Month to month vs. 12 month lease

[Jon Klaus]

I know some of you are only doing month to month leases for flexibility and control. But what do you do if you have a really good prospective tenant who "needs" a longer term? Perhaps they just left their last rental early because it was sold or foreclosed on. Do you make exceptions to your month to month leases?

[Loc R.]

Jon,

I normally try to lock in good tenants as long as possible, and in exchange for an extended term (2 years+), offer them to lock in their rent for that period. The extra 3-7% that I miss out on is made up by not having the turnover, which is very expensive.

I also try to get them to sign 1 year leases as a bare minimum. If they're not stable enough to stay for 1 year, they're not stable enough for me.

Finally, I have gotten all my rentals now to where they expire in late June or July. July/August is the best time to find tenants. You'll have the largest pool to choose from.