I just started my first co-hosting business as well.

I'd recommend you seek a real estate attorney who is familiar with  real estate investing and start there.

My goal is to become a long-term rental investor, but I would like to start by doing a couple of fix and flip properties here in San Antonio.

I mean, nothing is foolproof...but that will get you started in the right direction. 

Hey Francis,This is a great place to start! 

What are some of the considerations or pitfalls to this strategy where we would start renting a single family residence out, then convert to our primary residence after ~5 years.

We want to get the renovation start immediately.

I'm looking for other investors in the high desert that are willing to meet up and potentially start a partnership.

I am just starting out my REI journey and still learning the ropes of everything. 

Quote from @Kiefer Cheney: Thankyou everyone for your responses,  it might seem a little weird that I want a software to track everything when I have only 1 rental but even if It helps me just a sliver it makes a world of difference for me and plus I also want as much time as I can get to mess around with software and perfect it before I have a bunch of rentals  If you plan on getting more rentals in the future, then you are on the right track of starting with good software now that can grow with you