Move-in photo packet

Move-in photo packet

1. Type the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, then tick what the home has: dishwasher, laundry, garage, balcony or yard.

2. Print the packet. It lists every area in walking order, with a photo number on each row.

3. Walk the empty home with your phone. In each room, take the wide shots from the corners first, then one close-up per row, in order.

4. As you go, circle G, W, D or M on each row and write what you see, such as "scuff on the wall by the light switch".

5. Write the date on the sheet, make a copy, and keep your copy with the photos.

• Note 01

  Charge the phone and free up space

  A small apartment runs to about 80 photos, so start with a charged phone and room in its storage. Phones save the date inside each photo's details, so you do not need a date stamp on the picture.

• Note 02

  Go before the boxes

  Bare floors and walls show marks that a sofa or a stack of boxes would hide.

• Note 03

  Open everything

  Open the fridge, oven, dishwasher, cabinets and closets. The inside of an appliance gets its own photo on the list.

• Note 04

  Turn every light on

  It brightens the photos and shows any bulbs that are out. The Toledo form has a row for light bulbs.

Source: The Fair Housing Center, Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, checked October 10, 2026.

1. Areas, in walking order: entry and hall, living room, dining room, kitchen, laundry, each bedroom, other rooms, each bathroom, half baths, garage, outside, then a last pass for things that belong to the whole home.
2. Wide shots: 4 per room, one from each corner. Outside: 2, one from the door and one looking back at the house. The whole-home pass has none.
3. Close-ups: one per item on the room's list. The lists follow two published move-in checklists; a dishwasher adds one row to the kitchen.
4. Photos = wide shots + close-ups, numbered from 1 in the order you walk, so photo 23 on the sheet is the 23rd photo on your phone.

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.

• Tip 01

  Photograph a sign first

  Write the address and today's date on a sheet of paper and make it the first photo. Every photo after it in the roll belongs to this walk.

• Tip 02

  Talk through the video

  If you film too, say the room and the photo number as you go, so the video and the sheet line up.

• Tip 03

  Show the size of a mark

  Put a coin or a tape measure next to a scratch or stain before you take the close-up.

• Tip 04

  Back up the same day

  Email the photos to yourself or copy them to a cloud folder that night, before the phone fills up with moving-day pictures.

• Tip 05

  Walk the same route at move-out

  Use the same packet and the same order when you leave, so photo 23 at move-out shows the same spot as photo 23 at move-in.

This page is one part of a bigger job. The system page puts the parts in order.

• SystemRenter move-in condition record: photos, notes and two copiesWalk the empty rental in one order, photograph and note every item on a numbered sheet, then hand over a copy and keep yours for move-out.8 steps · 3 parts · 1 page to printOpen the system

• 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
• 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
• Know-howMeter readings to record on move dayRead and photograph the electric, gas and water meters at the home you leave and the one you move into. How digital and dial meters read, and what to write.Read the guide

• Chapter 01Keys, codes and remotes logCount the full sets of house keys you need, the copies to cut for each lock and the garage remotes to get, then print a log of who has what.Open the tool
• Chapter 01Home inventory sheetList what you own room by room, with what you paid, serial numbers and which items have a photo. See each room's total and print a one-page sheet.Open the tool
• Chapter 01Appliance and warranty logRecord each appliance's model number, serial number and purchase date, see which warranty ends next, and print a one-page log for the drawer.Open the tool
• Chapter 01Smoke and CO alarm plannerCount smoke and CO alarms level by level from NFPA's placement list, then get the replace-by date and the next battery change for your alarms.Open the tool
• Chapter 03Sofa through the doorway fit checkCheck a sofa against your narrowest door and a hallway turn: upright, on its back or tilted on its end, with a printable measuring sheet.Open the tool
• Chapter 04Utility transfer checklistEnter your move-out and move-in dates. Get the last day to call electric, gas, water, trash and internet, the meter days, and a utility list to print.Open the tool
• 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

• Checklist for Walk-Through Inspection (Form A), Mohave County, Arizona. Checked October 10, 2026.
• Tenant Move-In and Move-Out Checklist, The Fair Housing Center (Toledo, Ohio). Checked October 10, 2026.

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