Why is the beginning of summer a good time to negotiate the beginning and ending of lease terms? Marketing your North Carolina rental homes in spring for summer move-in dates is smart for a number of reasons. The warm weather brings out more individuals to rental unit showings and your rental homes will have better curb appeal with a fresh, blooming landscape.

Also, it is common for families to begin their rental property searches during spring. With one school year ending and another beginning in a matter of months, families will want to sign a lease and move in the summer to get settled prior to the beginning of school. By negotiating lease anniversary dates properly, landlords will capture families in need of rental homes.

When researching locations for your next rental home purchase, start wide and research the job market of the city/county/region where you are considering purchasing investment properties. Because you need a large pool of tenants who can afford to pay rent on your properties, look for locations with growing employment opportunities, high median annual pay and a higher-educated employee pool. For example, according to Forbes 2016 Fastest Growing-Places, owning rental properties in Raleigh, NC is a smart move for landlords as its local job market is promising and its median annual pay for college-educated workers is also highly ranked. In fact, Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill are perennial “Best Of” list-makers, making the Triangle a highly desirable market for real estate investors year after year.