For starters, I recommend to begin with a single family home or if you are looking to start locally, do house hacking. 

FYI, we were able to get a 5.5% rate from their recommended lender with 20% down.  

Quote from @Brandon Croucier: Hi Kathy, at the end of the day the mortgage industry is so vast & wide it's essentially like trying to navigate the Sahara Desert.I highly recommend working with an experienced mortgage broker who knows the ins and outs of the industry to place you into the most competitive product for you.More times than not, people save money working with a small shop broker.Kathy,I wanted to revisit this to offer a a tad bit more and Brandon above is correct.

Let me know if you have any questions or need any recommendations.  

I recommend people only sell if (a) you can invest the capital in something that performs better, or (b) it aligns with your goals.

As @Nathan Gesner recommended, it's a bit early to worry about this!

Still narrowing things down, so I’d appreciate any recommendations!

I would recommend seeing what other STR's similar to yours are market as for number of guests.

Aside from downpayment, you want to have a solid emergency fund in place, something that can cover unexpected repairs, vacancies, or any other random costs that pop up.I’d also recommend saving more than you think you'll need and keeping a close eye on your expenses.

I would 100% recommend that in whatever market you choose to invest in , that you form a relationship with a good property manager, as that can make-or-break how well your LTR goes.