I bought the home just over two years ago when interest rates were at an all-time low.

The previous leasing company confirmed the resident had paid their rent on time every time.

I'm not sure how to articulate it but, basically this bit of knowledge saves me a bunch of time and kind of surprised it hasn't come up in any of the books, articles, or videos I've been learning from.

Blown out of proportion or a real concern?

New to real estate investing.  

We recognize the value of your time.

Hi,I'm pretty new to the real estate space.

I'm currently spending time learning as much as I can from various resources including books here on BP, accumulating capital and structuring my strategy. 

This is the best way to start becoming a real estate investor in my opinion, I did the exact same thing by taking out that HELOC to buy a new one. 

Finally a LTR furnished is often furniture only, no furnishings, no dishes, no linens or towels, while a MTR would most often include the same furnishing as a STR.