Are investors looking for individual STRs of either flavor, or is the appetite for larger portfolios of multiple STR assets? 

bryan made some good points, but you seem a little timid about the market...that being said it may not be the time for you to plunk down all your money and overleverage yourself with debts in excess of 1 million..lending may be an option, but it's also great to have the purchasing power to close all cash. personally, if i had a few hundred grand, i'd put it down on a larger multifamily complex..you can get a steal right now that will really set you up for the future.

I do not include utilities with my rentals as I find it easier to manage and less risk if prices go up or if there is excess usage.

However a normal healthy tree falls due to excessive water or wind it is whoever it falls on, at least in my state.

Every now and again I'm sure a 'pile' gets left (it happens at my house too), but if it was consistent and excessive my landscape guys would let me and I'd reach out to the tenant to correct the issue.

Depending on your appetite for it you could totally self manage.

It relates to the great depression because of spending and failing banks due to bank runs and poor investment strategies, the 1979–1988 time frame with high rates, and 2004-2008 excessive growth in home values in a short time.

@Andriy Boychuk Unless you are getting involved in a very big project --- like buying a factory or a 100-unit apartment ---  you probably don't need an attorney to spend excessive amount of time reviewing the loan documents.

Since my risk appetite is not one for large losses (even if rare), there is one piece of data would overrule all the other commonly talked about data points when deciding the best area to invest in, landlord-tenant laws.

@Adam Bosma thank you for your explanation and I will look more into it and see how it fits my portfolio but my current feeling that even though I am doing very well, I don't have a lot of excess cash that is just sitting in the bank.