Do you have a home inventory checklist?
If you don’t, you could be leaving yourself vulnerable if something were to get damaged, broken, or stolen.
Furthermore, if you ever need to make an insurance claim, having an inventory will really help you get money for everything. A lot of times, it is easy to forget about all the stuff in your home or apartment.
A home inventory is a best practice
If a guest checks in, breaks a glass, and then leaves. How do you know that a glass was broken? The last thing you want is a he said / she said situation where you don’t have proof or any type of record of how many glasses you had in your house.
Furthermore, for insurance and other reasons it is a good idea to write down the model, serial number, and purchase price of every major item in your home.
Sure, you don’t need the serial number of those wine glasses. But how much they cost may be a good idea.
But what happens if a guest spills a drink on your TV, or makes a deep gouge in your dining room table? In that case, manufacturer and price paid can help a lot in determining how much restitution is required.
Fields Captured on Home Inventory
Below is the first page sample from our Free Printable Home Inventory Document.
Just Download Our 100% FREE Home Inventory PDF Here
It is important to capture the Item, a brief description, the Manufacturer / Serial number, and the price paid. You may also want to include the date you purchased it if you want to have a complete record for the insurance company.
Home Inventory Worksheet (Sample page 1)
Room: Living Room or Family Room
| ITEM | DESCRIPTION | MANUFACTURER / SERIAL # | PRICE PAID |
| 1. Books | |||
| 2. Bookcases | |||
| 3. Cabinets | |||
| 4. Couch or sofa | |||
| 5. Chairs | |||
| 6. Lamps | |||
| 7. Rugs | |||
| 8. Tables (coffee or side) | |||
| 9. TV (W/ REMOTE) | |||
| 10. DVD PLAYER (W/ REMOTE) | |||
| 11. Other Electronics | |||
| 12. Art / Photographs | |||
| 13. Window Air Conditioner | |||
| 14. Throw pillows | |||
| 15. Blankets | |||
Do I really need a Home Inventory?
We get this question a lot from the owners we help. Since we manage a variety of AirBnB, Homeaway, and VRBO properties, each owner is different. And it is up to the owners to create an inventory, we just strongly recommend it.
There really isn’t any downside to HAVING an inventory. The only downsides happen when you don’t have one. So in our minds, that is a no brainer, of course you need an inventory!
Sure a broken glass here and there is no big deal, but when big things go missing, get stolen, or broken, then this will really help you out!
And in the absolute worst case scenario where you have a major loss event, like a fire, water damage, or even when you guests throw a crazy party (like recently happened in Canada), your home inventory can make like a lot easier for you and the insurance company too.
Lastly, completing this exercise (or documenting every little thing in your home) is actually pretty interesting! You probably have more stuff then you imagined. Going through each room and writing down every piece of furniture and other knick knacks is a mind opening experience. You also realize how many things you would have left off the list, or simply forgotten about, in the case of a major or total loss.
So go get started! Complete your home inventory today, its a major way you can protect yourself.
Download PDF Now
You can download our copy for FREE now, you don’t even need to signup to our mailing list (although, if you want to do that too, cool!)
Just Download Our 100% FREE Home Inventory PDF Here
OR: Use the Google Docs Shareable Link to get your own Electronic Home Inventory
And don’t forget to check out VR Front Desk to help manage your listing. We are a virtual concierge and front desk in the cloud that makes the life of a vacation rental owner significantly easier! Free 7 day trial.
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