Unless you have boots on the ground there (friend or family, not the agent), it will be very hard to manage.

Be friendly :), it's always good to form relationships with the city. 

If you haven't already connected with an investor-friendly lender yet I'd highly suggest that.

I remember a friend of mine a few years back who tried something similar in the outskirts of San Antonio.

Mid-term is more likely to work in any market than STR, but I think you would be surprised at how well an STR could do if there are no other options like that in the area (think people's parents or friends coming in for the week(end)).I've seen a lot of people grimacing at the net-negative house hack (it's just a product of rates and low inventory in a lot of markets) and this is one option to try to recoup some of that loss.

First advice is always go to friends and family with this deal and try to come up with the cash to buy outright.

A friend of mine had a client who successfully partnered with a regional claims adjuster, and it brought consistent bookings for months.2.

AI tip 2: a friend of mine wrote an app (beta) for landlords to market themselves on a regular basis by soliciting reviews from tenants.

It’s great to hear that you’re exploring real estate opportunities in Jacksonville, especially with your focus on Class B properties and military-friendly options.

Gather emails with something like Stayfi, use a qr code to have guests follow you on socials or leave their emails in a sign up for discounts coming back, use a Meta Pixel on your direct booking website or landing page and then do a retarget ad campaign to them, offer "Family and Friends" promo codes to guests when they come back through an auto message a couple of weeks after they have left, etc. are some that I use.