The general rule of thumb is that you should hang on to your money for as long as possible when paying expenses, unless there is some advantage to pre-paying. For example, if your landlord offered an 8% discount for prepaying for 1 year, that might be worth it, because that's a guaranteed cost reduction versus a potential gain on investment value in the same period.

You don't want to turn over your money before you absolutely have to because you cannot predict the future.

• What if you have to move before the lease is up?
• What if the building burns down?
• What if your landlord fails to properly account for the pre-payment and starts charging you rent again?

In all of these scenarios, your position is improved by having the money in your possession.