Capture floors, walls, doors, windows, and included furnishings while they are unobstructed.
Move-in checklist
Create the baseline before boxes cover the rental.
Photograph empty rooms, test visible fixtures, record existing marks, and count access items while the starting condition is easiest to see.
Updated · Reviewed by the Vellumstead Labs product team.
Review the property label, report date, keys, room coverage, and any area you could not inspect.
Keep the PDF and any delivery confirmation somewhere you control outside the app.
Before belongings obscure the view
Build the starting record in a deliberate order.
Use the handoff date and the condition you can actually observe. If an area is dirty, occupied, unsafe, dark, or inaccessible, state that limitation instead of inferring what is there.
Confirm the property name, address, report type, and date.
Use a name you will recognize later and verify that the report says move-in. If the keys were received on a different date from the walkthrough, note the distinction.
Photograph each empty room from the doorway and opposite corner.
Capture the overall floor, walls, ceiling, windows, doors, closets, and included furnishings before boxes or furniture block them.
Check fixtures, appliances, and visible services.
Record sinks, taps, toilets, showers, lights, fans, outlets where appropriate, heating or cooling controls, and included appliances. Photograph labels or displays only when they add useful context.
Record existing marks with location and scale.
Use a wider photo to locate the area and a close-up to show the detail. Add a neutral note such as “chip on front-left corner of kitchen counter.”
Count keys, remotes, cards, parking, mailbox, and storage access.
List what was received and identify any expected item that was not provided. Avoid photographing full key codes or other sensitive identifiers.
Review the report before acknowledging the handoff.
Look for missed rooms, missing conditions, unclear photos, and incomplete notes. Export the PDF and retain the file and any correspondence according to the process you and the other party use.
Useful move-in note patterns
- Existing mark
- “Three small nail holes above the living-room window, visible on arrival.”
- Operation
- “Bedroom window opens but does not remain raised without support.”
- Not inspected
- “Garage storage cabinet was locked; interior condition not observed.”
Do not delay urgent safety or maintenance reporting.
A documentation checklist is not a repair request or emergency channel. Use the contact method required by your lease, property, or local emergency guidance when something needs prompt attention.
Baseline quality check
Make the starting report useful for a later comparison.
Room and item labels should be specific enough to reuse at move-out. A later comparison is clearer when the baseline is organized and the original photos include location context.
- Every accessible room represented
- Existing conditions described factually
- Keys and access items counted
- PDF reviewed and retained outside the app
Establish the starting point
Create a move-in baseline you can compare later.
PlaceLedger keeps the room structure, item photos, notes, proof metadata, and PDF review in one local workflow.
