What you describe is not the way the US rental markets I have been in worked. Even the past three properties I bought had been vacant for at least a couple mon

What you describe is not the way the US rental markets I have been in worked. Even the past three properties I bought had been vacant for at least a couple months before I even looked at them, let alone closed the deal. Our current house met the Census definition of vacant for six months after we closed on it so I could do work on it before getting all our stuff in.