I run a vacation rental company with about 50 homes under management, but I also have a nonprofit management background.

Get your hands a little dirty, and a little experience managing a project.

@Kevin Wattenbarger, I know this post is old, but I'm currently trying to put something like this together for an agency debt application.

@Eli Joffe the most general but applicable advice in your situation is to start focusing on high cash-flow properties with low equity growth potential in the beginning in order to have the cash to boot strap.Once you have a few properties under your belt, then start phasing in nicer homes which tend to be lower cash-flow with higher equity growth potentialThe former helps you boot-strap using more labor and the latter helps build wealth more passively and with less tenant struggles.

Can you recommend any local property management companies that specialize in student housing?

This is mainly because of the distance - I will have to find a reliable property management company.

Since I still have all my connections and family and friends over there, it’s fairly easy to manage long distance from NY.

IDKCurrently considering opening a FB business account and posting my rentals as a sponsored listing with an FB allowed link to my property manager's application webpage. 

Should I keep it or rent it out unfurnished (w/ management I will cut even or loose like $100 per month cash flow)? 

I use this to replenish consumables - toilet paper, trash bags, paper towel, soaps, etc.It's important to also note that I overstock a lot of these consumables so the guest should want for nothing when staying so to me it seems like a fair trade.I have also just started testing out the Management Fee function in Airbnb to spread charges over the nightly rate.