Im based here in Saint Joseph, next town South of Benton Harbor, and work full-time as a real estate agent in the area.I just wanted to jump in and say hello, and share a few quick insights that might help as you're scoping things out:Benton Harbor City proper is very tough for STRs — highly regulated and not the easiest place to start.Benton Harbor Township is very flexible and a pleasure to work with.Also, many investors look at neighboring coastal townships:Hagar Township (just north of BH) – Very STR-friendlyLake Charter Township (a couple towns South of BH)– Also wide open and a strong marketSouth Haven and surrounding townships – More restrictive, often require multiple day minimum stays and may limit frequency of rentals to once a week turnover MAXIMUM.

One thing I did not see brought up that i was curious about is; what you have found works best for payment frequency/amount? 

If aesthetics and space allow, adding a second solid-core door at the top landing (essentially creating an airlock vestibule) can make a massive difference, as it interrupts soundwaves and significantly reduces speech and music frequencies from transferring through.While you want to avoid carpet, consider adding acoustic stair tread overlays made of dense rubber or foam.

The larger 4 br up to 7 are still bookings 2-3 months out of longer for holidays and peak times, but not as far out or at as much frequency as it was in the past.

How often do you clean your HVAC vents dryer vents for your long term rentals? Thank you.  

They will also analyze trash flows to “right size” capacity and frequency for my multifamily.

And I always felt that compared to many other markets there was a greater frequency of this issue in BC.I don't say all this to dump on your market.

Curious about how often you are washing comforters on beds in your STRs?

Timing & Frequency Matter:If you sell a single home occasionally, you may avoid dealer status.

Since I list some of my (very few - I only have 3 residential units and my commercial ones are all managed by others) units every 2-3 years, I forget how to do it, and even standard operating procedures change a lot at that frequency, rendering them much less useful.