I'm not surprised, but I have yet to find any literature/resources that confirms that one year is required...

Just Finished Investing with no and low money down, Set for Life, and The ultimate beginners guide to getting started would recommend every one of them!

You can do a member search on this site to find some local agents who can guide you with REO properties. 

I would be happy to share some resources with you if you'd like.  

The VERY best resource you could efficiently absorb is the @BiggerPockets .com podcast (https://www.biggerpockets.com/podcast). 

Being out of state, my knowledge of Atlanta is quite limited, and I'm hoping to get a better sense of the neighborhoods.Are there any good neighborhood guides to Atlanta or other resources that show crime rate, population growth, home values, etc of various cities and towns nearby?

Hi Dan, I don't have any particular resources on Section 8 rentals but there is a lot of information on the KCHA website.

When my resources ran out for this, I established a solo401K via Dmitryi's Sense Financial  and poured my IRAs into it.

Its truly hard to do well in this industry without someone taking you under their wing and guiding you through the process.

You might want to check out the free guides under the education tab above. legal?