checks to attorneys and contractors.Milwaukee is getting a lot of attention lately: cash flow is still better than most places and appreciation is stable at 5-8%.

.- LTR properties often have more stable income streams, but they might not offer the same level of cash flow as a well-managed STR.

I think this is the gift and the curse of a still emerging asset class (short term rentals) - as it becomes more "institutional" i.e. more like commercial real estate with more sophisticated buyers then financials and systems for this will likely become more streamlined and stable, but we are still in a place where the buyer pools are more newish investors or typically residential basic investors, so not has experienced or sophisticated evaluating investments based on a detailed financial analysis like more seasoned commercial investors likely would.anyways, just a guess on what might be going on here

Your former boss (retired) inspired you how?

My wife and I are excited to continue to grow our portfolio but neither of us truly want to "retire" early.

Also I do consider 8+% CoC plus appreciation a success - nobody is retiring on 2 STR purchases anymore.

Consider collaborating with local influencers or travel bloggers for exposure.Local partnerships: Connect with local businesses, wedding venues, or event planners for potential referrals.Targeted advertising: Use Facebook/Instagram ads to reach potential guests interested in Smoky Mountain getaways.Seasonality strategy: Adjust your pricing and minimum stay requirements based on local events and peak seasons.Long-term rental mix: Consider mixing in some medium-term rentals (1-3 months) during off-peak seasons for more stable income.Have you tried any of these strategies?

Can be profitable ,BUT, my experience as a hard money lender is that there are many companies operstimg in this field that aren’t very stable financially.