Terms of Service

Welcome to Kovie. These Terms of Service ("Terms") are a binding agreement between you and [KOVIE LLC NAME] ("Kovie," "we," "us") and govern your access to and use of the Kovie mobile applications, website (kovie.co), and related services (collectively, the "Service"). By creating an account or using the Service, you agree to these Terms. If you don't agree, don't use the Service.

Please read Section 3 (Assumption of Risk & Release) and Section 13 (Binding Arbitration & Class-Action Waiver) carefully — they affect your legal rights, including how disputes are resolved.

1. Who can use Kovie

You must be at least 18 years old to use the in-app services (matching, listings, messaging). You must be at least 13 years old to subscribe to the marketing waitlist at kovie.co.

You agree to provide accurate information when registering and to keep your account credentials confidential. You're responsible for everything that happens under your account.

2. What Kovie does — and doesn't do

Kovie is a discovery and introduction platform. We help college students find housing options and connect with potential roommates by providing matching tools, listings information, and messaging. Kovie only introduces people and surfaces information — we are a venue, not a participant.

We do not screen, vet, verify, conduct background or criminal checks on, endorse, recommend, guarantee, or vouch for any user, roommate, landlord, property manager, property, or listing. Compatibility scores and suggestions are informational only and are not a guarantee of any person, outcome, or safety.

Kovie is not a real estate broker, property manager, leasing agent, or landlord. All rental terms, leases, subleases, deposits, and rental decisions are made directly between the parties involved. We are not a party to any rental, sublease, or roommate agreement, and we are not responsible for performance under any such agreement.

Kovie also does not provide background checks, credit reports, or any consumer report subject to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

3. Your interactions with other users — assumption of risk & release

Kovie introduces people; what happens next is between you and them. You are solely responsible for your interactions, communications, arrangements, and transactions with other users and third parties — whether they happen online or in person — including roommate arrangements, subleases, leases, payments, deposits, move-ins, and the sharing of any residence.

You knowingly and voluntarily assume all risk arising from those interactions and arrangements, including the risk of financial loss, fraud, property damage, theft, eviction, breach of a lease or sublease, bodily injury, or death.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, you release, waive, and forever discharge Kovie and its owners, members, officers, employees, and agents from any and all claims, demands, damages, losses, and liabilities of every kind — known or unknown — arising out of or in any way related to (a) your interactions, arrangements, or disputes with other users or third parties; (b) the acts or omissions of any user, roommate, landlord, or property; (c) any listing or its accuracy; or (d) any in-person meeting or shared-living arrangement that began through the Service.

If you are a California resident, you expressly waive California Civil Code §1542, which says: "A general release does not extend to claims that the creditor or releasing party does not know or suspect to exist in their favor at the time of executing the release, and that, if known by them, would have materially affected their settlement with the debtor or released party."

For your safety: meet new people in public first, verify identities and listings independently, use written agreements, and never send money or a deposit before you have independently confirmed who and what you are dealing with.

4. Fair Housing

Kovie is committed to Equal Housing Opportunity. The Service does not permit or facilitate discrimination in the rental of housing based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, disability, or any other class protected under applicable federal, state, or local fair-housing laws.

Choosing whom you will share your own home with is different from renting housing to the public. Roommate matching reflects each user's personal choice of who to live with in a shared living space — a choice protected by the right of intimate association and recognized under the Fair Housing Act's roommate exemption (see Fair Housing Council v. Roommates.com, 666 F.3d 1216 (9th Cir. 2012)). These shared-living preferences apply only to roommate matching, never to traditional landlord-tenant listings, which remain open to all.

5. User content

You retain ownership of the content you submit (profiles, photos, messages). By submitting it, you grant Kovie a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to host, display, reproduce, and distribute it as needed to operate the Service.

Kovie acts as a platform under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act and is not the publisher or speaker of content provided by users. We do not pre-screen all content but may remove content that violates these Terms. If you believe content is unlawful, defamatory, or violates these Terms, email legal@kovie.co.

6. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• Submit false, misleading, defamatory, or unlawful content
• Impersonate another person or misrepresent your identity
• Harass, stalk, or threaten any user
• Solicit illegal activity, including discriminatory housing practices
• Scrape, mine, or copy data from the Service without permission
• Use the Service to send spam or unauthorized marketing
• Interfere with the Service's operation or security

Zero tolerance for objectionable content and abusive users. Kovie has no tolerance for objectionable content — including harassment, hate speech, slurs, sexual content, threats, or impersonation — or for users who behave abusively toward others. You can report content or block any user at any time from within the app. We review reports and remove violating content and eject the responsible users, typically within 24 hours of becoming aware.

7. Listings

Listings on Kovie may be (a) curated by Kovie from publicly available information, (b) self-posted by property owners or managers, or (c) submitted by community members. Kovie does not warrant the accuracy, availability, condition, or legality of any listing. Always verify details directly with the listing party, and inspect any property in person, before making rental decisions or sending money.

8. Subscriptions and payments

Some future features (including landlord listing tiers and any premium student features) may require payment. Pricing, billing terms, and refunds will be described at the point of purchase. Payments are processed by third-party providers; their terms apply.

9. Termination

You can delete your account at any time from the app's profile settings. Kovie may suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms, in our discretion.

Upon deletion, we remove your personal information from active systems as described in our Privacy Policy. Some records may be retained as required by law or for fraud prevention. Sections 3, 10, 11, 12, and 13 survive termination.

10. Disclaimers

The Service is provided "as-is" and "as-available" without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. Kovie does not guarantee that the Service will be uninterrupted, error-free, or meet your expectations. We make no warranty about the identity, background, conduct, character, or suitability of any user, roommate, landlord, or property, and we do not guarantee any match, housing outcome, or your safety.

11. Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, Kovie will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, consequential, special, exemplary, or punitive damages, or for any personal injury, death, property damage, or financial loss arising out of or related to your interactions or arrangements with other users or third parties, even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damages. In all cases, Kovie's total aggregate liability for any claim arising from or related to the Service is limited to the greater of (a) the amount you paid Kovie in the 12 months preceding the claim, or (b) US $100. Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations, so parts of this section may not apply to you.

12. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Kovie and its owners, members, officers, employees, and agents from any claim, loss, liability, or expense (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising from your use of the Service, your content, your interactions or arrangements with other users or third parties, or your violation of these Terms or of any law.

13. Dispute resolution — binding arbitration & class-action waiver

Please read this section carefully. It requires most disputes to be resolved by individual arbitration and waives your right to a jury trial and to participate in a class action.

Informal resolution first. Before starting an arbitration, you agree to email legal@kovie.co with a description of the dispute, and to attempt in good faith to resolve it for at least 60 days.

Binding arbitration. Any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service that is not resolved informally will be resolved by binding individual arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association (AAA) under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, rather than in court — except that either party may bring an individual claim in small-claims court if it qualifies. This arbitration agreement is governed by the Federal Arbitration Act and evidences a transaction involving interstate commerce.

Class-action and jury-trial waiver. You and Kovie each waive the right to a trial by jury and the right to participate in a class, collective, consolidated, or representative action. Disputes will be brought and resolved only on an individual basis. If this waiver is found unenforceable as to a particular claim, that claim (and only that claim) will proceed in court.

30-day opt-out. You may opt out of this arbitration agreement by emailing legal@kovie.co within 30 days of first accepting these Terms, stating your name and that you opt out. Opting out does not affect any other part of these Terms.

Governing law and venue. These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Arkansas, without regard to conflict-of-laws principles. For any dispute not subject to arbitration, you and Kovie consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in Washington County, Arkansas.

14. Changes

We may update these Terms from time to time. Material changes will be communicated in-app or by email at least 14 days before they take effect. Continued use after the effective date is your acceptance of the changes.

15. Contact

Questions? Reach us at hello@kovie.co for general inquiries or legal@kovie.co for legal matters.

These Terms are between you and [KOVIE LLC NAME], [BUSINESS MAILING ADDRESS]. The most current version is always available at kovie.co/terms.