Garden City Realty Rental Policies & Guidelines

The following procedures apply to all reservations booked within three (3) days of arrival:

• Mandatory In-Person Office Check-In: Guests must check in at the office in person, regardless of property type or key access method.
• Verified Payment Method: Guests must present a valid form of payment in their own name, along with a government-issued photo ID, at check-in.
• No Third-Party Check-Ins: Only the registered guest may check in. No one may check in on their behalf.
• No After-Hours Check-In: Guests who book within three days of arrival must arrive before the office closes at 5:30 p.m. Guests unable to arrive before closing will be required to wait until the next business day to check in with Guest Services.
• ID & Vehicle Acknowledgment Form: At check-in, guests must sign a form that records guest identification information, logs vehicle details, including a photo of the license plate, and includes a copy of the guest’s government-issued photo ID.

Payment

Deposit Policy: All reservations require a valid MasterCard, Visa, Discover, or American Express card on file. Our reservation payment policy, excluding monthly rentals, is as follows; a deposit equal to 10% of the total rent is required at booking (includes travel insurance, if applicable); an installment equal to 50% of the outstanding balance is due 180* days prior to scheduled arrival; the final payment of the remaining balance is due 30 days prior to arrival date.

*For reservations made within 180 days (six months) of scheduled arrival, a payment equal to the first and second deposit (10% deposit and 50% installment) is due at the time of booking.

If payments are not made by the specified due date, Garden City Realty will automatically charge the credit card on file. Garden City Realty is not responsible for any overdraft or over-limit fees. All payments received are placed into an insured, interest-bearing escrow account to the credit of Garden City Realty, Inc.

Cancellations: Refunds are not issued for canceled reservations. However, if a reservation is canceled and Garden City Realty is able to re-rent the same property covering the same date range for the total dollar amount of your original reservation, Garden City Realty will provide an 80% refund of your reservation payment, less the convenience fee if applicable. If Garden City Realty is able to re-rent the same property covering the same date range for a lesser total dollar amount than your reservation, the difference will be withheld from your reservation payment, in addition to the 20% cancellation fee and the convenience fee if applicable.

A request to change reservations to a different property will be treated as a cancellation and, therefore, subject to this cancellation policy.

If a reservation is interrupted for any reason, including, but not limited to, a natural disaster with or without an evacuation order, no refunds will be issued. Click here for travel insurance information.

Click here to read the South Carolina Vacation Rental Act.

Taxes and Additional Fees

All reservations are subject to South Carolina Sales and Accommodation Taxes. Occasionally, tax rates will change. If such a change should occur, the guest will be responsible for the difference in taxes.

Reservation Fee: A reservation fee applies to all reservations.

Lodging Fee: A fee of $1.00 per night's stay applies to all reservations.

Waiver of Security Deposit: In lieu of a refundable cash security deposit, there is a non-refundable waiver of security deposit charged for each property, excluding monthly rentals. This fee covers up to $1000.00 of any accidental, unintentional damage to the property that is reported during your stay. This does not cover any damages resulting from a violation of this agreement. For information about monthly rentals, please email Rentals@GardenCityRealty.com or call 843-652-2555.

Travel Insurance

Garden City Realty offers Red Sky Travel Insurance to guests. When a vacation is interrupted as a result of injury, sickness, death, mandatory evacuations, or certain other perils beyond control, this program will cover non-refundable payments and other identified costs.

• Travel: Protection for covered trip cancellation/interruption, and additional travel delay expenses.

• Emergency: Coverage for emergency accident and sickness medical expenses, and emergency medical evacuation.

• Baggage: Insurance for delay, loss, damage, or theft of your belongings.

• All the help you need: 24/7 live support and concierge services.

Travel insurance is optional, but it is highly recommended. It may only be canceled within 14 days of including it and/or paying the premium. Any questions regarding travel insurance coverage should be directed to Red Sky Travel Insurance at 1-866-889-7409 or by visiting their Website, Sun Trip Preserver. The description of coverage for travel insurance may be viewed by clicking here. Travel insurance may be added up to 30 days before your arrival or when making your final payment, whichever comes first; however, pre-existing conditions will not be covered if it is not purchased within 21 days of making the reservation.

Click here to read the South Carolina Vacation Rental Act.

To return claims:

By mail to Claims Department at Red Sky Claims, C/O Arch Insurance Company | 1350 McCormick Road, Suite 102, Hunt Valley, MD 21031
By fax at (443) 279-2901 | By E-mail: RedSky@ArchInsurance.com

For online claims, please complete the Trip Delay Claim form by clicking here.

For assistance, contact Red Sky Travel Insurance Toll-Free: (866) 889-7409.

Parking

Parking is limited in our beach communities. The individual Home Owners Association of each condominium complex enforces parking. Garden City Realty will evaluate reported parking issues, but will not mediate parking disputes at private complexes if issues are in violation of HOA, city, or county parking regulations. Likewise, Garden City Realty does not monitor the use of parking permits issued by other vacation rental management companies, HOAs, or owners. Instead, every effort is made by Garden City Realty to inform guests of parking restrictions based on information provided by the HOA. This information is included in the property description. If bringing multiple vehicles, please verify it is permissible within the rented condo complex. Trailers and golf carts are not permitted in condominium parking lots. Parking passes and parking lot configurations vary per complex.

Each complex and/or HOA maintains parking lots. Parking passes are issued in accordance with the rules and regulations set by each HOA. Overall, available parking is limited, and in some cases, it is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Garden City Realty is not responsible for parking rules, vehicular towing, or parking tickets. Should a problem occur, please contact Garden City Realty, and a representative will notify the appropriate property management company.

Beach home parking may be restricted due to the physical limitations of the property. Campers and motor homes are not permitted on the premises of any property. Some properties are in communities that may restrict motorcycles, trailers, or golf carts on-premises. If this is of concern, please verify when booking your reservation.

Pets

Garden City Realty has a limited number of properties that are dog-friendly. Before booking a reservation, verify if the property permits dogs. Unless specifically stated in the description of the property, pets are not allowed. Should a guest violate this policy they will be asked to provide proof of boarding for the pet for the remainder of the vacation stay and will be assessed a fee of not less than $350 per pet; will forfeit any coverage afforded by the waiver of the security deposit, and will be held liable for any damages resulting from the presence of the pet(s) for up to 90 days after their departure.

Renter must disclose dog breed, weight, size, and age at the time of reservation. The dog must be at least 16 months old, on routine flea treatment, and the renter must provide an up-to-date rabies vaccination record. The dog must be crated when left alone in the property.

Limit two dogs per dog-friendly property only, unless otherwise specified. Garden City Realty enforces a 70-pound maximum weight limit when bringing one dog, and a 50-pound maximum weight limit per dog when bringing two.

Failure to abide by the above guidelines will result in the dog being removed from the property and boarded at the expense of the pet owner for the remainder of the reservation. Proof of such boarding will be required by Garden City Realty.

Restrictions

• Families Only: The vacation properties are designed for family use only. Garden City Realty does not rent to groups. Garden City Realty strictly enforces this policy. Garden City Realty considers a group to be, but not limited to, chaperoned or unchaperoned church, college, high school, or similar groups of young adults, whether or not they are related. Any misrepresentation on the part of the renter shall render the rental contract null and void. The renter will forfeit all monies. If you have questions, please contact the management before making your reservation.

• Minimum Age: We do not rent to any persons under the age of 25, nor will we allow a guest under the age of 25 to check in or retrieve keys on behalf of the guest who signed the rental agreement.

• Subleasing: This agreement may not be reassigned or subleased to another individual/party without prior consent by Garden City Realty.

• Charcoal Grills: Charcoal grilling is absolutely prohibited on porches and/or balconies.

• Non-Smoking Condos and Homes: Garden City Realty advertises its properties as non-smoking and smoking, and does its best to maintain the integrity of its non-smoking condos and homes to honor the requests of each property owner.

• Inlet Harbour strictly prohibits motorcycles, fireworks, and golf carts.

• Telephone/Internet: Please note that not all properties have telephones or internet service. If these amenities are necessary for your vacation needs, please verify the property includes them before making your reservation.

• Other Restrictions: Some properties have restrictions regarding motorcycles, trailers, golf carts, fireworks, etc. If you plan to bring or use any of these items during your stay, please check with the property to see if it permits them before making your reservation.