5 Free Downloadable Checklists for Property Managers
As a property manager, regular inspections and check-ins with your team ensure that you’re managing each property more effectively. They help you catch issues early on, verify that work is getting done, and avoid unpleasant surprises from your tenants or field team..
As a property manager that juggles multiple properties and supervises scattered teams, a lack of structure can make your job harder than it needs to be.
Maybe a tech forgets to test the smoke detector in unit 302. Or another team member swears they documented wall damage during move-out but the text they sent is buried under a week’s worth of group messages. Without a clear system, even your most important tasks are vulnerable to being lost in the shuffle.
Regular inspections and check-ins with your teams keep you ahead of the game, allowing you to address concerns before they become bigger problems. If your inspection process feels time consuming, we’ve got 5 free downloadable PDF property management checklists you’ll want to check out.
Why checklists matter in property management
Whether you’re conducting a unit inspection, logging maintenance work, or preparing a vacant space for showing, having property manager checklists in place changes the way your team works and the way you manage them.
Instead of relying on memory or scattered updates, a checklist gives every task a beginning, middle, and end. It creates a standardized way to verify that jobs are completed thoroughly and consistently across your entire workforce.
Every job role has specific responsibilities, which means your workers will use different checklists:
- A move-in/move-out inspection form allows tenants, maintenance teams, and property managers to document unit conditions at move-in and move-out, a must-have if you want to avoid deposit disputes.
- A maintenance technician checklist allows techs to track the work performed each day, project status, time spent on a project, as well as materials used.
- A property inspection checklist keeps safety and compliance items from slipping through the cracks with a standardized mobile inspection form.
- A rental property walkthrough form gives you consistent records, often with photo documentation, to protect you in the event of legal disputes.
5 Free downloadable checklists for property managers
Checklists are extremely effective at creating the structure you need to manage multiple properties. They help establish order in daily operations, guide your team through inspections, document important details, and standardize the way tasks are completed.
Below, you’ll find five downloadable checklists designed to close documentation gaps and reduce the friction in your day-to-day workflow.
1. Move-In / Move-Out Inspection Checklist
Tenant turnovers are one of the most sensitive points in the lease cycle. You’re expected to hand over a clean, damage-free unit and ensure that any deductions from the tenant’s security deposit are backed by solid documentation.
However, unstructured inspections leave too much room for error. One team member forgets to photograph a scuffed wall while another assumes someone else checked the appliances. So, when a tenant pushes back, you’re stuck sorting it out after the fact.
Why it matters:
The Move-In / Move-Out Inspection Checklist gives your team a standardized process to follow during every transition. It guides them through each room, and ensures that notes and photos are collected to provide a complete, time-stamped record of the unit’s condition. This checklist provides consistent documentation across all properties, making move-ins smoother and move-outs far less stressful.
What’s included in the checklist?
- Room-by-room checks for peeling paint, ceiling stains or cracks, flooring or carpet damage, and the operation of light switches and ceiling fans
- Testing of smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, as well as confirmation that HVAC systems and thermostats are operational
- Documentation of existing damage with time-stamped photos
- Collection or distribution of keys, remotes, and access codes
- Recording of the move-in or move-out date and inspector initials for accountability
2. Property Expense Tracking Checklist
Tracking field expenses can feel like detective work. A maintenance tech swings by the hardware store for plumbing supplies but forgets to note which property it was for. Another team member grabs replacement light bulbs and texts you a blurry photo of the receipt… two days later.
By the time you’re reviewing monthly reports, you’re left sorting through vague notes, half-completed documentation, and line items that don’t match any specific job.
Our Property Expense Tracking Checklist helps your field team capture purchases in real-time. It standardizes the process by which transactions are recorded– from hardware store runs to emergency part replacements, so you can match expenses to properties, jobs, and team members without chasing down receipts.
Why it matters:
This checklist helps you stay on top of operational costs and cuts down on budget confusion. It simplifies month-end reconciliation reports and helps you avoid misallocating expenses, especially when multiple teams are in the field.
What’s included in the checklist?
- Basic purchase details including technician name, date, and time of purchase, and which property or unit the expense is tied to.
- Vendor and payment information, such as store name, location, payment method, and whether the purchase was reimbursable or charged to a company account.
- Itemized list of supplies or materials purchased, including quantities and total cost per item.
- A section to upload or attach a photo of the physical receipt to maintain a clean audit trail.
3. Safety & Compliance Checklist
From a non-functioning carbon monoxide detector to loose handrails or blocked exits, safety hazards start small and usually go unnoticed until it’s too late. This is when having a Safety & Compliance Checklist proves beneficial.
Why it matters:
Our Safety & Compliance checklist is designed to help you conduct thorough safety inspections. A detailed checklist will help you avoid being held liable for damage caused by unresolved safety hazards.
What’s included in the checklist?
- Verifying if all smoke and CO detectors, fire extinguishers, exit signs and emergency lighting are working properly
- Checking for gas leaks or other utility concerns
- Water and mold prevention including visual checks for leaks or stains, signs of mold or musty odors, and inspecting caulking or ventilation in wet areas
- Exterior inspections for structural safety issues like loose railings, broken steps, poor lighting, or unsecured gates
- A section for documenting findings with inspector name, photos, timestamps, and notes on necessary repairs or follow-ups
4. Maintenance Technician Daily Report
Managing a field team is difficult when you don’t know what’s actually getting done on-site. One technician says they finished a job but didn’t log the materials used. Another forgot to mention the unit had limited access, which pushed work into overtime.
Without a consistent way to track time, tasks, and supply usage, maintenance reporting becomes unreliable and inefficient.
The Maintenance Technician Daily Report gives your team a simple, repeatable workflow that can be used to report their daily activities. It keeps you in the loop on what was completed, what materials were used, and what still needs attention.
Why it matters:
This checklist increases accountability and keeps maintenance records organized. You’ll have a better understanding of how employees are spending their time in the field, which jobs require follow-up, and whether supplies are being used efficiently.
What’s included in the checklist?
- Basic technician details including name, initials, property address, and time in/out for each location visited.
- Detailed work logs with task descriptions, location (unit number, hallway, etc.), and the type of request, whether tenant-reported, routine, or emergency.
- Inventory tracking including parts or tools used, borrowed equipment, and notes on supply needs or reorders.
- Task status options such as completed, partially completed, or postponed with space to explain delays or next steps.
- Documentation section for uploading photos of completed work, problem areas, or tenant/manager communications.
5. Vacant Unit Inspection Checklist
Vacancies might seem low-risk, but they come with their own set of problems. Leaks, vandalism, pests, and HVAC failures can quietly escalate when no one’s watching. By the time a leasing agent discovers the issue, you’re dealing with expensive repairs and lost profit.
With the Vacant Unit Inspection Checklist, your team can follow the steps to confirm that each empty unit is secure, well-maintained, and ready for tours or new tenants.
Why it matters:
With a Vacant Unit Inspection checklist, you can proactively catch property issues and make repairs to get your vacant unit back on the market as quickly as possible.
What’s included in the checklist:
- Security and access checks to look for signs of forced entry or tampering
- Cleanliness and maintenance walkthroughs to identify trash, pest activity, or water damage, and confirm that fixtures like sinks and toilets remain in good condition
- Utility system checks for power, gas, HVAC, lighting, and detector functionality — based on whether the unit is active or temporarily shut down
- Turnover and marketing prep such as removing outdated signage, taking listing-ready photos, and confirming the space is clean and odor-free.
- Final documentation including inspector name, date/time of visit, photo evidence of issues, and a space to note follow-ups for leasing or maintenance teams.
Why paper checklists and text messages aren’t enough
Even though paper checklists are easy to follow and help you collect the information you need, checklists aren’t worth much if they end up missing, the same goes for relying on your memory or handwritten notes. Not to mention, when you work in the field and visit multiple properties each day you don’t have time to go searching through files of checklists to pull up maintenance records or move-in reports for a property.
Without centralized documentation, it becomes harder to prove compliance, resolve tenant disputes, and identify gaps in your team's performance.
Upgrade your checklists when you use Timeero’s Custom Fields
To run your team efficiently, you need a system that captures the right information at the right time without adding complexity to anyone’s day. Timeero’s Custom Fields allows users to collect the information they need, when they need it.
For this reason, and several others, property managers love using Timeero’s Custom Fields.
With Custom Fields, property managers experience:
- A consistent way to record and organize documentation for properties
- Fewer follow-ups and less back-and-forth communication to clarify job details
- Enhanced team accountability with real-time updates
- Cleaner dispute resolution using detailed photos and notes stored within timesheets
Timeero gives property managers a reliable way to stay connected to their field teams through seamless check-ins and GPS-based tracking. And with Custom Fields, you can take that visibility a step further by turning your checklists into digital forms that live inside your team’s time tracking workflow.
How it works
With Timeero’s Custom Fields, you can ask your team specific questions tied to their job, team, or property. Depending on your chosen settings, these questions can appear either at the start or end of a shift, triggered automatically when employees clock in or out using the Timeero mobile app.
The nature of the questions asked will depend entirely on your chosen workflow. In this case, you can create a list of questions that mirror the exact items on your move-in, maintenance, or safety checklists. Workers can complete the Custom Fields form right from their phone as part of their normal routine without having to rely on their memory or gather scattered notes.
The nature of the responses collected will depend on the type of field you create:
- Text – for short written responses
- Text Area – for longer notes, updates, or observations
- Numeric – for quantities, counts, or other number-based entries
- Monetary – to track costs or field purchases
- Dropdown – to choose a single predefined option (e.g., status, property code)
Once completed, each entry is time-stamped, GPS-tagged, and instantly synced to your Timeero admin dashboard to provide real-time visibility into what’s happening across your properties.
Custom Fields in action
Using Custom Fields to document property damage
During a move-out inspection, a technician notices damage to the living room wall. They want to make sure they document the wall damage in this apartment with notes and photos.
On the Custom Fields move-out inspection form, they select “Wall damage” and log any additional notes regarding the property in the Custom Fields text box.
After completing the property inspection custom fields, they can then attach a photo of the wall damage to their time card, which syncs to the admin dashboard instantly, and can be attached to the tenant’s file.
Take the guesswork out of property management with Timeero
Managing inspections, maintenance tasks, and mobile teams across multiple properties doesn’t have to feel like a daily scramble. With Timeero’s Custom Fields, you no longer have to rely on memory, handwritten notes, or lengthy paper checklists that get lost or ignored.
With Timeero’s Custom Fields, you can collect the information you need without slowing your team down. Ready to try Timeero? Start your free 14-day trial or schedule your consultation call today.
