Don't wait too long, because those gain may lose value based on time, trends, or rates.

You should be 100% fine as long as you do the proper research into your agents, pm's, etc...

Thanks Hey mate,You will get a much better ROI if you do it yourself.Higher cashflow and more equity in the deal.Plus, there is no such thing as "passive" even when investing in turnkey.You will still need to manage your portfolio and have a long term strategy in place.Wishing you much success

Homes like you are describing are a bit of a lifestyle for awhile (not a bad thing as long as you know that is what you are doing for the weekends and with your free money).   

First if you keep your existing home, you will probably have to use a property manager because of the distance. 

-Thinking about the long term, if I were to move out could I turn it into a duplex and rent out upstairs and basement separately? 

Is there a way to qualify a short term rental to offset the mortgage like you can with a long term rental? 

As long as covers the rate I would consider myself lucky, for the right property.

Rental history- larger unit- how long were they at the last place, big predictor or longevity. 

I would like to start local before trying long distance.