BEST time of year to invest?????

[Eddie Werner]

Does anyone strongly oppose purchasing a rental property during the winter months? I have heard it can be much harder to get a tenant once the holiday season starts and when the weather turns cold. I want to move forward but I am still researching fluctuations in seasonal rental demand. If you find a deal during the winter months would you still move on it?

[J Scott]

If it's a great deal and if your strategy is a long-term strategy, then a couple months of (potential) vacancy shouldn't impact your decision to buy. That said, make sure you have the reserves to cover your worst case scenario...

Perhaps it would make sense to reduce rent below market and put a tenant in there for 6 months. You'd want to run the numbers to determine if that's more cost effective than waiting until the rental market picks up in the spring.

[Rob K.]

I've found that my best deals are made in December. While everyone else is Christmas shopping, I'm house shopping. My wife is one of those crazy people that gets all of the Black Friday deals.

If you make the deal in December, close in January, and now ready to rent in February, that's a good time. You're right in tax refund season and tenants have their once a year windfall and are prepared to move.

[David Beard]

It's a good time to purchase REOs held by local banks and credit unions. They love to get this stuff off their books by year end. Obviously, owner-occupants pose less competition as well, and even your investor competition gets "distracted" during the holiday season.

[Scott W.]

those tax refunds would be good to setup a rent-to-own program with a tenant as well.