Dear Guest ,

Welcome to Forest & Flow Retreats! We are very excited for you to stay here and hope that you enjoy your time in Sears, MI. Please feel free to let us know if you need anything or if you have any concerns. We are here to assist you in any way that we can.

House Rules

We have created this house rules sheet to ensure that you can fully enjoy your stay in our short term rental while also respecting the home and property. Following these rules will greatly help us as a host by making sure the home is taken care of during your stay, and the experience is great for future guests. Do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions regarding the items mentioned in this document.

Must sign rental agreement upon booking.

Overview

We ask that you treat our rental as if it were your own property. Please be aware of the condition of items in the house, and if you notice anything broken when you arrive, contact us to let us know. We thoroughly inspect the home between each rental, but in the event we miss something, we will need to know right away. This helps all parties avoid misunderstandings when providing quick turnovers from one guest to the next. It's likely you will come across items that we have knowledge of and are on the schedule for repair, replacement or improvements.

Parking

Please park your vehicles in the designated parking spaces, to the left side of the home or along the driveway.. Parking here will ensure that you can easily come and go as you please and that you will not damage the septic or drain fields which are located directly in front of the front steps.

Smoking

Being a family home, we also have a strict no smoking policy. You are welcome to smoke either out front or back. Please properly dispose of any cigarette butts and do not flick them in the yard, woods, or river. The discovery of cigarette butts in the yard and evidence your party was the cause may result in additional charges for exterior clean up.

Trash Disposal

You will find trash bags under the sink. When the trash can is full, please remove the trash bag and bring it to the waste bin. All trash must be in bags, nothing loose can be placed in the waste bin, as the trash company gathers the bags by hand and will charge us extra per bag that we must pass along to the guests who placed loose trash in the bin. In the event you've generated too much trash for the waste bin, please bring the excess with you and do not set it on the side of the trash bin. Under no circumstances should you leave a bag of trash outside, over night. No one wants racoons tearing apart a trash bag and creating a mess!

General Cleanliness and Dishes

While we do a thorough professional clean between each guest stay, we kindly ask that prior to leaving, you clean and put away any dishes or kitchenware used and put any dirty/used towels in the provided receptacle, or on the bathroom floor. Please wipe down the stove / surfaces and ensure nothing is left in the fridge that could disrupt a future guest. This helps us get through our cleaning process quicker, allows us to keep cleaning and rental costs low, and creates flexibility with check-in and out times for you and our future guests. Most guests desire to use their full day of vacation at the property and by leaving the home in a reasonable condition, it ensures we’re able to accommodate for you and future guests. If a guest fails to leave the home as indicated above, we may charge up to 250.00 for the additional cleaning required, at our sole discretion. While these fees are rarely accessed, if the home is in exceptionally poor condition or our team has back to back cleanings, we may need to bring a part-time, temporary subcontractor in who charges significantly higher rates than our full time staff.

Extra Guests

Although we do not mind if you invite friends over to visit our home, please keep the number of guests to the initial, agreed upon amount. Please do not allow extra guests to sleep at the unit unless previously agreed upon when you booked the rental.

Parties or Events

We do not allow guests to throw parties or events in our home, unless agreed upon during the booking process. Parties and / or events are fun, but full disclosure is the best policy. It will help make sure we plan enough time between guests to fully accommodate with the needs of the events. In the event a party is thrown at the property, there is daily fee per person, in addition to a one time fixed event fee. Please ask about this, rather than be surprised after planning a bachelor party.

Pets

Pets are allowed, if arranged in advance. At this time, we only allow dogs to stay on the property. The property is perfect for dogs and we understand the desire to bring them along. Please ensure that the dogs are secure and do not cause any damage to the property. Please also ensure that any waste is removed so future guests don’t step in it while enjoying the property. Ultimately, should you choose to bring a pet, any additional clean up required from that pet is the responsibility of the owner. We require furniture is cleaned, rugs and floors are vacuumed and all visible dog hair is removed. If a guest fails to clean any shedding, we may charge up to 250.00 for the additional cleaning required, at our sole discretion.

Broken Items

We understand that accidents happen. Please let us know so that we can fix or replace the item right away for a future guest to enjoy as well. We have a property manager nearby the home and will happily come right away to inspect the damage. Chances are we can solve the issue with minimal effort, resulting in a better chances of having your full security deposit returned. Many items in the home we consider to be wearable, and do not charge if they are accidentally broken in the normal course of use. For example, we have extra plates, silverware and glasses ready and available to replace. In the rare event an object is non-repairable or incurs a cost to repair or replace, the guest agrees to reimburse costs on a time and materials basis for our staff to source, receive, replace or hire a third party to complete the repair or replacement. We appreciate your honesty.

Checking In / Out

We will try to be as flexible as possible with our guests for check-ins and check-outs, based on previous and future guest check ins. Please let us know you travel expectations if the deviate from the following and we will do our best to accommodate you.

Please check out of the rental by the designated time. Checking out by this time ensures that we have enough time to clean the place, turn it over for the next guest, and avoids any late check out fees.

To keep our costs down, and pass those savings onto our guests, we ask that you switch off lights and turn the heat down to 50 degrees, or air conditioning off, when leaving the home.

When you check out, please close and lock all windows and doors and set the alarm to “away”. Ensure that the deadbolt has locked, it takes around 10 seconds for it to engage, please test the door to ensure it is secure.

Once again, we appreciate your compliance with these rules. We love sharing our properties and aim to provide our guests with the best experience possible during their stay. If you have any questions, please contact us, we usually respond within a few minutes.