Design to me is just knowing what colors to use, what materials, and how to put it all together to make it look nice for the area. 

Is there a program that I can pick out materials from like home depot and it will automatically calculate it?

Houses follow different rules and price is often more related to new construction costs, so land scarcity, material and labor costs drive up house prices.

I have an option to put decomposed granite as the grounds material and I am trying to stay away from grass.

You'll either have to dedicate a material amount of your time or hire a professional advisor.

I have been using contractors and usually have them to include materials so I don't have a good breakdown on labor costs.I have 66 rentals and do 2 or 3 flips a year.

However, building cost to build ADU either in Raleigh or San Jose, are not really different, as labour cost and materials are similar4. which means, building/repairing something/anything in more expensive land area is very beneficial 

Yesterday Harvard announced they will have online courses for Undergrads @ $50k this coming fallhttps://theweek.com/speedreads/923878/harvard-undergraduates-pay-full-tuition-nearly-50000-completely-online-classes-fall$50k can be better spent on real estate with endless online free training material and maybe some mentorshipWhat can be going through these kids heads with an unstable economy, learning at home and unsure if a degree can guarantee them a career.

I did not have to buy any extra training materials to pass the test.I am probably going to put my license into holding until I am in a better financial position to actually start practicing (Which should be about a year from now).  

(this way you arent paying money for leads that dont materialize)Some ask me if they can advertise my listings, in the hopes of getting buyers.