Vacation rental house rules: a template you can copy
House rules settle expectations before anything goes wrong. Your guests know what applies, and you have less to explain later. They belong in the booking confirmation and somewhere visible in the rental.
What house rules are for
Guests arrive with their own habits. What is obvious to you, such as quiet after ten at night or which bag the trash goes in, only becomes clear to them once it is written down. Good house rules read like a friendly briefing: short and specific.
This article gives you the eight points to cover, a ready-made template and the departure section guests need on their last morning.
What to include in your house rules: eight points
These eight points cover what guests of a vacation rental ask about. Write one or two sentences for each and name specific times and places.
1. Arrival and departure
Give both as clock times: check-in from, check-out by. Add who guests should contact if they would like to arrive earlier or leave later.
2. Quiet hours
State when quiet hours start and end, and what they mean: music at room volume, low voices on the balcony. Mentioning the neighbors helps guests see why.
3. Smoking
Say plainly whether smoking is welcome inside, and name the place where it is fine, such as the balcony with an ashtray. Guests who know the spot will use it.
4. Pets
Write whether pets are welcome and whether you want to know about them in advance. If they are, add two or three sentences: sofa and beds, leash in the stairwell, bowls.
5. Visitors and parties
Note how many people the booking covers and whether daytime visitors are fine. If you rule out parties, say so in one sentence and give the reason.
6. Trash and recycling
Explain what goes where and where the bins are. Sorting systems differ from place to place, so a photo of the bins helps more than a long description.
7. Heating, airing and windows
Say how the heating works and how you would like the place aired: a few minutes with the window wide open. Ask guests to close windows and skylights whenever they go out.
8. Reporting damage
Ask guests to report damage and defects right away, and give them a number for it. A sentence like “A broken glass can happen” makes it easier to speak up.
The template to copy
Copy the text, replace the square brackets with your own details and delete whatever does not apply to your rental. The template fits on one page.
Then walk through the rental with the template in hand. Check that the bins are where you say they are and that the phone number is current. Guests take house rules seriously when they match the place.
The departure section: five things before leaving
Guests read the last section on the morning they leave, with their bags already in the hallway. Keep it short and follow the order in which people walk through the rental.
1. Close the windows
Every window, skylight and the balcony door, including the bathroom.
2. Dishes
Wash them or start the dishwasher. Say which of the two you prefer.
3. Trash
Tie the bags and take them to the bins. Name the spot so guests can skip the search.
4. Keys
Say where the key goes: lockbox, table or mailbox. If there are several keys, give the number.
5. Lights and heating
Lights off, heating set to the level you specify.
A sheet on the door is easy to miss in the rush of leaving. If you hang a check-out QR code next to the door, you can show the guest these five points as a reminder right after the scan. With CheckYout, the guest scans the code with their phone camera on the way out, without an app or a login. Your cleaning team gets a WhatsApp message right away that the rental is free and can start earlier. The sign with the QR code is in English.
For the full picture of departure day, see the check-out process. You will find tips for turnover day in optimizing guest turnovers, and how to plan the cleaning that follows in automating final cleaning.
Three common mistakes in house rules
1. Too long
Hardly any guest reads two dense pages to the end. One page with short paragraphs is enough. Rare topics, such as how to use the fireplace, belong in the guest folder.
2. Only bans, with no reasons
“Shoes prohibited” sounds like a school corridor. “Please take your shoes off in the hallway, the wooden floor marks easily” says the same and explains why. With the reason, the rule reads as a request.
3. German only, with international guests
Guests from abroad first have to translate the text on their phone. Add an English version, ideally on the same sheet or on the back.
Frequently asked questions about house rules
Are house rules binding?
They work most reliably when the guest could see them before booking and they are part of your booking terms. Many platforms have a dedicated field for house rules. For your specific case, ask a qualified professional. This article is no substitute for legal advice.
Which languages should house rules be in?
The local language and English are a good start. If many of your guests come from the same country, add a version in their language. Keep all versions identical in content and update them together.
Where should house rules go?
In three places: the booking confirmation, so the guest knows them before arrival, the guest folder, and a single sheet somewhere visible in the rental, for example inside the front door. You can also hang the departure section next to the door.
Show the departure points right after the scan
The guest scans the QR code on the way out, and your cleaning team gets a WhatsApp message right away.
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