Nothing is a sure bet.

An experienced broker with lots of choices at the palm of their hand is probably the best bet.

I’m not a betting man.

If heat goes out in the winter we drop off several units, so they can be placed in different parts of the house - including every room with water like kitchen and bathrooms.We also have dehumidifiers, carpet blowers, shop vacs, puddle-sucker pumps, extra hoses, extra sump pumps with battery pack, squeegees, and portable AC units ready to deploy. 

Quote from @Brandon Foster: Hello Ryan,STR is do able in the north county area but there are a lot of rules and regulations.The city of Oceanside right now will not allow anything STR unless it’s west of pacific coast hwy.This is changing a lot too so you need to be aware of that in your plans.Carlsbad is super strict too but there are some condos that are still available to do STR in.Medium term rentals are as safer bet but way less profitable.

If they have money and can compete on pricing, brokers will be the best bet.  

I like this, bet on the jockey more than the horse kind of situation.

From there, you can research through zillow/redfin whatever but your best bet would be to find an investor/agent (I a one but based in Fort Lauderdale) who can guide you through the process.

I bet you'll learn just as much (if not more) for about 1% of the cost. 

I'm betting he'd drive to that area.