Having onsite support while you're away will make your experience a lot more successful.As far as your question on the location, research what things in Atlanta your property is convenient to.

I'm in Connecticut and make all tenants remove snow except for my big building that has a huge parking lot.The reason is money, convenience, and legal. 

I'm most interested in the online option just because of the convenience and well why not lol.

You could move your radius out a bit and find more affordable properties with equal amenities and convenience. 

"Gary" - I love that you conveniently created an account on Bigger Pockets on June 3, 2018 just to write this post. 

I always recommend starting within convenient driving distance.  

Feel free to pick my brain at your convenience. 

The trade-off is the convenience- with TK, you don't have to do a thing, whereas if you buy a property that needs work you have to go through the process of rehabbing.

They just want a quick, easy sale, and they are willing to discount the price drastically for this convenience.

Also, if you do decide to relocate to SoCal and rent from a standard 1 year lease isn't enough to cover your expenses, maybe you could Airbnb your condo for increased rental potential (and additional effort)I understand these ideas may not be ideal or convenient but digging yourself out of debt is never easy.