Terms of Service

Effective Date: 2026-07-24

Version: 1

1. Acceptance of These Terms

By creating an account or using the De-Duke mobile app or website ("the Platform"), you agree to these Terms of Service. If you do not agree, do not use the Platform.

2. What De-Duke Is (and Isn't)

De-Duke is a marketplace platform that connects Guests with Hosts/Owners and Agents/Agencies for Commercial property sales/leases and Shortlet bookings.

De-Duke is not a party to the underlying sale, lease, or booking transaction between a Guest and a Host/Agency. We provide the platform, payment infrastructure, verification process, and support chat that make the transaction possible, but the transaction itself is between the Guest and the Host/Agency. De-Duke's own role, and the limits of that role, are described throughout this document.

3. Accounts and Roles

• Guests browse, search, book, and pay for listings.
• Hosts list Commercial or Shortlet properties after completing verification for one of six host types: Owner (photo + bio only), Agent, Company, Lawyer, Architect, or Surveyor (each requiring type-specific supporting documents, reviewed manually by De-Duke staff before a "Verified Host" badge is granted).
• Agencies are a Host variant supporting a team of agents managing a shared portfolio.

You must provide accurate information when creating your account and completing verification. Submitting false, forged, or misleading verification documents is grounds for immediate account termination and may be reported to relevant authorities.

You are responsible for safeguarding your account credentials and for all activity under your account.

4. Fixed Pricing — No In-App Negotiation

Every listing on De-Duke is offered at a single, fixed price. De-Duke does not provide, and does not intend to provide, an in-app mechanism for offers, counter-offers, or price negotiation. If a Host wishes to change a listing's price, they must edit the listing itself; the price shown to a Guest at the time they create a booking hold is the price that applies to that transaction.

5. Booking Holds

Before payment, a Guest reviews a confirmation summary (listing, price, dates) and must explicitly confirm. Confirming creates a time-limited hold (default 15 minutes) on the listing for the selected dates/possession period, during which no other Guest can hold or book overlapping dates. If payment is not completed within the hold window, the hold expires automatically and the listing/dates become available again. Holding a listing does not guarantee a completed transaction and does not obligate De-Duke or the Host to any particular outcome beyond the hold period itself.

6. Payments, Commission, and Payouts

Payment processing is provided by Paystack. By making a payment on De-Duke, you also agree to Paystack's own applicable terms for that transaction.

• Commission: De-Duke charges a buyer fee (added to the listing price, paid by the Guest) and an owner commission (deducted from the listing price, borne by the Host/Agency) on every completed transaction. Both rates are configured independently by De-Duke and may change from time to time; a rate change only applies to transactions initiated after the change — it never changes the rate that applied to a transaction already in progress. Current rates are disclosed to you before you confirm a booking hold (Guest) or before your listing goes live (Host).
• Escrow: Funds paid by a Guest are held by De-Duke in escrow until a De-Duke Admin manually reviews and releases them to the Host/Agency's De-Duke wallet. This manual release step exists on every transaction — there is no automatic or time-based release.
• Wallet & Withdrawal: Once funds are released to a Host/Agency's wallet, the Host/Agency may request a withdrawal to their verified bank account at any time; withdrawals are processed automatically via Paystack's Transfer API with no further De-Duke approval step required at that stage, because the underlying funds already passed the manual escrow-release checkpoint.
• Full detail on fees, refunds, and payout timing is set out in our separate Payment Terms document, which forms part of these Terms of Service by reference.

7. The Three-Way Support Chat

De-Duke provides a real-time chat connecting a Guest, the relevant Host/Agency, and De-Duke staff/admin. This chat exists for communication, support, and dispute mediation — it is not a price-negotiation channel, and messages sent in it do not modify a listing's fixed price or any transaction's terms. De-Duke staff may view and participate in any conversation for support, verification confirmation, and dispute-mediation purposes. Attempting to arrange payment outside the Platform after connecting via De-Duke's chat is discouraged and may violate these Terms (see Section 9).

8. Listings and Content

Hosts are solely responsible for the accuracy of their listing content (price, description, photos, availability, legal status of the property). De-Duke reserves the right to remove any listing that is inaccurate, fraudulent, duplicative, or otherwise violates these Terms, and to suspend or reject a Host's verification where documentation is incomplete, inconsistent, or appears fraudulent.

9. Prohibited Conduct

You agree not to:

• Provide false or fraudulent identity, business, or verification information
• Circumvent De-Duke's fixed-pricing model or attempt to negotiate price outside the listed amount
• Arrange payment for a De-Duke-sourced transaction outside the Platform in an attempt to avoid commission
• Use the Platform for any unlawful purpose, or to harass, defraud, or mislead another user
• Attempt to access another user's account or De-Duke's systems without authorization
• Scrape, reverse-engineer, or misuse the Platform's data or infrastructure

Violation of this section may result in suspension or termination of your account, forfeiture of funds held in escrow pending investigation, and/or referral to law enforcement where appropriate.

10. Disputes Between Users

If a dispute arises between a Guest and a Host/Agency regarding a transaction, either party may raise it through the three-way support chat or De-Duke's support channels. De-Duke may mediate, investigate, and — where a transaction's funds are still held in escrow — pause release pending resolution. De-Duke's mediation decisions are made in good faith based on available information but do not constitute legal adjudication of the underlying dispute between Guest and Host/Agency.

11. Termination

You may close your account at any time. De-Duke may suspend or terminate your account for violation of these Terms, fraudulent activity, or as required by law. Termination does not affect any transaction already completed, or De-Duke's right to retain records required for legal or financial compliance.

12. Disclaimers and Limitation of Liability

The Platform is provided "as is." De-Duke does not guarantee the accuracy of listings, the conduct of any Guest, Host, or Agency, or the outcome of any transaction. To the maximum extent permitted by Nigerian law, De-Duke's liability for any claim arising from your use of the Platform is limited to the commission actually collected by De-Duke on the transaction giving rise to the claim.

13. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Any dispute arising from these Terms or your use of the Platform is subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Nigeria, unless otherwise agreed in writing.

14. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. Material changes will be communicated with at least 30 days' advance notice via in-app notification and/or email before taking effect, consistent with our data governance and change-notice practices.

15. Contact Us

De-Duke Email: legal@de-duke.com

---

This document is a complete working draft prepared for legal counsel review prior to publication, per FEAT-037. It must not be treated as final, App Store/Play Store–submittable copy until counsel has reviewed and approved it and the Effective Date/Version above reflect that approval.