I'm looking to buy a house in this area and rent out part of it on airbnb. I'll be living in a small part of the house for probably just the first year. I'm a minimalist and don't have a lot of personal stuff, so this doesn't bother me. I'd love to hear from anyone who's had experience with STRs in this area, or more specifically has experience house-hacking with this strategy. I'm completely new to this, so I'm soaking up advice! Thank you!

I love catching myself being judgemental. I wouldn't have thought to put the words "news anchor", "nerd", and "minimalist" in the same category, but that's my bad.  Go you!  Can't wait to watch your progress!

Sounds like you have a plan, so I say keep moving forward! That's a perfect area for STR!

Thanks, @Anna Catron ! I'm excited. It's an adventure, for sure! I know what you mean about catching yourself being "judgmental". I think it's human instinct. Thanks for your encouragement. I sure wish I had gotten into this game a LONG time ago, but I'm trying not to focus on that and instead use all my skills to dive into it now. I have SO many questions about STR in this area, so I just keep seeking out answers and advice. As I said, I'm a sponge right now; soaking in all the knowledge and wringing out the naysayers! HA!

Ooooh, that's good, wringing out the naysayers!!  There are so many, and so many in our own heads!  We all wish we'd started earlier, except maybe Scott Trench, but here we are moving forward NOW!!!