Inventories – why have them done?

August 14, 2018

The AIIC (Association of Independent Inventory Clerks) is working towards making inventories mandatory in residential lettings. This has caused a storm not just against inventories being made mandatory, but against having inventories at all. Surely, the need for professional, independent inventories is clearly accepted by now. Or not?

Mandatory or not, we’re convinced of the real value of having a professional inventory, midterm and check out done. Let me set out why.

Part of an agent’s job is to protect the customers’ interests, landlords and tenants alike. Leaving them without any protection for their property or deposit exposes them to risk. Having a detailed, independent inventory with a full set of pictures reduces the risk significantly.

For a landlord regardless of background checks it is not possible to really know your prospective tenants, and how they will treat your property. For a tenant it is not possible to know the landlord nor the property. Even if all works well there is still the possibility of disagreements. So it is in the interest of all parties to have a detailed, independent inventory done, with regular midterms and a check out.

The inventory needs to be independently done, not just seeming to be, to stand up to scrutiny. So not done by the agent who have a hundred other things to attend to. Not by a company run by the lettings agent, and certainly not by the landlord nor the tenant themselves.

The report also needs to be specific to the property, not done choosing more or less fitting options from a drop down menu. This needs to be backed up by a full set of pictures, so that any potential future issue can be easily settled.

This should be done by a clerk who has had proper training with quality control of the report before it is sent out on a timely basis.
Inventories, midterms and check outs provides value for money for agents, landlords and tenants alike when done like this.

Shared by: Ronny Svang

EAN Content

Content shared by this account is either news shared free by third parties or sponsored (paid for) content from third parties. Please be advised that links to third party websites are not endorsed by Estate Agent Networking - Please do your own research before committing to any third party business promoted on our website. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

You May Also Enjoy

Estate Agent Talk

London basements boost value by up to 20%

The latest market analysis by prime London property brokerage, Jefferies London, reveals that London homebuyers who want to secure a property with a basement face a tough task. Not only do these much sought-after spaces increase a property’s value by up to 20%, but they’re also incredibly rare, found in only 2% of the capital’s…
Read More →
Breaking News

Bailey applies the brakes but ‘two more 2026 cuts priced in’

Vote to hold rates ‘closer than expected’ as Bank of England eyes April for 2% inflation target Focus turns to US and Japan in impact they play on shape of global investment flows says Rathbones’ Head of Market Analysis Kirsten Pettigrew, Senior Financial Planner, warns of making financial decisions based on speculation around rate trajectories…
Read More →
bank of england interest rate
Breaking News

Bank of England to hold interest rates at 3.75%

Following the Bank of England’s decision to hold interest rates at 3.75%, here are some thoughts from the Industry. Matt Smith, Rightmove’s mortgages expert says: “Today’s Bank Rate hold was widely expected given underlying inflation and wage growth data, and it’s currently likely we’ll see the next Bank Rate cut in June. Average mortgage rates…
Read More →
Breaking News

Building Safety Approval Process Urgently Needs Fixing

Bradley Lay, a Leading Construction M&A Expert Calls on Government to Urgently Fix Building Safety Approval Process as Insolvencies Surge A leading UK construction expert has called on the Government to urgently reassess the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) approval process, warning that delays in the current system are “slowly killing the economy”, triggering thousands of…
Read More →
Breaking News

Kickstarting Private Housebuilding is Key to Sector-Wide Recovery

Starts on-site decline by 9% during the three months to January 2026, remaining 16% below 2025 levels Residential construction starts fell by 24% on the preceding three months and 32% against 2025 figures Non-residential project-starts increased by 6% against the preceding three months, finishing 7% up on a year ago Civils work starting on-site remained…
Read More →
Social Housing 2019
Estate Agent Talk

Building the Wrong Homes Won’t Fix Homeownership

For many years, the national discussion about affordable housing has focused on one appealing idea that simply building more houses will make it easier for first-time buyers to own a home, and the issue will fix itself. However, Propertymark’s member agents, working daily in local housing markets across the UK, see a far more complex…
Read More →