Photos to keep before you move out
The purpose of photos before you move out is to show later which place and how large an area. It is not to make the room look clean, and it is not to finish a reason not to pay.
A photo is a record of what was observed. Keep it separate from what the lease says and from what the invoice claims.
Shoot in an order that shows the place
In each room, this order is easier to sort later.
- The whole room from the entrance
- Walls, floor, and ceiling, so the direction is clear
- Marks, stains, and equipment, closer up
- The same mark paired with the wide photo
Keep the air conditioner, water heater, keys, and screens as equipment. For a stain in a wet area, also keep that it was dry, and where it sits. Mold and leaks become material for What to ask about a leak or mold charge.
Line up the same place as the move-in photos
If you have move-in photos, find the same wall and the same corner so you can view them together. A mark already there at move-in is an observation in that photo. For a place with no move-in photo, do not write “it was not there.” Leave it unknown.
Keep the date both in the photo’s information and in your own note. An article does not need the date. Your record does.
Add photos at the inspection
When a place is pointed out at the inspection, add a photo there. Keep their explanation as a short note on the photo. “There is a mark” and “the tenant made it” are different sentences. Do not mix what you heard with what you saw.
It is easier to shoot before the furniture goes out, so the moving day is not the first time. Who to tell, and when, is in What to tell the manager before you move.
Do not turn the photos into the bill’s conclusion
A mark in a photo does not decide whether it came from ordinary use or from carelessness. A place that is not in a photo is also not proof that nothing was there. Use the photos as attachments when you ask about the place and the area on the invoice.