Landlord Inventory Form

What is an inventory?

The Inventory is a listing of all the contents of a property and a record of the condition of the property. It’s also referred to as a “schedule of condition“. The form is designed to help monitor the condition of the property/items before a tenant moves in and just before a tenant leaves, so it can be made clear what damages, if any, need to be paid for out of the deposit.

This is a step often skipped by landlords’ and tenants’, when it really shouldn’t be. An inventory can prevent a lot of disputes between tenants and landlords, so it’s extremely useful.

How is an Inventory prepared?

The Landlord, Letting Agent or an Independent Inventory Clerk should prepare the Inventory which should be agreed with the tenant on move-in day. The Landlord/Agent and tenant(s) should sign the Inventory and initial every page to signify agreement.

Photographic or video evidence of the property contents and condition is optional but often a wise safety net. How thorough you want to be can often depend on how valuable the items in the property are. Obviously the more valuable items like a cooker and washing machine should be captured with imagery, so there is no question of their condition.

When Should the inventory be cross-checked?

It is common, and advisable, for landlords or agents to make regular inspections when managing a tenancy. Inspecting on a quarterly basis (every 3 months) to compare the inventory with the current condition should be perfectly acceptable to both parties. It’s important to remember that a tenant needs 24 hour notice in writing before an inspection is made.

The final inventory check at the end of tenancy

Ideally, on move out day the landlord should do a final inventory check. The inventory must be checked and agreed with the tenant before the deposit being returned.

It’s imperative that the inventory is checked immediately before the tenant leaving, so there can be no argument about any damage occurring after the tenant has gone. The deposit should only be handed back with in 7 to 14 days if there are no outstanding issues when the inspection is complete.

What happens if items have been damaged?

If there’s a general consensus between the parties on what has been damaged, then estimates should be drawn up for repairs/replacements. The tenant should be informed of all the costs in writing and amounts of deductions from the deposit.

A tenancy deposit scheme should be holding the deposit, so they should be made aware of what has been agreed, so they can distribute the deposit accordingly.

If the deposit doesn’t cover the amount needed to carry out the repairs, an invoice itemising all costs involved for additional payments should be sent to the tenant. If the tenant is insured, this evidence should be provided for the insurance company.

If items need to be replaced then it’s the landlords obligation to consider betterment. This means that the original age and condition of the replaced item should be taken into account when estimating the replacement cost.

What if the parties Cannot Agree?

If the parties cannot reach agreement as to which items have been damaged, the severity of the damage, the repair or replacement costs etc, then great care should be taken in:

• recording the state and condition with photographs
• obtaining estimates and repair or replacement costs
• informing the tenant/landlord in writing

All disputes will be handled by the tenancy deposit scheme the money is secured with. They will offer a free service to help resolve disputes.

Each scheme will contain an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) service, so both tenant and landlord will need to contact the appointed scheme. If both landlord and tenant agree to use the service, they will have to agree to accept its decision and will not be able to apply to the courts. If you or your landlord do not agree to use the Tenancy Deposit Scheme service then the dispute will usually go to the county court.

Is an Inventory needed for an unfurnished property?

The Short answer is yes. Even if a property is deemed as unfurnished, there will still be items that can be damaged and costly to replace e.g sinks, carpets, condition of walls etc. Consequently, it is still crucial to have a detailed inventory.

Download Property Inventory Form

Property Inventory Form

The form can be modified so it suits your requirements.

Does anyone use an Inventory Form, if so, has it been helpful?

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Talk / 15 Comments left so far

Marcus Hill wrote this on 2008-06-17 13:27:46 Thank you for the property inventory, very helpful 1

Gurpreet Khaira wrote this on 2009-03-10 12:07:14 Excellent article, thank you very much for the form, great stuff! 2

sonni wrote this on 2009-05-30 16:01:32 An estate agent said that an inventory completed by the landlord might not have much weight in court. Does anyone know if this is true and should a professional service be used or is this just another money making scheme? 3

joan wrote this on 2009-07-22 21:55:14 Thank you very much for the information-i have learnt something and also the form-i needed some help and this was it- 4

mark standing wrote this on 2009-08-15 19:41:49 Thanks very much,great form,nice to share 5

andy cameron wrote this on 2009-10-02 15:48:27 hi thanks for free download and allowing me to veiw the site . who's the Honey on the video ?.... is she single ? 6

The Landlord wrote this on 2009-10-02 23:09:03 Hey Andy,
She's my friend and no, she's not single :) 7

James wrote this on 2009-10-08 13:18:59 Hi,
Wicked site and a great template for an inventory form.
I work for an inventory company and just wanted to answer sonni.
You an do your own inventories but your estate agent was right to advise you otherwise. An inventory is supposed to be an independant document that does not favour either party.
Even if the tennant signs the document that you have written, when it comes to the check out they may not agree to sign to the changes and that is were the problem occurs.

Hope i helped 8

Jools wrote this on 2009-10-08 17:51:45 Wondered where the lady had gone! You keeping her to yourself Landlord? 9

videoinventory wrote this on 2010-02-10 15:59:27 Sonni, yes to a degree, inventories done by credible third parties are better in court. Actually, video inventories are the recommended standard these days. 10

Stan wrote this on 2010-02-23 16:02:15 A property inventory should be done by a third party so that should you need to use it as evidence in a dispute it will stand up in court. 11

Christian wrote this on 2010-07-01 14:35:30 This is a very well written the advice is 100 percent correct keep up the good informative work

l am an Inventory Clerk and it is positive to see people keeping everyone informed 12

Christian wrote this on 2010-07-01 14:55:36 This message is to sonni No3

You can do your own inventory as a landlord or a letting agent. but this is not advisable and your letting agent has advised you correctly.
This definately not a money making scheme for anyone. it became law in 2007 that an inventory would have to be taken Info contained in Housing act 2004
as mentioned earlier you may do your own report but you will find problems when your tenant decides it was not impartial. despite the fact they have 14 days to go over the property and point out any defects.
An independant report will carry much more weight if any disputes arise and the landlord is more likely to get rewarded with an independant inventory report opposed to their own.

Just a small word of warning if you decieded to skip the inventory your tenant can take you to court and the judge will order you pay them back 3x the amount of deposit given and you will not be able to evict under section 21

hope this info is helpful Deposit scheme info. 13

Craig wrote this on 2010-07-07 16:59:15 "Just a small word of warning if you decieded to skip the inventory your tenant can take you to court and the judge will order you pay them back 3x the amount of deposit given and you will not be able to evict under section 21"

This is wrong, this is attributed to not lodging the deposit correctly and has nothing to do with skipping an inventory, skip an inventory and skip any chance of getting it right in court as you'll have no evidence to back you up. 14

Margaret wrote this on 2010-07-28 00:21:23 I obtained my inventory from an agency and felt it was lacking in certain areas so I updated it and made it more specific to the individual property I am renting. However, if both you (as a Landlord) and the tenant go over the inventory thoroughly and make any changes as you both see fit and both parties initial the changes on each others copy at that time, I cannot see why this would not stand up in court. I recently paid an inventory company to perform an 'inventory/check in' and I can honestly say I could have done a better job myself and saved the £110.00 it cost me! 15

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