@Lyle Cooper, Much depends on your adjusted cost basis in the property (your original cost plus capitalized improvements minus depreciation). 

I can just provide the list of all the inventory and improvements that I made for the property and depreciate everything in lump sum.

If you want to build a good portfolio of highly profitable STRs, buying a 3 bedroom or making compromises on size and location when in 6 months you can save up enough to improve both, feels like an early mistake.

.- Limited upside (no sweat-equity)Pros:- No improvements are needed.- More longevity (Easier modeling of CAPEX)- More lucrative/easier to rent.Did I miss anything?

And it's great that you're so open-minded to remotely owning out-of-state real estate.The Northeast has a lot of high-paying jobs - the best thing you can do is save your income, then take that capital and re-deploy it to Southern STR real estate.I'd strongly suggest NOT getting a property manager (waste of money) & always looking for ways to innovate & improve - there's a lotta money to be made in this game!

If you made improvements during your house hack and increased the value, you might then be able do a VA refi if you had remaining benefits.

Considering selling and upgrading to a larger home that has lower HOA fees to improve cash flow.  

They spent a few months working on it and improving various things, mainly cosmetic.

@Davidson Francois I ask about it being new because the first year the home exists the assessed value is based only on the land, not the improvements (the house). 

Are you buying something with potential to improve performance or something stabilized?