If none, NY and NJ are not the best spot to "try" one as your buy-in is very high, cost is high, lag time is long, and competition is fierce.

You could try doing SRO for Short Term rentals as well, but that seems like it would be way more hands on and you may deal with headaches more often with people coming and going more often.Last, lets talk about how income works on STR vs Long Term Rentals (LTR). 

prices and rates are too high for most properties to cash flow. 

Three days to replace a shower seems a bit long. 

Things like 8% cap rates, and 10-15% cash on cash returns. 

Even small, common mistakes like renting below market, picking the wrong tenants, unwilling/unable to enforce lease terms, slow turnovers, or unscrupulous contractors can cost more than a good PM will charge, and that's before you account for your time and the stress.If you have the personality, I recommend self-management for anyone who lives within 1-2 hours of their investments.

I do have sufficient cash of our own in our bank accounts to show we could cover the mortgage for ~6 months if it was unrented.  

Or as the original poster put it- just don’t finance them and pay all cash, then you could do it with 40 luxury rentals at $10k a month.Now to rant - it’s great to have a goal, but start with one and see how it goes….

So long story short is am willing to do anything to get my first house

If a renter wants to extend for a few months their stay beyond the initial lease term, will I be a) required to extend and b) at the same rate as their existing rate?