“This has turned out amazingly well”, said Joel Webb, CEO of TheCreativeInvestor.com. “People really like our property listing software; the web turnout has been incredible, especially considering that the vast majority of our traffic has been generated by word of mouth. We're just really pleased to see our software helping so many people.”
The longer the lease the better. I suggest that you get at least 1% lease option fee for every year of the option. If they want to extend the option, just charge them additional option money (which they can apply to their down payment)
If a tenant wants to move out before their lease is up, they still owe you the balance of the lease. This protects you and puts you into a strong negotiating position. Any concession you make for them is your decision.
Your second month would be going through the newspapers, and going on line to those FSBO sites and collecting numbers. During the end of the second month (6 weeks after you have started) you should be able to start calling on property. Depending on the hours you are doing your calls will determine how many people you get to speak with as opposed to leaving a message for them.