Chapter 04Moving · System
Renter move-in condition record: photos and notes for every room
Walk the rental before your things come in. In each room, take a wide photo from every corner, then a close-up of each item, and make sure the photos carry a date. Fill in one row per item on a sheet: its condition, a short note and the photo number. Write NA for anything the home doesn't have. Make two copies, write down the date and how the landlord got theirs, and keep yours until you move out.
Source: DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026; The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026; Mohave County (AZ), Checklist for Walk-Through Inspection (Form A), checked October 10, 2026.
- Photos for two bedrooms, one bath, a dishwasher and a balcony78 Counted from this page
- One for the landlord, one you keep (Toledo form)2 copies The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, October 10, 2026
- Pictures of problems should show the date (DC form)Dated DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, October 10, 2026
Do it, skip it or get help
Do it yourself
Everyone moving into a rental can do this. You need a phone, a pen, two printed sheets and an hour or two in the empty home. The DC Department on Disability Services form asks you to record the condition before move-in and to take dated pictures of problems.
Source: DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Skip what the home doesn't have
No garage, no yard, no laundry? Leave those areas off the walk and write NA on any row that doesn't apply. Don't skip the rooms that look fine: a row marked good with a photo number is part of the record too.
Source: DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Get help for questions about money or the law
This record shows what you saw and when. What a landlord may charge, what counts as normal wear, or what your state requires are questions for a local tenant union, a legal aid office or your state's housing agency. Take the record with you when you ask.
The steps, in order
Set a time before the boxes come in
Ask the landlord for a walk-through time before move-in day, and ask whether they have their own form. The Toledo form says to inspect each item before you move your belongings in. Walk it alone if nobody else can come.
Have ready: A date, a time and the landlord's form if there is one
Source: The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Print the packet twice
Work out your packet with the move-in photo packet tool, then print two copies and fill them in the same way. One goes to the landlord and one stays with you.
Have ready: Two copies of the sheet, a pen, a clipboard
Source: The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Walk one route and shoot wide, then close
Go room by room in a fixed order. Take a wide photo from each corner, then a close-up of each item on the room's list: floors, walls, windows, fixtures and appliances. The DC form asks for dated pictures, so check your phone's date before you start.
Have ready: A charged phone with room for every photo in the packet
Source: Mohave County (AZ), Checklist for Walk-Through Inspection (Form A), checked October 10, 2026; DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Fill in every row as you stand there
Mark each item G for good, W for worn, D for damaged or M for missing. For anything that isn't good, write what it is, where it is, how big and how many. Add the photo number. Write NA when the home doesn't have the item, as the DC form does.
Have ready: The sheet on the clipboard, the photo count on your phone
Source: DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Number the pages and add initials
Number every page, including any extra pages and printed photos. The DC form has the landlord initial each page and sign and date the last one. If the landlord isn't there, put your own initials and the date on each page.
Have ready: Both copies side by side
Source: The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026; DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Hand over a copy and write down how
Give the landlord one copy. Write down the date, how it went over (in person, drop box or mail) and who took it, as the Toledo form asks. A photo of the handed-over copy on the counter helps.
Have ready: The hand-over line on your copy
Source: The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Back up the photos the same night
Copy the photos to a second place before you unpack: a computer, a drive or a cloud folder named with the address and the date. Phones get lost on moving day.
Have ready: A computer, a drive or a cloud folder
File it and bring it to move-out
Put your signed copy in the house binder. The DC form says to keep it for move-out, and the Toledo form says to keep the records safe, especially for a long tenancy. On move-out day, walk the same route with the same sheet.
Have ready: A binder sleeve or folder marked with the address
Source: DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026; The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Print the working copy
One page, black and white, US Letter. Tick the boxes and write the dates in.
- Walk-through time agreed
- Landlord's own form asked for
- Packet worked out with the tool
- Two copies printed, pen and clipboard
- Phone charged, date on the phone checked
What goes wrong
The boxes were already in
Furniture covers the floor, boxes block the walls, and nobody can see the carpet under the sofa. Do the walk with the rooms empty, before the truck is unloaded.
Source: The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Only the damage was photographed
A handful of close-ups of marks says nothing about the rest of the home. The wide shots from each corner and a row for every item show what was fine as well as what wasn't.
Notes nobody can match up later
"Wall dirty" doesn't say which wall. The DC form's own example names the room, the mark and where it is: dirty, with a hole in the kitchen wall by the pantry. Add the size and the photo number.
Source: DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
One copy, and no record of handing it over
The only copy went to the landlord, or nobody wrote down when it changed hands. Fill in two copies and write the date, the method and who took it.
Source: The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
The photos lived only on the phone
A lost or replaced phone takes the record with it. Back the photos up the night of the walk and write where they are on your copy of the sheet.
When the steps change
Studio or one room
The walk is short: entry, the main room, kitchen, bathroom and a last pass for things that belong to the whole home, such as the thermostat, the smoke alarm and the doors and locks. The same sheet works with fewer rows.
Source: Mohave County (AZ), Checklist for Walk-Through Inspection (Form A), checked October 10, 2026.
A house with a garage and a yard
Add the garage as its own room and the outside as one area: the surface, the fence, the outside door and the light. Photograph the outside from the door and looking back at the house.
The landlord brings their own form
Fill in their form on their copy, in their scale. The Toledo form, for example, runs from 1 for severe damage to 5 for brand new. Write your photo numbers next to each line so both records point at the same pictures.
Source: The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Moving out
The DC form has a move-in and a move-out column for every item. On the last day, clean first, then walk the same route, take the same shots and fill in the second column next to the first.
Source: DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Tips and tricks
- Tip 01
Start with a photo of the sheet
Make photo 1 a shot of the blank sheet with the address and date written on it. Every photo after it on your phone belongs to this walk.
- Tip 02
Put a coin in close-ups
A quarter next to a scratch or a hole shows its size without a tape measure. Write the size on the sheet too.
- Tip 03
Run the taps and the switches
Flip each light switch and run each tap while you're in the room, and write what happened in the notes. It takes seconds and it's easy to forget once you've moved in.
- Tip 04
Read the meters while you're there
If the meters are easy to see, photograph each one with its reading. The numbers often come up in the first utility bill.
- Tip 05
Same order, same shots at move-out
Write the route on the top of your copy. On move-out day, follow it again so each move-out photo has a matching move-in photo.
What we would do
Walk it empty and keep two copies
Book the walk before move-in day and work out the packet with the tool the night before. Photograph every room from each corner and every item up close, and fill in every row, the good ones too. Hand one copy over, write down how, back up the photos that night, and put your copy in the binder until move-out.
The tools and guides in this system
Chapter 04Move-in photo packetTurn your rental's rooms into a numbered photo list and a condition sheet you can print. Walls, floors, fixtures and appliances, room by room.Open the tool
Know-howWhat to photograph on move-in day, room by roomThe shot list for an empty rental: wide photos from each corner, then one close-up per item, numbered in walking order so the sheet and your phone agree.Read the guide
Practical noteHow to fill in a move-in condition checklistOne letter per row, then what, where and how big, plus the photo number. Notes a stranger can read a year later, and what to do with the copies.Read the guide- Chapter 04All moving toolsMoving tools with a printable sheet behind each one: a numbered move-in photo list, a condition sheet for renters, and the dates to call each utility.Open the chapter
Questions
How do I document an apartment's condition before moving in?
Walk it empty in one fixed order. In each room, take a wide photo from every corner and a close-up of each item, then fill in one row per item with its condition, a short note and the photo number. The DC Department on Disability Services form asks for dated pictures of any problem.
Source: DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
What should a move-in condition record include?
Every room and its items: floors, walls and ceiling, windows and screens, blinds, lights, outlets, closets and doors, plus the kitchen and bathroom fixtures and appliances, and things for the whole home such as the thermostat, smoke alarms, vents and locks. Each item gets a condition, a note and a photo number.
Source: Mohave County (AZ), Checklist for Walk-Through Inspection (Form A), checked October 10, 2026; The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
Should the landlord sign the move-in checklist?
The DC form has the landlord initial each page and sign and date the last one, and the tenant keeps a signed copy. If the landlord isn't at the walk, write the date and how you handed over their copy, and keep yours. Questions about what a missing signature means go to a tenant union, legal aid or your state's housing agency.
Source: DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026; The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
How long should I keep move-in photos?
Until after you've moved out. The DC form says to keep the signed copy for move-out, and the Toledo form says to keep the records safe, especially for a long tenancy.
Source: DC DDS, Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026; The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.
What if the landlord gives me their own form?
Fill it in on their copy in their own words or number scale, and write your photo numbers next to each line. Keep your own sheet as well, since it has the photo index.
The primary source
Tenant Move-In/Move-Out Checklist, DC Department on Disability Services (DDS). Checked October 10, 2026.
The steps on this page follow this source. Other figures cite their own source where they appear.
Other sources on this page
- Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, The Fair Housing Center (Toledo, Ohio). Checked October 10, 2026.
- Checklist for Walk-Through Inspection (Form A), Mohave County, Arizona. Checked October 10, 2026.
See every source on the site on the sources page. Spotted an error? Tell us.