When you reserve a cottage, you will be asked to send a deposit. The deposit should be exactly half of the total rent plus our $50 booking fee, due in a reasonable time after you commit yourself to the rental. A week is usually more than enough time unless you are mailing it from outside of the continental US. In most cases, deposits may be in the form of a personal check payable to PETERS REAL ESTATE. If your rental begins less than a month from the time you book your cottage, the deposit should be in the form of a cashier's check or money order. (To our repeat tenants: deposit checks should always be made payable to our office. Please do not make your deposit check out to the property owner.) One note: Mail does get lost. It has happened. We try not to cancel anyone for lack of a deposit without calling to see if it went astray. Should you change your mind about booking the cottage, please call us to let us know. Don't assume we'll remove you after a certain time has passed.