The goal would be to spend more time with my family and not have to travel for work in 7 years.

What about a really small condo in the heart of Denver that you can furnish and rent to traveling nurses?

And echecks/ACH can have up to 60 days to yank the money back which surprisingly is the same length as this supposed booking.If you were going to do midterm, multi-month rental such as traveling nurses, then be in that market.

It took us around 8 months to complete the rehab because we were traveling on weekends to the property.

and also go to new home developments that have show homes.this is what my wife and I do when we travel.. or even in town.. to keep up on trends etc. of course being agents we can get into any listed property ( as long as we follow showing instructions).. 

My style has been to offer a small amount of leniency, a good dose of patience (meaning I let people acclimate to forming paying rent on time as a habit) and then finally, zero mercy when it is finally time to let someone go.

Once you have identified a team that you know, or get to know - and trust - your involvement will truly be passive.Leverage a quality, and proven, teams’ experience.Let your co-owner partners run the business so that you can spend your time elsewhere, doing what you love whether that’s volunteering, making more money, traveling, having experiences, being with loved ones - you name it… all while your money multiplies and your team works for you.Now on to the Tax benefits:A great way to shelter income as an owner, partner, or limited partner of a cash flowing multifamily (apartment community syndication) asset is to utilize cost segregation in the 1st year of ownership. 

From the exercise I'm also building a habit to do due diligence coz it's the BIGGEST mistake a newbie can make in my opinion. to get better understanding and give me confidence for out-of-state investment so I don't regret it.More thoughts on your suggestions: Don't buy in the roughest neighborhood in the urban core.

Personally, there are many avenues to travel, other than MLS - keep searching!

We furnished and rented to traveling nurses.