A professional check-in service for letting agents and landlords across Birmingham, Solihull, Coventry and the wider West Midlands. We meet your tenant on move-in day, walk the inventory and check-in together, log the meters, hand over the keys, and get the report signed. So the condition of your property is agreed at the start, not argued over at the end.
Most landlords worry about the check-out and forget the check-in. That's the wrong way round.
The deposit dispute is won or lost on day one. And it nearly always goes the same way. The tenant moves in. Nobody records the condition properly. No photos, no signature. Two years later the tenant leaves, there's a scuffed wall and a cracked hob, and you try to make a deduction. The tenant says it was already there. You say it wasn't. The deposit scheme adjudicator looks at your evidence, finds nothing solid, and gives the money back to the tenant.
That's not bad luck. That's a weak check-in.
On the properties we visit around Birmingham, the main reason landlords lose deposit claims is a poor record at the start. A vague property check-in costs you the deduction every time. Get the start right and the end looks after itself.
For first-time and accidental landlords, here's what the appointment actually looks like, because nobody bothers to explain it.
The clerk meets the tenant at the property on the day they move in. They go through the inventory together, room by room, so the tenant sees exactly what's being recorded and can flag anything they disagree with there and then. The clerk photographs everything, takes the meter readings, checks the smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, runs through the key schedule, and gets the tenant to sign the tenancy check-in report to confirm they agree.
Who needs to be there? Just the clerk and the tenant. You don't have to attend, and neither does your agent. That's the whole point of using an independent clerk. You get a neutral, professional record without having to take a morning off work.
A check-in isn't a clipboard and a handshake. It's the day-one record your whole tenancy rests on. Here's what you get, and why each part matters:
We walk every room and record the real state of the property's condition and contents, down to the mark on the skirting and the chip on the worktop. If it's not written down on day one, you can't argue it later.
Exactly which keys, fobs and tags the tenant got, written down and signed for.
In my experience, cleaning is the single biggest cause of deposit disputes. And "we expected it cleaner" wins nothing without a baseline to point back to.
No rows later about who ran up which bill, and a clean handover for the utility companies.
Gardens, outbuildings, lofts, garages. Nine times out of ten, that's exactly where the argument ends up.
Real photos of your property, never stock images. This is your biggest dispute-winner. A dated photo ends the argument before it starts.
This is what turns a report into evidence. A signed record both sides agreed to is exactly what an adjudicator wants to see.
Compliance recorded, not assumed. More on that below.
This is where landlords get caught out, so pay attention. In England you need a working smoke alarm on every storey, and a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a fixed combustion appliance like a boiler or wood burner. They have to work at the start of the tenancy. Miss it and the council can fine you up to £5,000.
Here's how the check-in helps. On move-in day we record that the alarms are there and sounding, and we date it. So if anyone ever asks, you can prove the property was safe the day your tenant moved in. Fitting and maintaining them is your job. The dated check-in record is the proof that backs you up.
Most check-in reports I come across wouldn't protect anyone. A few ticked boxes, two blurry photos, no signature. That's not evidence. That's a liability with a logo on it. Here's why ours are different, and why it matters to you:
Book Your Property Inspection in Five Simple Steps
Call us on 0121 582 4070, email info@capital-cs.com, or message us on WhatsApp to discuss your requirements or set up an account.
Choose the service you need and confirm a date and time. We'll take care of the rest.
Our AIIC-accredited inspector arrives on time and carries out a thorough, systematic inspection with photographic documentation throughout.
Your detailed digital report is delivered promptly. Clear, professional, and ready to share with landlords or tenants straight away.
Have a question about a report or a deposit dispute? We're always available by phone, email, or WhatsApp to help.
Different people, same need: a check-in report that holds up. Here's how we fit each of you.
When your own clerk drops out on a Friday, we're the cover that doesn't. Detailed, white-label-ready reports delivered on time, so you look good to your landlords instead of apologising to them. Set up a recurring account and stop chasing clerks.
One provider, one standard, every property. Same quality whether it's your flat in Erdington or your terrace in Coventry, so you stop juggling different clerks and comparing reports that never match.
First time letting? Don't panic. We'll handle the check-in properly and explain exactly what you need in plain English, so that if there's ever a dispute, you're the one who's covered.
Handing over a new block? We'll standardise the check-in across every unit and keep the reporting consistent, unit to unit, at the volume a handover demands.
When Selly Oak empties and refills in a few short weeks, we've got the bulk capacity to turn every room around on time, with HMO-aware reports for every let.
I won't put a fake number on this page, because a one-bed city-centre flat and a furnished four-bed house in Solihull aren't the same job.
What affects the price: the size of the property, the number of rooms, furnished or unfurnished, the location, and whether you book the inventory and check-in together (most people do, and it works out better value). Tell us the property and you'll get a straight quote.
Cheap-and-thin is the false economy here. The win isn't the lowest price. It's a report that actually protects your deposit claim when it counts.
We're based in Stechford, East Birmingham (B33), and produce inventory reports right across the city and the wider region such as Coventry, Wolverhampton, Walsall, and out through Warwickshire, Staffordshire and Worcestershire.
Areas we cover
Wider region
Based in Stechford, East Birmingham (B33)
Ready when you are
Get your tenancy on record properly, from day one. Call 0121 582 4070, WhatsApp +44 7596 966748, or book an inspection online. Letting agents, talk to our team about setting up a recurring account. And remember, if a report ever falls short on our end, we put it right or refund you.
A check-in report, also called a check-in inventory, is the record made when a tenant moves in. It confirms the property's condition against the inventory, captures the meter readings and the key handover, and is signed by the tenant to show they agree. It's the baseline every end-of-tenancy deposit claim is measured against.
The inventory is the document that records the property's condition and contents. The check-in is the appointment on move-in day where a clerk walks that inventory with the tenant, takes the meters, hands over the keys and gets it signed. The inventory says what's there. The check-in proves the tenant agreed to it.
It isn't a legal requirement, but skipping it is a false economy. Deposit protection schemes rely on the check-in as evidence in a dispute, and without one an adjudicator will almost always side with the tenant. It's not mandatory. It's just the thing that protects your deposit claim.
There's no law in England that forces you to have one. But to make a deduction from a protected deposit you need evidence, and a signed check-in report is the standard evidence adjudicators expect. No record, no deduction.
A proper check-in covers the schedule of condition room by room, timestamped photos throughout, gas, electricity and water meter readings, confirmation that smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are present and working, the key schedule, and the tenant's signature confirming they agree.
Yes. Independent, AIIC-accredited, photo-evidenced and signed reports are exactly what TDS, DPS and MyDeposits adjudicators expect to see. An impartial third-party check-in carries far more weight than one a landlord put together themselves.
We record that the smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are present and sounding on the check-in day, and we date it. The legal duty to install and maintain them sits with the landlord, but that dated record is your proof they were working when the tenant moved in.
The clerk meets the tenant at the property on move-in day, walks the inventory together room by room, photographs everything, records the meters, checks the alarms, runs through the keys, and gets the report signed. It usually takes an hour or two.
Yes. We record and photograph the gas, electricity and water meters at the check-in, so there's a clean handover and no argument later about who used what.
Yes, and it's a good thing. The tenant can note anything they disagree with before they sign. That's what makes it an agreed record, and an agreed record is far harder to challenge later.
Only the clerk and the tenant need to be there. The landlord and agent don't have to attend, and that's the point of an independent check-in. You get a neutral, professional record without having to be on site.
For a typical one or two-bed property, around an hour to ninety minutes on site. Larger or furnished homes take longer.
We turn reports around fast, even in same day, so you're never left waiting to re-let or to hand keys over to your landlord.
Yes. The landlord pays for the check-in and the inventory. The cost can't be passed to the tenant. Charging a tenant for a check-in or inventory is a banned fee under the Tenant Fees Ac
A signed report is far stronger evidence, so you want it. A tenant can't be forced to sign, but if they refuse, a good clerk notes that on the record and the timestamped photos still stand on their own.
That's exactly why we do it with the tenant present. Anything they disagree with gets noted on the day, before they sign. An agreed, signed check-in leaves very little to argue over later, which is the strongest position you can be in.
