Tenant applicant - Prior eviction, decent HH income

[Teekap Pate]

Hello, I have my first tenant application for my investment property come in. This is a brand new construction. Class A. Applicants have a prior eviction years due to unfortunate circumstance but good household income and noted they are in a better place financially. They currently pay month to month at their current apartment. They noted debt is under debt consolidation and willing to put more money down to secure the lease and also open to doing a multi-year lease. Any guidance on weighing the risks? We are in winter so hate to have the property stay vacant. 

[Greg Scott]

First of all, a multi-year lease should be a hard "no" even if it was a perfect tenant. That is not a benefit for you, nor any kind of evidence that they are worthy of becoming a resident.

That issue aside, I would not allow someone with a recent eviction on my property unless the "unfortunate circumstance" was unlikely to recur AND they otherwise have a strong historical track record of making payments AND they would put down a very large security deposit.