During the term of the lease (the initial term of the lease or any extension term), the owner may only terminate the tenancy because of: (1) Serious or repeated violation of the lease; (2) Violation of Federal, State, or local law that imposes obligations on the tenant in connection with the occupancy or use of the unit and the premises; (3) Criminal activity or alcohol abuse (as provided in paragraph c); or (4) Other good cause (as provided in paragraph d).

David are you buying in C or lower neighborhoods?

I know we don't have that many days of heat in the summer, but the humidity makes it very miserable to sleep at night and they have kids.If they we not good tenants, I would not even consider A/C or extending the lease.

San Diego is probably a good bet on continuing.

As mentioned earlier, Nation Crescent offers great cashflow but the neighborhood would be considered a C or a B- neighborhood.

It appears to me that if there is a moldy smell it is likely  that your tenant does not use A/C or the tempature she uses is not low enough.

Personally I fear a lawyer more than a qualified applicant and would rather hedge my bet on the first applicant that meets my standards, then trust a lawyer won't talk someone into starting a "fair housing" dispute with me in an effort to get what I own.

I prefer tenants use electronic payment, so a bank account is needed for that too.I get your point that some people do not have bank accounts, but that is more common on C or D properties with lower rent/income situations.

In Burlington city NJ a Cetificate of resgistration application needs to be turned in for every tenant turn over. there is a change of occupancy fee that is $100 or $75 if a criminal screening report is turned in.Unfortunately my prospective tenant that has some history. 2 Felonies (Fireworks and coke possession) from 13yrs ago that were dismissed but do not state that in the report. in the past they accepted the CoR application and just scheduled an inspection right away, i don't know if they dug into the tenants background.i know the prospective tenant personally, i know where he works and the people he works for.

Plus, that house will probably have better potential appreciation than a house in a C or D area.