In addition, most bank owned properties have no assignment clauses in them and often deed restrictions from reselling for a period of time. 

Are there any restrictions on whether I can use it for other expenses or should they stay in that account? 

Of course, with all things, the answers to all these matters will depend on the circumstances.California tends to have more laws on the books and requirements and restrictions that it can be a good idea to form a CA LLC for out of state property so that you as a CA resident are covered, and to try to have your contracts fall under the purview of CA courts.

Are there any STR owners that would like to chime in on being aware of any other area in Duval county restricting STR's ? 

State income taxes - IntuitAnother factor to consider when choosing a city is rent restrictions.

First, check with your HOA to make sure they don’t have any restrictions on acquiring tenants (or roommates in your case).

More and more we're seeing a lot of this evolution spill over into MTRs as well, especially as jurisdictions have banned or restricted STRs and those owners pivot to the midterm rental space.

We do not run into any issues, but I would make sure your area doesn't have any restrictions on STRs! 

This is very limiting when buyer get multiple offers.I have the funds to buy with cash, but I am not sure how a DSCR or Cash out refi would work, and if it would limit my future funding to the point of being overly restrictive.

What I can say is that the headlines about the difficult tenants and rent restrictions cause issues or a small fraction of property owners - but you'll never hear about the 99% of cases where tenants are paying on time and respect their landlords' properties. if I'm in your shoes, in terms of recommended criteria, I would opt for looking for strongly appreciating areas and not just monthly cashflow.