To the mystification of newcomers, we are consumed with which area code we have.

Ironically, though I was trying to help it...instead, it helped me. 

I've long heard that a house is a money pit, the ironic corollary to the adage that one's house is your best investment.

This is because 1) while San Diego has outstanding long term appreciation in the shorter term there have been numerous flat or down cycles 2) Selling costs will consume some of the profit.  

Yes those tasks arent necessarily hard but they are time consuming.

I'd highly recommend you do this early on since it is much more time consuming to transfer accounts later. 

Start by consuming as much knowledge as you can. 

Does anyone recommend an online store to order from (Direct to consumer type).

Content you put out today can be consumed months or even years from now, this is a long game, not an instant gratification game.

Ironically that is how I found the agent to work with me on the buy side of all my units out there.