From my own experience when I first started investing in real estate 5 years ago, I was more focused on growth as opposed to loan pay down. 

When this was discussed at the last HOA meeting 2 weeks ago, only 18 lot owners out of 65 total were represented on the meeting, about half of the attendees were good to allow STR’s while the other half were opposed.

From what I've read he prefers buying businesses as opposed to Real Estate. 

If you are really trying to give a high end vibe then I would lean towards locally produced items like some of the suggestions above as opposed to Costco bulk stuff, although you also have to weigh in the ROI of that, so it would likely only make sense at the high end. 

Inspect and take detailed photos of every room in the unit, and the exterior as well. 

As Josh noted above, it's really all about proper tagging and making sure each expense is categorized properly and coded to a specific property.one other tip is using an accounting system, you should be able to attach receipts as opposed to having paper receipts. 

Things to keep in mind:  1. clean the dryer vents right through to the exterior exit.  2. make sure the tenant is paying for water and electric--if not, boost the rent to compensate for your higher utility bills. 3. have it professionally installed. 4. install an electronic leak detector. 5. make sure your lease explicitly states your appliance condition and repair rules (whatever they may be).

The wife is very adamantly opposed to debt (Dave Ramsey).

Exterior matters a ton.

In 15 months since I booked the property, Wagner has provided me with an exterior photo of just the first property, and I probably wouldn't even have known that there is no progress made on the other property if I had not visited the site myself recently.