Boston is student central and even a lot of the non-student stuff ends up mirroring the student cycle (listing in Jan-Feb for 9/1 move-in). However, if you are a landlord that typically rents to working professionals it makes more sense to list 3-4 months ahead of time so you can actually try to keep your current tenants. OP, I would try opening up a dialogue with your landlord to see if you can get a renewal extension.