My 2022 goal is to purchase my first single family unit back in the US to start putting money away for my son's (due in March) college education.

The hope is this discussion will be educational/helpful for all TK investors, but also be practical for those seeking the tools and resources to get into TK investing. 

Welcome to Atlanta Matthew, @Brenden Mitchum hit the nail on the head, he has a lot of experience in the ATL market and takes the time out to educate people.

The details are not as important as the education that comes with the first.

But recognize that if your agent is educating you along the way, and helping you to understand the market, even if you find one off market, they brought you value too and played a role in your success.

However, since it was listed as sub performing and only showed 8/25 a f the last payments, I figured maybe others that may make those purchases could help educate me on why they would do that kind of deal.   

What education do you have?

Put briefly, the "Education" tab at the top of the site has TONS of great first steps.  

I am new to real estate and feel the best thing to do to get started would be to continue to educate myself.

I had a rental property for 12 year before I recently sold for some profit, unfortunately for me I was not as educated then as I am now (and continuing to learn) with BiggerPockets and other investment educational opportunities.