However, I would defer to architects for a definitive answer.Sometimes it's just that an architect doesn't want to be told what to do by a contractor.

There are definitely some near you.

While there are definitely house hacks that have allowed owners to live for free and show positive cash flow the current interest rates and prices make those less common.

That being said, one of the walk ups ended up being a great tenant for another property I had, so definitely not all bad assuming it’s in a decent neighborhood. 

When it comes to taxes, both Enrolled Agents (EAs) and Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) can definitely help you out and are interchangeable.

I recommend AirDNA subscription for picking and evaluating both markets and individual properties, a little pricy, but if you are taking the investing seriously and with a long-time horizon, definitely worth it in my opinion

I'm always looking for some automation tools (I would be happy with basics like email management), but I definitely needed some resources to better understand it all.

Quote from @Charlie MacPherson: They seem like the textbook definition of time wasters and as an agent, time is your most precious resource.Unless they want to pay you a strong hourly rate for submitting - and let's call them what they are - garbage offers, tell them to lose your number.I am very tempted.

It definitely took more than planned to get started.

The forums are great but tax pros here don't know all the ins and outs of your specific situation so it's hard to give definitive answers.Do the house hack though!