My first place was a condo while in grad school for the reasons you mentioned.

We currently have a major shortage of inventory in this area, so it's not really a matter of "where the best place to buy", but more a matter of "can you find a house you like and actually purchase it?".   

@Kaleb Phillips you could pay for a mentor, but not many good ones worth what they charge.Everything you need to know is actually on the internet, much of it here on BP.Recommend working backwards: What results do you want?

The reason for my question is how to deal with the depreciation that I took already under my individual 1040?

We are not Texas residents that's the reason were looking at major cities only.

The only reason to me is more bookings.

By consistently adding value and actually bring some fresh/new ideas to BP STR forum. :) Seriously though the more you show up and add value, people realize you can help them out. 

- How do you know they will complete in a reasonable amount of time?

To me, it seems like a very reasonable way to pay as little interest as possible for the longest amount of time. 

While it may seem like a simple concept, it's actually a very complex process that requires significant documentation as well as specific methodologies.