Pinellas County is a huge draw because we have so many beautiful beaches.90+% of my buyer business this year has been out-of-state investors buying vacation homes that they will rent out or pure short-term rentals. 

Now we need to cover the 10% that is pure air for closing costs, commissions I pay, and other costs, when it sells.

They are more emotionally driven and look at the property as their home and not purely business like you do.Also, buyers are using them to park their cash.

I've had clients recently purchase cashflowing SFH and condos in Oakland - and they even have enough leftover to purchase second property as a pure rental. 

Is it based purely on the amount owed vs equity in the property after paying off the investor?

It has worked out more so in my favor by pure luck since I've been able to keep a few coworkers as room mates in my spare bedrooms, which has greatly increased my income since January 2016.

Concerning not seeing a need to live in an investment property and house hack this MAY be true, but if you're working on building the capital to invest, an FHA 3.5% down payment for an owner-occupied property versus 20% down for a pure investment property can be a significant motivator.

I woukd say that my preferred method is private money in a partnerahip purely because of the freedom you have.

Pure vacation rentals where you would find an area like Ludington, Traverse City or remote location with nature or vacationing items to do.

Work on paying off the mortgage in full before moving on to buying pure investment property.