If you want less competition you will need to get property that is more distressed (and you will still have to pay up over the flippers who want those), or you will need to search when no one else is searching.....ie both of my SD properties were purchased between Thanksgiving and Christmas (when everyone else is celebrating you need to put in offers).   

And then you hit the christmas time. 

Sometimes Christmas rent is late because you know.

I think I’m going to lower the price a bit after Thanksgiving, because I really don’t want to go into Christmas without it leased.

very rare you are gonna find a sheriff or authorities to remove someone between thanksgiving and christmas.

Thanks for your reply and merry Christmas! 

I'm in your market (4 Corners) and we've got Thanksgiving & the Christmas/New Years weeks booked but a big gap in between them, whereas we're usually filled up from the beginning of November on.

I once rented a 5bed/3bath in two days, just a week before Christmas when the ground was covered with snow and ice.Sitting vacant in the winter increases the risk of frozen pipes or other expensive problems.

Merry Christmas!

There thinking some clean-up-fairy comes swooping in with a broom, washes the ashes away and then Bob The Builder n all his friends comes hot on the hells, Bing-Bang-Boom all is rebuilt and were singing kumbayas by Christmas.......Reality is it took about 10 years to rebuild post katrina.