Boma Family Retreat. 3b2b, Parking, Yard, playroom

Lots of original charm in this peaceful old home with newly renovated bathrooms and kitchen.

What you'll love:

* Open concept floor plan with plenty of natural light
* 2 car parking via attached driveway
* 3 Bedrooms and 2 Full Baths - space for everyone to spread out
* Large loft area for kids (and adults) to play and unwind
* Fenced cozy backyard
* Super fast WiFi throughout the house
* Walking distance to the Monongahela incline

Wonderful space for family gateways and small groups.

The Boma Family Retreat is our beloved home in Mt. Washington. We've been living and working overseas in Uganda, and while we are away we are thrilled to share this beautiful and peaceful home with you.

The house was built in 1903, and lovingly cared for by its previous owners (that owner, in fact, still owns the property next door to us - both had been in their family for decades). We were the lucky ones to be the next caretakers of this house, with its original charm mixed with beautiful modern upgrades to the kitchen and bathrooms.

PARKING:
2 car off-street parking via the attached driveway.
Parking on the street is free for extra cars.

HOUSE LAYOUT:

The Ground Floor is accessed by 4 steps to get onto the porch and to the front door. Inside you'll find an airy open floor plan. The recently renovated kitchen is well stocked with cookware, flatware, utensils, and most of anything you might need (there's ground coffee for brewing a pot, but if you prefer Keurig cups bring your stash!). The dining room fits 8 and is next to a comfortable living room where there is a full-sized sleeper sofa. There's also a full bathroom on the ground floor, with a bathtub/shower.

Out back is a cute fenced grassy backyard with picnic tables and a grill (bring your own charcoal and supplies!). And in the basement of the house - accessed by a somewhat steep set of stairs - is a washer and dryer, as well as an iron and ironing board.

Upstairs are the three cozy bedrooms and a newly renovated bathroom with walk-in shower and double vanity.

Bedroom #1 has a king sized bed with new mattress, window blinds and room darkening curtains. There's a toddler bed and a pack-n-play portable crib in the closet here.

Bedroom #2 has a low-profile queen bed with a new mattress and black-out curtains on the windows. It's a small but comfortable room.

Bedroom #3 has an adult bunk-bed with a queen bed below and a full-sized bed above, both with new Pittsburgh original mattresses. The upper bunk bed is accessed by a bookcase staircase (not a ladder). The bunk bed is made to accommodate adults, and can hold 2,000lbs, BUT please do be careful with the young ones as there is a fall hazard here! This room also has a small desk with chair and an internet mesh hub to amplify the super-case WIFI.

Up another flight of stairs is the finished loft area. Check out the view from up here! Lots of bean bags for lounging about, and there is a futon, floor cushion that is folded into a sort of couch but can be bedding, and a queen sized air mattress with bedding available just in case your group wants to spread out (or the kids refuse to leave at bedtime). We purposely did not put a TV up here - enjoy the peace, color a picture and stick it on the wall, or draw on the chalkboard wall (adults - this is for you, too!). This is a place to relax.

LOCATION
The location of the house is A+. The street is quiet and friendly, and the sidewalks are almost always busy with neighbors strolling and walking their dogs. Don't be surprised if neighbors sitting on their porches call out a friendly hello or wave as you walk by.

Out the door to the right is a block away from Grand View Park - a lovely green space with a playground down the hill a bit and access to the larger Emerald View Park (a 280-acre stretch of wooded trails dotted with play and picnic areas). The views are stunning.

Out the door to the left is a ~12 minute easy walk to Grand View Avenue and the Monongahela Incline. The incline drops into Station Square, which is the easy access point for public transport to downtown Pittsburgh (or an easy and lovely walk across the bridge), Acrisure (formerly Heinz) Stadium, PNC Park, PPG Paints Arena, and more.

The location of the house is:
- about 6 blocks (12 min walk) from Monongahela incline and Mt. Washington scenic overlook. (Monongahela incline drops you directly in Station Square)
- about 6 minute ride to the Southside strip.
- about 8 minutes ride from Interstate 376.
- about 10 minutes to the Heinz Stadium (now Acrisure stadium), PNC Park, and PPG Paints Arena
- about 15 minutes ride to Schenley Park, University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon, Phipps Conservatory, the UPMC hospitals (women's, children's and general), and more.

** Sorry, no pets allowed ** (our family has allergies)
If you are traveling with a service animal, please let us know at the time of booking. Per Pennsylvania law, we can require documentation for service or emotional support animals.

** Note that we cannot offer refunds for weather-related cancellations after the free-cancellation period has ended. PLEASE consider purchasing travel insurance to protect your trip against unforeseen events **

Guest access
Entire house and back yard.

NOTES:
1. We do not allow large (>10 people) or loud (can be heard outside of the house) parties/gatherings/events or anything of the kind. We have quiet hours starting from 10pm and ask that visitors are not coming or going after that (as long as you are not blasting music, noise inside the house is pretty contained… but folks coming and going or talking loudly out on the porches can be disturbing to neighbors). We know all of the neighbors and they very kindly keep watch of our house and call us whenever things get loud or it seems like a lot of people are showing up to the house. **Note that only guests who are listed on the reservation may stay overnight.**

2. We have baby- and child- safety items around the house for your use, but only supervision can really keep a young one safe. There are cabinet locks in the kitchen if needed, a baby gate is in the foyer if you need to install it on the bottom of the main stairs, and the tops of each stair landing have installed baby gates that we highly recommend using if young ones are about. Note that one bedroom has a bunkbed that can present a fall hazard for small children. IF you install the ground floor baby stair gate, please remove it when you leave! (We’ve had other guests complain about it being there)

3. Laundry is available but please note the stairs to basement (where laundry is) are steep and low hanging (there’s a door to keep closed to prevent little ones from reaching the basement stairs). The attic stairs are also steep (baby gates are installed at the top of each stair landing). It's an old house, so it has all the charm of an old house but also the squeaks and creaks that come with age!

4. We have left out our bicycles (2 adult ones and 4 kid of various sizes), baby carseat, stroller, and 2 car booster seats in the basement. You are welcome to use these things, but note the cleaning company does not clean or arrange these extras. PLEASE clean them up after use and return them to their spaces in the basement so the next guests can also use them.

5. At checkout, we ask that guests throw away any of their left-over food from the house or fridge into the kitchen trash bins, and gather all dirty dishes to the kitchen (food waste smells and attracts insects). We also ask that guests check that wall heat/AC units are turned off and that doors and windows are closed and locked when they leave.

6. We are strictly no smoking. If the cleaners or subsequent guests note the smell of cigarette smoke, marijuana, vaping, cigars, or anything of the sort there will be a $250-500 fee for odor removal (depending on the extent of cleaning that is required to remove the odor).

For groups with kids, we want kids to have a fantastic fun time in the playroom and respectfully ask that the adults help to keep playroom items in the playroom and tidy up to a reasonable degree (the 4 hours the cleaning crew has to turn over the house between guests will not cut it unless guests help us to restore order after a particularly exciting playtime!)

Lastly, note that we do have and use security cameras on the exterior of the house, but there are none inside the house.