How to use it
- Do it on moving-in day, before your things are in, with the owner or their agent.
- Photograph or film every room, close up on anything marked fair or poor, and note the photo numbers. Email the photos to the owner the same day: the email dates them for both of you.
- Run every faucet, flush the toilet, try every switch and appliance. Something that does not work on day one should be on the list, not discovered by you in month six.
- Both sign every page, and each keeps a copy.
On moving-out day
Use the same list again, room by room, and compare. What has changed beyond normal wear and tear is what the owner can deduct from the deposit; the rest is not. The security deposit calculator works out what comes back.
For owners
The same list protects you: without a signed record of the state of the place on arrival, a deduction for damage is your word against the tenant's. For a furnished let, add an inventory of the furniture and equipment, with the number of each item.