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How to make a home inventory for insurance (and keep it current)
After a fire or a burglary, an insurer asks for a list of what you lost, with proof. Most people cannot name a tenth of it from memory. A home inventory is that list made in advance, and it takes one afternoon with a phone.
How to make a home inventory
- 01
Walk each room with your phone
Take a wide photo of each wall and open every closet, drawer and cabinet. Video works too; narrate what you see.
- 02
Photograph labels and receipts
For anything worth more than about $100, photograph the brand, model and serial number label, and the receipt if you have it.
- 03
List the big items
Write down each item with its room, brand, model, serial, what you paid and when. Group small things: "kitchen drawers, about 40 utensils".
- 04
Store it away from the house
A list that burns with the house is no list. Keep it in an account you can open from any phone.
- 05
Update it when something new comes in
A new TV, a bike, a ring: add it the week it arrives, with the receipt.
What the insurer asks for
For each item: a description, the brand and model, the serial number where there is one, when you bought it, what you paid and proof (a receipt, a photo, a bank statement). For jewelry, art and collectibles, an appraisal. Your policy may also cap certain categories, so a separate rider needs its own list.
The Insurance Information Institute and the NAIC both publish free guidance; the steps below follow it.
Room by room checklist
Tick each room as you finish it.
- Kitchen: refrigerator, range, dishwasher, microwave, small appliances, cookware, dishes and glassware.
- Living room: TV and sound, furniture, rugs, art, books, lamps, game consoles.
- Bedrooms: beds and mattresses, dressers, clothing (count by type), jewelry and watches (photograph each), computers.
- Bathrooms: towels and linens, hair tools, medicine cabinet items of value.
- Office: computers, monitors, printers, cameras, software and subscriptions, documents.
- Garage and basement: tools, lawn equipment, bikes, sports gear, holiday decorations, the water heater and furnace (model and serial).
- Outdoors: grill, patio furniture, hot tub, sheds and their contents.
- Closets and storage: luggage, seasonal clothing, keepsakes, anything in bins.
Spreadsheet, app or video
A video walk through is the quickest first pass and better than nothing. A spreadsheet is good for totals. An app is better when it holds the photos, the serial numbers and the receipts in one place and lets you add a new purchase from your phone.
Housemap keeps a Rooms and things list in your house file: each item with its room, brand, model, serial number, cost, purchase date and photo, with totals from your own numbers. It sits next to the warranties, manuals and the maintenance logbook, so the whole record of the house is one link, stored away from the house itself.
Keep it current
- Add new purchases the week they arrive, with the receipt photo.
- Review the list once a year, in the summer checklist.
- After a renovation, re-shoot the rooms that changed.
- When you sell, the inventory stays with you; the house file can go to the buyer without it.
Questions
What is a home inventory?
A list of what is in your house, with photos, serial numbers, purchase dates and prices, kept for an insurance claim. Insurers use it to settle a claim after a fire, a theft or a storm.
How do I do a home inventory fast?
Film a walk through of every room, opening closets and drawers, then photograph the labels on anything worth more than about $100. Write the list from the video later.
Is there a free home inventory app?
Housemap is free and keeps a Rooms and things inventory with your house file, alongside documents and the maintenance log. The NAIC also publishes a free inventory app.
Where should I keep my home inventory?
Anywhere that is not only in the house: an online account, a copy with a family member, or both. A list that is lost with the house is no help.
Sources
Related guides
Keep the inventory with the house file.
Rooms and things, documents, the logbook and the safety dates, one free file per house, stored away from the house.