tenant screening input

[Charlie Lockwood]

Hi BP community, 

   I recently (2.5 weeks ago) listed my property for rent after having some solid tenants lined up who eventually bailed. 

I'm following B Turner's book on managing rental properites pretty closely but I'm curious your opinions on the follwoing.. 

First some context- I've had a ton of inquiries, most of them don't meet my criteria (650+ cred, 3x monthly rent, etc). It's listed on all the major sites (zillow, realtor, etc). Additionally, my wife is 32 weeks prego so I feel a little bit of a time crunch to get my property filled..baby is expected beginning of March.

Last week, I showed the house to two groups. The first guy has around a 600 credit score, stable job, but isn't able to move in until the end of February. He's in the process of selling his home and going through a divorce...My property is available Feb 1st. 

The other group- both have stable jobs. One has a 750+ credit score, the other around 600. They then shared with me that one of them is a felon and has drug related charges (from 2016). 

My questions to the world of BP are- 

how much does credit matter to you? 

What's your experience, if any, with tenants who have criminal records?

Have you ever selected a tenant who couldn't move in right away? How did you proceed (deposit to hold?)? 

Any other thoughts or advice? 

Thanks for your input,