From talking with the pros in the area I would be careful, there is a lot of fraudulent activity and bad actors participating in the Miami area.

I heard something about illegal lease backs or fraudulent lending clauses?

If that works, get it in writing but don't pay until they are gone and relinquished possession. 1K is a LOT cheaper than an eviction and not as combative a situation.

I realize that the current state of the market is most likely causing this, but I wanted to hear from some experienced investors on how to combat this?

Only legal advice should be given by a licensed attorney familiar with the subject aspect of law; licensed in the state in question, and only after thoroughly researching case history.In GENERAL, transfer strategies done “after the fact” do not work, because they are considered “fraudulent transfers” .Here’s some free advice ; walk away from legal entanglements that (1) suck your time (2) you have no experience or ability to confidently predict the outcome (3) require significant investment in time and legal fees (4) have, at best, an unclear path to providing profit to yourself. 

A few things we always look for are as follows.Income of at least 3x the rentNo violent feloniesNo evictionsStable job/income historyHistory of consistently paying their billsNon combative / non aggressiveNot a total savage

Last year February (2022) versus this year February, we had 54% more inventory for sale in detached single family homes and 40% more inventory for sale in condos/townhomes.Buyer demand has remained strong with properties still receiving mutiple offers, while interest rates have slowly started to creep back up into the high 6s.To help combat the higher rates, a lot of buyers are still taking full advantage of the 3-2-1 and 2-1 rate buydowns.New Listings for Detached SFRs-Compared to February 2022, we are down about 54% in our February 2023 active inventory of for sale single family detached homes.

If they used an online service to "register" the animal, then it is not legitimate and you can/should give them notice of termination for violating your lease and attempting to fraudulently claim an emotional support animal.Here's the HUD guide: https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfil...If the dog is properly documented, then you are stuck and will have to wait until their lease is up.Even if a dog is a legitimate ESA, the tenant can still be held responsible for failing to maintain the home or violating rules for the animal.

Ways to combat it: purchase all in cash, or leverage your cash at about 8.00% and refinance in 3-5 years time.

Also, I get many more fraudulent requests through AirBNB than Verbo.