Spend LOTS of MONEY on mass marketingThe "rate locked affect" is limiting a large portion of the market and stopping transactions from happening.

@Catherine Curtsinger To play a little devil’s advocate I have been house hacking for 30 years.

This being said, in those other countries, you don't have the mass tourism that Mexico gets, which means you'll get lower occupancy which, alongside with a lower ADR, will give you much less income.

Their goals and upcoming upcoming purchases may come into play. 

That way since there is a connection to the basement there is not issue with you crashing down there.If you don't want to do something like that, I would cut the basement off from the first floor and just rent the first floor, leaving you the basement to crash in when you want.Or see about getting the basement made into it's own separate unit now that ADU are allowed in Mass (although the law may not kick in until the new year)Also your town may now require a certificate of occupancy to be issued before you can rent it out and they may have something to say about this basement connection anyway.Just my two cents as they say.

Quote from @Sebastian Bennett: It's funny because I actually had a dream of setting these up and seeing how this would play out lol

It's a really high-energy dog and I don't think they take it out often enough, so they play indoors a lot.

Like with anywhere else: location, pricing and the overall house you intend to build will play a factor in your profits.

So, you're not "wrong" in thinking it's complicated.The tax code plays heavily into how certain transactions are categorized and there is some flexibility regarding what we can capitalize versus deduct.

Preference is cash-flow, but open to appreciation/equity plays as well.