Practical guide4 min read
Digital inspection reports: the complete practical guide
What French law requires of an inspection report, how to carry one out on a tablet room by room, and the mistakes that weaken it.
The homePad team
An inspection report serves one purpose only: being able to compare, on move-out day, the condition of the home with its condition on move-in day. A vague description, an undated photo or a document that was never handed over weakens the landlord's case as much as the tenant's. Going digital does not change this logic: it makes it easier to keep to, provided you get organised. This guide sets out what French law requires, then the method to follow.
What French law requires
In France, the law of 6 July 1989 provides that an inspection report is drawn up when the keys are handed over and again when they are returned, jointly and amicably by the parties or by a third party they appoint, and that it is attached to the lease. Since the Alur law of 2014, its detailed rules have been set by decree: this is decree no. 2016-382 of 30 March 2016, which covers homes let as a main residence.
This decree expressly allows the electronic form: the inspection report is drawn up on paper or in electronic form, then given to each party, by hand or electronically, at the time of signing. It contains at least:
- the type of inspection report, move-in or move-out, and its date
- the location of the home
- the names of the parties and the landlord's home address or registered office, as well as the names of the persons appointed, if there are any
- the readings of the individual water and energy meters, where the home has them
- the details of the keys and other means of access, and what they are for
- for each room, a precise description of the condition of the floors, walls, ceilings, equipment and elements of the home
- the signatures of the parties or of their representatives
At move-out, the address of the tenant's new home or place of accommodation and the date of the move-in inspection report are added. The form of the two documents must allow them to be compared. In Switzerland, Belgium and Luxembourg, the framework is different and must be checked locally.
Prepare the visit at the office
An inspection report is prepared before you set off:
- create the property and its room template, or reuse the move-in one for a move-out
- check the identity of the parties, any mandates and the email addresses the document will be sent to
- charge the tablet and sync the data, because a cellar or a car park does not always have a signal
- set the appointment in daylight, in an empty and clean home if possible
Describe and photograph room by room
Choose a route for the visit and keep to it: the entrance, then each room, going round in the same direction, from floor to ceiling, then the equipment. For each element, note what it is, its condition and, where there is a defect, its location and extent. “Left wall, white paint, two filled wall-plug holes near the window” can be compared. “Good general condition” cannot.
Use a short condition scale, shared by the whole team, and a fixed vocabulary. Operate the equipment instead of looking at it: taps, toilet flush, shutters, hob, intercom. Read the meters and count the keys in the tenant's presence.
A useful photo shows an identifiable element and is attached to the line of the report it documents. Take an overall view of each room, then a close-up of each defect, with a scale marker if its size matters. Avoid framing people, papers or personal belongings: you do not need that data.
Sign, hand over the document and keep to the deadlines
Reread the document with the tenant before signing and record their reservations. Each party receives its copy at the moment it signs. In France, the tenant can still ask for the move-in inspection report to be supplemented within ten days of its being drawn up and, for heating elements, during the first month of the heating period. Plan how these requests are received and handled.
At move-out, French law starts the period for returning the deposit from the handover of the keys: one month if the move-out inspection report matches the move-in one, two months otherwise. The sums withheld must be justified. The 2016 decree defines wear and tear (vétusté) as the state of wear or deterioration resulting from time or normal use: the repairs it gives rise to are not chargeable to the tenant. The parties can agree on a wear-and-tear grid as early as the signing of the lease.
The mistakes that weaken an inspection report
Changing template between move-in and move-out. The comparison becomes an exercise in interpretation.
Writing judgements instead of facts. “Clean”, “fair” or “worn” do not mean the same thing to everyone.
Forgetting the ancillary areas. Cellar, parking space, letterbox, balcony and smoke detector are part of the visit.
What homePad brings
The homePad mobile app is used to carry out these inspection reports: guided reports on a tablet or phone, time-stamped photos, electronic signature, offline mode, automatic PDF reports and a move-in/move-out comparison.
- inspection report
- digital
- rental management
- deposit