I would get ready for other options as well.

Alternatively, I could hope that my next assignment will be in a better market with more options, maybe lower rates, and more cash on hand.Should I accept that no market is perfect and get in the game now, or hold out for a year to enter a potentially better market with more capital to invest?

Seek out a mentor who has invested in real estate to offer advice and encouragement.Determine your target market, available funding sources, and acceptable level of risk before formulating an investment plan.

STR that do the best have a target audience based on the the surrounding options that improve the vacation experience.

Take all that out of the equation and you have two options.

People are grossly over paying and I can source much stronger deals off-market.

We have good products for under 30 days and over 6 months, but not a lot of great options for between.  

By "partial" I mean renovating the kitchen and bathroom, painting the place, re-tiling the floor and maybe adding some smaller features that can make a difference to prospective buyers, such as new A/C units, new internal doors, or maybe even sell the place furnished (home staging is not really an option here); with no or minimal demolition, and hopefully without electricity or plumbing issues.

It's just another source to vet info from (only it's from a ton of investors compiled information over all spans of time). 

From what I was told by a Chase lender, most institutions use the same underwriters, who implement this 2 year requirement.I understand that private lending could be an option, however, I'm not sure who would lend to me with favorable terms based on my lack of real estate experience.