Sanity and tone check on house rules

[Anita852]

Hey guys, we are new to the community/hosting and now it is time to write our first post.

We been fighting to get that super host status but Covid19 times does make it harder. Sadly we felt unable to put constraints on our guests due to this, and therefore, we have gotten a few less than optimal guests. We figure it is time to put some thought into our house rules to hopefully ensure that this happens less frequently, and if it doesn't, to ensure that Airbnb can help us with our case. Most of these rules are "stolen" *cough cough* from you guys and without you, it would have been hard writing them. Thank you very much. While trying to protect our home, we do not want to sound like "fascist", and therefore would appreciate the "tone" check.

Here comes the rules
---------------------------

These house rules are here to ensure that you (guests coming before you), and the guest that comes after you, have a pleasant trip. We feel these are common sense rules, and if they are not followed, a deduction from security deposit might be inflicted. Essentially, if you treat our home like you do yours, all is fine and well. To avoid ambiguity however, here is a list to guide you:

- If something happens, or if something breaks, let us know know as soon as possible (definitely before checkout). This way we have time salvage the situation before other guests arrive.
- If something major breaks (not including glasses, plates, etc), or if there is an unusual amount of wear and tear as a result of carelessness, a fee might be deducted from the deposit (Other guests is our benchmark for "unusual"). The house is described as new, broken tables and chairs do not fit that definition, and they are expensive to repair or replace.
- Keep a close eyes on the children while they are at the pool.
- Please wash the dishes, we have a dishwasher to make it easier for all of us.
- Throw out the garbage before checkout.
- Shoes in the hallway is not an issue, but please keep them there.

- Please keep the rocks out of the pool, our cleaning bot doesn't handle them well.
- No dogs on the furniture or in the pool.
- No unregistered guests.
- When you run the ACs/heat pumps, please close the window. When you leave, please turn them off.
- Lost key incurs a fee.
- Please do not rearrange the furniture before checking with us.
- 1 dog max, for a 50 euro fee. No dogs within the period of 01/06-31/08.
- If the dog poops, pick it up. <--- That i actually have to write this one...but it comes from experience. Is it insane to have?
- Please clean the BBQ after usage. We will clean it before you arrive, and after you depart, but it does make it less time consuming.
- Flush the toilet and keep the bowl clean. <--- Oh my, this is also from experience but, do I actually need this? I hate having to write it.
- Flexible check in/out times are possible if agreed upon. If not, please respect the stated times.

- No drinking and eating in bedrooms. <--- I haven't decided on this one. I don't want to prevent the feeling of being served breakfast in bed, at the same time I do not want wine stains.

---------------------------

I'm wondering if I've missed anything major, if the phrasing hostile and if something is way too open to interpretation.

Thank you in advance, this seems to be a utterly friendly and helpful community. You rock!

[Helen3]

I think @Anita852 you have far too many rules and guests are unlikely to read them all. I would edit down to about 6 house rules. Some relate to check out so should be on a separate check out notice ( I have laminated mine and attached to the fridge). You need them to be simple and direct i.e. 

Children must be accompanied by adults at all time when using the pool.

You have missed out a key one around late night noise and times when pool/outside space can be used

[Inna22]

I totally agree with @Helen3 - way to wordy. I could barely get through them here and I was really committed to helping you (mainly because I am traveling and this airbnb has no TV 🙂 I put my comments in Italic after each rule

First paragraph- no need

- If something happens, or if something breaks, let us know know as soon as possible (definitely before checkout). This way we have time salvage the situation before other guests arrive.not going to happen most  likely regardless of your rules for various reasons so no need
- If something major breaks (not including glasses, plates, etc), or if there is an unusual amount of wear and tear as a result of carelessness, a fee might be deducted from the deposit (Other guests is our benchmark for "unusual"). The house is described as new, broken tables and chairs do not fit that definition, and they are expensive to repair or replace. If you have a security deposit, your guests know this already
- Keep a close eyes on the children while they are at the pool. what Helen said
- Please wash the dishes, we have a dishwasher to make it easier for all of us. passive aggressive. Have a check out section either in the welcome email, in an email the night before departure or in the house book
- Throw out the garbage before checkout. same as above
- Shoes in the hallway is not an issue, but please keep them there.what does this mean? No shoes inside the house? Unclear 

- Please keep the rocks out of the pool, our cleaning bot doesn't handle them well. can you make a sign by the pool? No rocks in the pool or something simple. No need to explain further
- No dogs on the furniture or in the pool. this is good.
- No unregistered guests. I have huge issues with this one and a big section on that in my listing. Best to be dealt with in communication prior to arrival. Please feel free to use my language. 
- When you run the ACs/heat pumps, please close the window. When you leave, please turn them off. good
- Lost key incurs a fee. can you have a key pad lock?
- Please do not rearrange the furniture before checking with us. instead I ask them to put it back if they did. It is part of my check out instructions
- 1 dog max, for a 50 euro fee. No dogs within the period of 01/06-31/08. You might have issues. You need to either say fully yes or fully no to dogs. Size restriction is ok
- If the dog poops, pick it up. <--- That i actually have to write this one...but it comes from experience. Is it insane to have? not insane at all
- Please clean the BBQ after usage. We will clean it before you arrive, and after you depart, but it does make it less time consuming. no need for second sentence. Can also be part of check out instructions. I say something similar
- Flush the toilet and keep the bowl clean. <--- Oh my, this is also from experience but, do I actually need this? I hate having to write it. you do not
- Flexible check in/out times are possible if agreed upon. If not, please respect the stated times. huge can of warms. There are multiple posts about this, I recommend for you to search and read through those

- No drinking and eating in bedrooms. <--- I haven't decided on this one. I don't want to prevent the feeling of being served breakfast in bed, at the same time I do not want wine stains. sure, if it is important to you

[Anonymous]

@Anita852  First off, I would eliminate all mention of damage and the "security deposit."  In the event that you have to make a damage claim, an Airbnb rep decides whether you'll be compensated. Having damage-related rules won't influence the outcome, nor will it change guest behavior.

Next, please give some consideration to whether it's really worthwhile to allow dogs. Two things you may not yet know about Airbnb: they don't actually charge the "deposit" (it's imaginary), and the Host Guarantee doesn't cover hosts for damage caused by pets. So if your home is not furnished in a way that's relatively dog-proof, you're completely at the mercy of the dog owners' ability to control their animal at every moment. All dogs are good dogs, but alas, they can't read your rules. 

As for the pool:  parents have a vested interest in their children not drowning, so telling them to keep an eye on their children comes off rather patronizing. No need to waste valuable space on your listing with pool rules; they should be very clearly posted at the poolside and on the doorway leading to the pool area. 

The rule re: unregistered guests is of much greater importance, and unfortunately it's easily overlooked among petty stuff like flushing the toilet.  A home like yours is a party magnet, so you've got to be very clear that only the guests registered in the original booking are permitted in the property, and no additional visitors are allowed at any time. And be sure you have a way to monitor the property and enforce that.

Another thing wasting space there is the whole "treat the home like your own" bit. That sounds more like a dare than a rule; many people treat their own homes like junkyards.

Finally, is being served breakfast in bed really a thing? I thought it only happened in hospitals and bad sitcoms.  Just be clear about which areas of the home food and drink are permitted, which areas smoking is allowed (if any), and what tasks you expect to be completed before checkout. And if you're still finding that your home is not being respected as well as you'd like, you might have to vet your guests more carefully before accepting bookings.

[Sarah977]

@Anonymous  "Finally, is being served breakfast in bed really a thing?"

When my girls were young, they once woke me up joyously singing out "Happy Mother's Day!" and presenting me with a plate of fried eggs. Turned my stomach, before I barely had my eyes open, but what could I say but "Oh, how sweet of you" and choke it down 🙂

[Danielle476]

Echoing the great advice you've gotten already - do away with most of this, it's too long and nobody is going to read through it all.  If you must have more than a handful, categorize them for easier reading.  E.g., -

POOL USE

1. Use at your own risk
2. Please do not leave children under 16 unattended
3. Etc (@Andrew0 is right in that you should have all pool rules posted & visible outside)

HOUSE

1. Please do not leave pets unattended
2. No unregistered guests on the property
3. Please ensure all windows are closed when operating AC/heat

CHECKING OUT

1. Please place all dirty dishes in the dishwasher before leaving
2. Please ensure you have picked up after your pet
3. Please inform us of any accidental breaks or damages
4. Please remove garbage from the home upon leaving 

Or something to that effect.  Unfortunately there's really no point in saying things like 'don't eat in bed' or 'keep the toilet bowl clean'...people are going to do what they're going to do, and these seem so minor that it comes off as a nagging parent after their teen or something.  If you're finding people are doing this often, raise your cleaning fee to account for it.

Best of luck!

[Mark116]

@Anita852  You want something much closer to what @Danielle476  wrote out, short, straightforward, sentences grouped by activity to break up the list.  I'd also recommend that you resend the check out items the day before guests check out, this for us has often prompted people to ask some questions about garbage/recycling, etc.  and serves to remind the guest what they need to do.