Concerns with Purchasing a Rental with a Lease to Start in Winter

[Jamie Mathieu]

I am almost ready to make an offer on my second rental property.  Based on where we are in the year, the rental lease would start Dec 1st realistically.  All of the numbers are strong and the property fits perfect with my strategy.  The property is in Canton in Baltimore, Maryland (for any locals that may be familiar) and will attract young professionals, not necessarily families.  So, my only concern with purchasing this property is the timing of the lease.  I had originally wanted all of my properties to have leases starting in spring or summer.  I could offer a shorter term lease for more money (6 or 9 months) to reset the lease cadence at some point in the future to mitigate the risk.  Any advice is appreciated!

[Ned Carey]

I assume your concern is it would be harder to find a new tenant if the lease renews in Dec. However I would think someone would be less likely to leave in Dec also.

The truth is there are trade offs and there is likely no perfect answer.  Even if you were to come up with statistically the best answer, with only two properties your results are going to be so random that it will not make a difference.