My dad had a heart attack 2 years ago and last month his physician denied him permission to get back to work (truck driver).Now as far as our mortgage goes, I remember that in our contract there was a part where it asks us to occupy the house for at least one year. 

Deny them and move on.

My wife has been denied because she doesn't have income outside of this rental income and we aren't showing much rental income until our taxes come in this upcoming year. 

Tenants abuse washers/dryers by overloading them and not cleaning lint traps. 

This request was denied with all types of excuses.

Here's the source material for that:http://www.mainelegislature.or...So the short answer is that you cannot screen for alcohol use (perfectly legal) or abuse (protected class). 

Or list it with a realtor.Do not put your mom in the situation where the lady or her relatives think that your mom 'took her house' as it could be an elder abuse investigation.

What we HAVE been told is that we CAN use our own CONSISTENT screening criteria and if the potential Section * tenant we CAN deny them on THAT basis, not JUST 'because they have a Section 8 Voucher'.

We also live in a rural area.I was denied homeowner's insurance once because there was poultry on the property.

Since you want to push the price up on that listing, that is completely your call-- still, since there are pending apps, make sure that your decision doesn't go against local municipal gov. or state laws; but your price for the unit has changed so it could be good to mention this across all applications you plan to deny.