On top of this the seller is prepaying all my expenses through May to help me out so I can stack up some cash while I graduate college.

Mike, I can't tell you how much I agree with you.I also work at a college, and when I do exit paperwork for graduating students, I see that thier emails are still [email protected] and they wonder why there are no jobs out there!

You usually need to lock up the deal and get a lot of those things done during the process.Buying near your son's college would be a great idea if you plan on having him house hack there and manage or learn or use one unit as short-term or mid-term for when you visit. 

In order for Waco to realize its potential, they need more corporations that will provide an influx of jobs for college graduates and higher earners.

Since I'm still in college, new to property ownership, and unfamiliar with the Atlanta market, I’d appreciate any advice on maximizing my investment wisely.

It could be freedom from a W2, travel, new cars, college for the kids - whatever your dream is, focus on that.

Their concept is not new and has been around for ages with people renting rooms in college towns and more expensive markets (NYC, LA) however this is a centralized more hands off management approach to self managing by letting them do all the heavy lifting for you which allows you to scale in less time so yes the concept definitely works and even better with their technology behind it.

Quote from @Sebastian Bennett: Areas near college campuses are good places to begin as is Center City and south philly.

That is natural lifecycle of any learning, as you move from elementary to high school, to college. 

I'm considering SFH or Condo or townhouse to start with targeting local college/schools.