Terms of Service

Effective [October 18, 2026]

These terms are an agreement between you and [HomeTourist legal entity name] ("HomeTourist", "we", "us"). They cover your use of the HomeTourist app and website. By creating an account or using HomeTourist, you agree to these terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you don't agree, don't use HomeTourist.

1. What HomeTourist is

HomeTourist connects people buying a home ("buyers") with independent local people ("Tourists") who attend public open houses on a buyer's behalf and write a report about what they saw.

• We are not a real estate brokerage, agent or listing service. We don't list homes, represent buyers or sellers, or negotiate on anyone's behalf.
• A report is one person's honest opinion, not a home inspection, appraisal or professional advice. Tourists are not licensed inspectors (unless they say so), and a report can miss things. Before buying a home, get a professional inspection and do your own research.
• We're not affiliated with Zillow, Redfin or any listing site. When you share or paste a listing link, we use it only to find the home's address and to let you and your Tourist open the original listing. Listing information belongs to those sites and their sources.

2. Who can use HomeTourist

You must be at least 18 and able to enter a binding contract. Tourists must also live in the United States and be able to receive payouts through Stripe. You're responsible for keeping your account secure and for everything done with it. Give accurate information and keep it up to date.

3. For buyers

• Booking. You choose a home, enter the open house date and time, and invite one or more Tourists. The first invited Tourist to accept takes the tour.
• The open house time is your responsibility. We don't check listing sites. Enter the time exactly as the listing shows it; if the listing hasn't posted hours, you can book the date, and the Tourist will check the listing for the hours that day. Your Tourist will also re-check the listing before going.
• Price. Before you send a request, we show the price range of the Tourists you invited plus our service fee. You're charged the accepted Tourist's price plus the service fee only when your report is delivered.
• Cancelling. Cancelling is free until a Tourist accepts, and up to [12] hours before the open house. After that, you'll be charged [50%] of the tour price, which goes mostly to the Tourist who set the time aside.
• Canceled or moved open houses. If the open house is canceled, you aren't charged. If its time changes, we'll tell you, and the Tourist tours at the new time if they can. There's no charge to you when an open house doesn't happen, even if your Tourist already went to the home.
• Reports. Reports are for your personal use in deciding whether to buy. Ratings and reviews you leave must be honest and about the tour.

4. For Tourists

• Independent contractor. You're an independent contractor, not an employee, agent or partner of HomeTourist. You decide whether to accept a job, set your own price, service area and availability, and you're responsible for your own transportation, expenses and taxes. [Lawyer: confirm classification wording for the states we operate in.]
• Verification. To receive jobs you must set up payouts with Stripe, which verifies your identity. We may also ask for more verification, and we may remove Tourists who can't be verified.
• You do the tour yourself. When you accept a job, you personally attend the open house and write the report from what you saw. You may not subcontract, hand off, resell or re-book a job (including booking the same open house through HomeTourist as a buyer), or submit a report based on someone else's tour. Doing so is grounds for removing you from HomeTourist and refunding the buyer, and you won't be paid for that job.
• Before each tour. After accepting, confirm on the listing that the open house is on at the booked time, and check again on the day. If it moved or was canceled, report it in the app. If you can't make it, release the job as early as possible.
• Open houses that don't happen. Open houses are scheduled by the listing agent or seller, not by HomeTourist or the buyer, and they're sometimes canceled, moved or cut short without notice. If you go to an open house that isn't happening, you aren't paid for that tour, and HomeTourist doesn't pay for your time, travel or other costs. You accept this risk when you accept a job. Checking the listing before you head out is the best way to avoid a wasted trip. If it's not happening, report it in the app so the buyer is told and nobody is charged.
• Check in when you arrive. Checking in at the home in the app starts the tour. It needs your location (once, while you're there) and only works during the open house and within half a mile of the home. If you don't check in by the time the open house ends, the tour is marked missed: the buyer isn't charged, you aren't paid, and missed tours may count against your account.
• At the open house. Attend only public open houses during their posted hours, as a member of the public. Be respectful of the home, the listing agent and other visitors. Follow the listing agent's instructions and house rules. Don't misrepresent yourself: you may say you're touring on behalf of a buyer, but don't claim to be the buyer, an agent or an inspector unless you are.
• Photos. Take photos only if the listing agent allows it. Never photograph people, personal documents, mail, medication, valuables, security systems or anything else private, and don't open private storage (drawers, closets with personal belongings) to photograph them. If the agent asks for no photos, mark it in the report and describe what you see instead.
• Reports. Write an honest, specific report based on what you actually saw, within 24 hours of ending the tour. Don't copy listing descriptions or photos from listing sites.
• Getting paid. You're paid your price, minus our platform fee, when the buyer's payment for the report goes through. Payouts are made by Stripe to the bank account you set up. If a buyer's card is declined, your payout waits until they pay. [Decide: what happens if a buyer never pays.]

5. Payments

Payments and payouts are processed by Stripe and are also subject to Stripe's terms, including the Stripe Connected Account Agreement for Tourists. Prices are in US dollars. Our fees are shown in the app before you pay. [Refund policy: e.g. if a report is clearly incomplete or not about the right home, contact support within [7] days and we'll review it.]

6. Things you may not do

• Use HomeTourist for anything illegal, unsafe or harassing, or to enter a home outside a public open house.
• Misrepresent who you are, or let someone else use your account.
• Arrange to pay or be paid for tours outside HomeTourist to avoid fees, for people you met through HomeTourist.
• Scrape, copy or resell reports or other users' information, or interfere with the app's security.
• Post false, misleading or abusive reviews or reports.

7. Content

You keep ownership of what you create, such as reports and photos. You give us permission to store, display and share it as needed to run HomeTourist (for example, delivering a report to the buyer who requested it). Make sure you have the right to share what you upload.

8. Your information

Our Privacy Policy explains what we collect and why, including your one-time location reading when a Tourist checks in at a tour, push notifications, and app usage analytics (which screens and steps are used, so we can improve HomeTourist; never addresses, notes, report text, photos or your location). Using HomeTourist means you agree to that.

9. Ending your account

You can delete your account in the app at any time once your active tours are finished. We may suspend or close accounts that break these terms or put other people at risk.

10. Disclaimers and limits on liability

[Lawyer to draft.] HomeTourist is provided "as is." We don't guarantee that a Tourist will be available, that an open house will happen, or that a report is complete or accurate. To the extent the law allows, we aren't liable for indirect or consequential losses, including decisions you make about buying a home, and our total liability to you is limited to [the amount you paid us in the 12 months before the claim].

11. Disputes

[Lawyer to draft: governing law (state of [State]), informal resolution first, and whether disputes go to arbitration or small claims court.] If you have a problem, email us first at support@hometourist.app and we'll try to fix it.

12. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms. If a change is material, we'll let you know in the app and ask you to accept the new version before you keep using HomeTourist.

13. Contact

Questions? Email support@hometourist.app.