I think it is easier to find a deal if you are house hacking since your deal doesn't need to be a home run; it just needs to be better then the alternative (paying rent).

is there an alternate use to put in there following the restaurant. 

As an alternative you could look for a walk-out, lock-off basement and add a small kitchen/kitchenette down there to have your own space away from your housemates.

I have used Hardie board under the LVP and had much better results, but it drives up the cost.It is cost-effective and there are not a lot of good alternatives at the price point. 

New FSBO type companies will pop up offering a broker alternative to sellers4.

As you have experienced this is the nature of these transactions.

Continuing with the example above the government then decided to provide an alternative to setting the building ablaze.  

Answer: No, buying an STR doesn't change the nature of historical passive losses on other LTRs you own and carried forward from prior tax years 

Sources for insurance and property taxes: Insurance - ValuePenguin, State Property Tax Rates - Rocket Mortgage.Low risk of natural disaster: Natural disasters can devastate your property and the surrounding community, leading to job losses and the closure of shops and businesses.

I, like most posters here, have a natural bias toward our area of investment/financial/business interest.