LEGAL STUFF

We won’t scare you with long contracts that are difficult to understand. Our job is to make your life easier. These terms may change from time to time, but we’ll always email you if and when they do.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

The terms and conditions stated herein constitute a legal agreement between you (the Owner) and TWO KEENS, a rentals & hosting business in Plettenberg Bay, Western Cape, specifically catering to homes listed on all accommodation booking platforms associated with TWO KEENS. By signing the written Agreement and using or receiving any services supplied to you by TWO KEENS, you hereby expressly acknowledge and agree to be bound by these terms and conditions. In the event of changes to these terms, you agree that your continued use of TWO KEENS hosting constitutes your acceptance of the revisions.

WHAT WE DO

The following is a comprehensive list of duties and responsibilities that TWO KEENS provides as part of the full service hosting of the property:

• Advertise and manage the property’s listing on all accommodation booking channels used by TWO KEENS through our account, which includes: posting appropriate photographs (as taken by TWO KEENS or provided by Owner), writing a description of the property and the “House Rules”, responding to guest inquiries, screening potential guests, leaving reviews, and managing the calendar and managing the rate strategy for the listing
• Collection & Disbursement of Income. TWO KEENS is responsible for receiving payments from all booking channels for all paid stays at the property. TWO KEENS will provide to the Owner a monthly statement of all income, expenses, and disbursements via the TWO KEENS Owner Portal.
• Install a lockbox at the entrance of the property for contactless check-in. The cost of the lockbox will be for the Owner’s account.
• Supervise a start-up deeper clean to bring the home up to 5-star standard at a rate quoted based on the size of the property and work involved - this is mandatory prior to the hosting the first guest stay.
• Provide a comprehensive list of "must have" property amenities and items, and purchase on your behalf any items missing at final inspection before listing (procurement / supervision fee applies and will be quoted on a case by case).
• Coordinate interior design services on request (please inquire for pricing).
• Coordinate property care (such as garden maintenance, pool cleaning) with a local company;
• Coordinate cleaners and laundry services between guest stays.
• Coordinate inspections between guest stays to determine if any theft or damage has occurred.
• Completing monthly preventative maintenance checks on the Property and provide a schedule and quotations for the necessary maintenance and repair work to the Owner for your approval before any work takes place;
• Coordinate handymen or emergency services such as plumbers or electricians, or, depending on the task and schedule permitting, provide repair services at expense to the Owner, quotations for work to be agreed upon by the Owner before commencement;
• Prepare a personalised home guide with property-specific instructions;
• Act as the point of contact for guests staying at the property via phone 24/7 and instant messaging until 9pm;
• Purchase cleaning chemicals and equipment and amenities on behalf of the owner as needed for the property and keep it fully stocked. Cost of these charged to Owner’s monthly account.

WHAT WE DON’T DO

• Book guests with arrival times after 8pm unless the lockbox has been installed or alternative arrangements have been made for access to the property. However, if specially requested by a guest, we may be able to meet them on a case-by-case basis and we will coordinate with the guest if so;
• Act as or add a co-host on booking channels. All listings will be newly built or recreated under TWO KEENS accounts; and perform any of our recurring services (key management, point of contact, inspections, etc) for reservations made outside the accommodation booking platforms associated with TWO KEENS, either because it is a personal guest of the owner, or the client/owner themselves who would like to stay in the home.


EXCLUSIVITY FOR PAYING GUESTS:

By entering into this agreement, the Owner acknowledges that Two Keens holds the exclusive right to manage all paid guest stays at the property. This means that any paying guest reservation, regardless of how the booking is made or who initiates it (including direct inquiries to the Owner or referrals from friends or acquaintances), must be handled through Two Keens. Our hosting fee applies to all paid stays, ensuring that guest communication, payments, check-in/out, cleaning, and support are professionally managed. The Owner Portal may only be used to block out personal stays for the Owner or their immediate family and non-paying guests. Any exceptions to this policy must be agreed to in writing by Two Keens.

OWNER REVENUE

Funds held in trust are not considered due to the owner until specific conditions are met. Specifically, funds become payable to the owner under the following circumstances: 1) The guest cancels, and the cancellation policy results in a cancellation fee, or 2) The check-in date is reached, at which point the booking is executed, and the revenue becomes payable to the owner as outlined in the Hosting Agreement. In both cases, owner revenue for all reservations with a check-in date within the same calendar month is assigned on the last day of that month and is paid along with your owner statement on the 20th of the following month. For example, check-ins between June 1-30 are paid on July 20th.

INTEREST ON TRUST ACCOUNT FUNDS

When signing a Hosting Agreement with TWO KEENS, you acknowledge and agree that any interest accrued on funds held in trust from the time of cancellation or guest check-in until the disbursement of owner revenue will be retained by TWO KEENS. This interest helps cover expenses, administrative fees for trust accounting, banking, and other related costs. This practice is similar to industry standards, such as those employed by platforms like Airbnb. Signing our Hosting Agreement constitutes your written agreement to this arrangement as required by Practice Directive of 2023 in terms of the Property Practitioners Act, 2019, on interest earned from Trust Accounts.

LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

In the event that collection and/or legal proceedings become necessary with regard to the rental of the Property, TWO KEENS shall handle all such proceedings. Owner shall reimburse TWO KEENS for all expenses incurred in the pursuit of collection proceedings and/or legal proceedings. Host shall not be responsible for any legal proceedings that do not result from the hosting of the Property.

WHAT OWNERS ARE RESPONSIBLE TO DO

• Notify mortgage lender of intent to place property on accommodation booking platforms for short-term rental;
• Notify insurance company of intent to place property on accommodation booking platforms for short-term rental with a property management company and obtain a new policy for this purpose. Please contact your insurance provider for more information.
• Keep all necessary paperwork for tax purposes;
• Ensure that the property must be equipped with industry-standard amenities such as a TV with satellite channels or media box with Netflix, free uncapped Wi-Fi, coffee maker/kettle, back-up power supply for TV, WIFI and lights at a minimum.     
• Using the TWO KEENS Owner Portal, select on the calendar any dates you’d like to have the property booked off for yourself (ensuring that the property is not already booked on these dates, as cancelling a guest’s booking is to be avoided as much as possible). All work to prepare the home for the next guest will need to be performed by TWO KEENS, at the standard cleaning and laundering fee for all other bookings.
• Never force TWO KEENS to cancel guest bookings, as this is a black mark in the Airbnb community and will result in a poor rating left on TWO KEENS public profile, along with the loss of the opportunity to achieve Superhost status for a period of one year. Cancellations not due to extenuating circumstances (noted below) will be subject to a R15,000 fee in order to compensate. 

WHAT COUNTS AS AN EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCE?

• Serious illness in the family or serious personal illness (with proper documentation) that affects your ability to continue to pay bills or mortgage on the property;
• Natural disaster;
• Political unrest in the area;
• Serious property damage rendering a material portion of the home uninhabitable; and
• Serious maintenance issues that affect the ability to host.

HOW TO TERMINATE THE WORKING RELATIONSHIP?

So, what happens when you want to handle everything yourself? Or you want your home taken entirely off online accommodation booking platforms?

• Notify TWO KEENS in writing giving 1 month's notice so that we may block off the calendar to avoid new bookings. All existing bookings must be honoured or will be subject to the cancellation penalty per cancelled booking.
• We will disburse to the Owner any funds owed by TWO KEENS' to the Owner within thirty (30) days from the date of termination or 14 days after the last guest stay, whichever is the latter.

DISPUTE RESOLUTION

Sometimes, despite everyone's best intentions, there can be disagreements on either side.

MEDIATION:

The Owner and TWO KEENS agree to mediate any dispute or claim arising between them out of this Agreement before resorting to posting negative reviews online, arbitration or court action. Professional mediation fees shall be divided equally among the parties involved. If, for any dispute or claim to which this paragraph applies, any party (i) commences an action without first attempting to resolve the matter through mediation, or (ii) before commencement of an action, refuses to mediate after a request has been made, then that party shall not be entitled to recover attorney fees, even if they would otherwise be available to that party in such an action. Exclusions from this mediation agreement are set forth below.

ATTORNEY FEES:

In the event either party must engage in any effort, civil proceeding or other activity that arises out of, relates to or is connected with the enforcement or interpretation of this Agreement, or the rights or obligations of any party hereunder, the prevailing party shall be entitled to recover reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs, to include expert fees and costs, incurred or sustained by such prevailing party in connection with those efforts.

EXCLUSIONS:

Any matter that is within the jurisdiction of a probate, small claims, or bankruptcy court are excluded from the requirement to mediate and arbitrate. The filing of a court action to enable an order of attachment, receivership, injunctive relief, or other provisional remedy, shall not constitute a waiver or violation of the mediation and arbitration provisions.

JURISDICTION:

Any disputes between Owner and TWO KEENS, shall be held in the Garden Route, Western Cape and subject to Western Cape provincial law.