It's usually better to earn $200 less a month for one year than to sit vacant for two months, particularly in the winter.Consider a bigger drop for a 6-month lease to get through winter, then increase rent or find a new renter in the spring when competition is hotter.

I started last year and now I have acquired tow duplexes with two apartment buildings under contract.

I will split a giant master room into two smaller rooms and will convert the living room to get the additional three rooms.

In the current environment, it might make sense to rent for a year or two before you commit to a purchase.

How cool.Well, It's because I was seen as a player, a closer (meaning I close on deals I put under contract).I said, "I didn't know you owned a building" and to that he said "yes, it's the building with two - first floor retail spaces and 9 apartments on the corner".Dang, just what I love.

Second, you’ll collect more money while doing less work Third you’ll stay legal with notices and operations.

I think behind tenant screenings and leases there is a quality of a landlord that's also as a person that is the respect for a good person and the intelligence of making fair affairs.For me for ten years in the past I had a house of 650sqft (two rooms and cozy kitchen) where I always have been giving away one of the room for others who were asking for help for themselves and I didn't had any earnings for me by that, and that has been during for many and many years, meanwhile I was surely needing more space for me, for my business in a studio and for my own personal life I eventually could have been having.Nonetheless this, on last years I had no more an house and I needed a room for rent, but even before any screening the landlords were being unrespectful and very unreasonably severe to me, they often had making me lose so much time by no taking or going away to the point I had no other choices in the end, and they set me in the wrong places for me, dangerous ones, too small, too big and very expensive, unhealthy ones or not providing anything at all when it was obvious they needed to.To me this kind of behaviour is very wrong, mostly because usually they are the same people who pretend respects and acts as they are very careful and attentive to housing situations in general, but with me, they have been lying above anything and just disrespected the person at a human level. 

These two statements are contradictory the way I read your comment:"the agent that provided me with the listing requires a 3% buyers commission.""

Also we have two great BP meetups per month here that you might find really valuable.

Both still have value, but you have to know you are looking at third or more serving options in these places.