But today I’ll settle for my W2 paycheck to live my “lavish” lifestyle. 

AKA, we could never rent this.I think it's entirely situational based on your location, lifestyle, family setup, ect.   

You can argue that nobody stays on welfare for $1,000 a month but the truth is there are a lot of people that take that $1,000 a month and then spend their free time hustling for cash, dealing drugs, or otherwise supplementing their lifestyle without Uncle Sam knowing.I used to work for the state.

for my wife and I its a lifestyle choice.. and the by product has been a nice living and a lot of freedom to choose who and where we work .. its hard work but its enjoyable ( most of the time)

Again, read WCI, posts about guys living paycheck to paycheck because of lifestyle creep when they are senior doctors.

My ultimate goal is to get out of the dealership and get into Real Estate full time as an agent and an investor to create the freedom and lifestyle I desire.

Put Wake County Raleigh NC suburbs on your list, do an airbnb and feel it out..also Jacksonville Florida suburbs (St johns county) for price, weather, investing, life style, rei numbers, schoolsif you do an airbnb for a week in each part of the suburb, you will often know the city better than long term locals..

I'm not selling my services, ie my rentals, at a substantial discount in order to subsidize a stranger's lifestyle, just because they're elderly.

Instead, why don’t the people do it the other way around where they figure out what kind of life do they actually want to live and then design their business to fit that lifestyle?

It's a lifestyle choice that we pay a lot for.