I don't consider it a punishment, although that's certainly one way to discourage a bad tenant from staying.Having bought properties in FL at the bottom of the market, the real estate taxes have been increasing at a very high rate the last few years.

Criminal is emotional loaded term:  Unlawful Detainer actions (aka evictions) is a misdemeanor and filed in Public Records to which @Greg S. is alluding and which can be found when screening your next applicant.

As for smoking/evicting, as far as I know the tenant is allowed to stay as long as they agree to quit unlawful acts.  

Actually, I hadn't even thought about a transaction where B brought his own funds to the table.Simultaneous closings are never unlawful; the legality aspect comes into play through either committing mortgage fraud to push through the transaction or non disclosure on the part of a party to the transaction or a service provider to the transaction.  

If all landlords just give up because they think they won't get their money, or worse, give cash for keys, then these folks will NEVER learn and never have any consequences and more landlords will be punished in the future because it won't actually hit their record.I'm still curious if anyone has found a good background service that they really trust?

Found a credit union that would do it... interestingly enough, said credit union is in a state where pot is still unlawful!

That probably makes me a glutton for punishment, but I look forward to educating myself through the experiences of others before making the leap. 

It is unlawful for any person, firm, partnership, limited liability company, association, or corporation to engage in the business or capacity of real estate broker in this state without first having obtained a license from the real estate commission.I think that answers your question.  

His punishment ELECTION as  Governor of New York!  

Whatever laws/punishments/etc are out there for realtors have succeeded in dissuading this behavior.The "bribe" is that if it's a realtor I've never worked with before and I do my job well, leaving that client happy and thus more likely to send business to that realtor again, boom future business for us both.