Interested Renters with Potentially Ridiculous Commutes

[Future Lazy]

I recently just put up a couple of bedrooms in my house for rent.

Some people looking for just a bedroom are young adults moving out on their own. Some people are relocating to the Denver area, and looking for something temporary.

Some people are working professionals looking to save money... Very mustachian? But I've already had several people with their math all wrong, wanting to commute 60 miles and three hours a day, because the rent is cheaper.

I even did the math for one gentleman, showing that his commute cost would be ~$527/mo  (48.8mi/day * 20 days/mo * $0.54/mi), but he insisted that saving $250/mo in rent was clearly the better deal over living closer to his job.

What's up with the way people think about driving? Does anyone else take this into consideration, or have a good/fair strategy for advising potential tenants on the dangers of ridiculous commutes before they apply? Is it discrimination to take an applicant's potential commute into consideration?

This feels like such a moral dilemma!

[fishnfool]

If I were you I'd be more concerned with a reliable tenant that has a stable income rather than trying to convert them. If they want to spend their time and money commuting and be home that much less, great!
As a landlord you have a moral obligation to take people's money in exchange for housing, that is all IMO.

[Lmoot]

It is something to be concerned about though if the tenant decides it isn't worth the hassle anymore and moves out early. So I agree that the morality of it is not your problem, but logistically it is something to think about.

[Gronnie]

"Commute time" isn't a protected class, so I think you should be fine even with some sort of explicit requirement like "must work within X miles of residence." I could be wrong of course.

[Lmoot]

Also as an owner-occupied single family residence (I am assuming), protective class isn't a factor here anyway. If the OP doesn't like the smell of a prospective renter's hair (or that they are of a specific race, age or gender in fact, as long as it's not advertised to exclude based on these things), does not matter if this is in fact a SFR in which the OP will also be living.

[rothwem]

Not long after I graduated from college, I took a job in an awful little town.  I didn't want a long commute, so I got an apartment there, but I was so miserable there that I decided to move to the nearest bigger city and commute 45 miles each way.  It ate up a lot of money, but I was dramatically more happy and I'd probably do the same thing again given the same situation. 

You never know what people's situations are like, it could be that they just hate living in the city or country or the town where their jobs are.