Student room inspection report: a step-by-step plan for landlords

What does the law say about the inspection report?

The Flemish Residential Lease Decree explicitly declares the rules on inspection reports for rental homes applicable to student leases. Tenant and landlord are required to draw up a detailed inspection report, jointly (in each other's presence) and at shared cost.

If you and the student do it yourselves, the report costs nothing. If you jointly hire an expert, you share the costs; the student then pays at most half and may ask for the invoice to check this. If you cannot agree, either party can ask the justice of the peace to appoint an expert. That request must be filed before the end of the one-month period within which the report has to be drawn up.

The inspection report is the basis for settling the deposit at the end of the lease. It therefore deserves as much attention as the rental contract itself.

Timing: move-in, interim and move-out

An inspection report has three moments, each with its own rules.

• Move-in: mandatory, to be drawn up while the room is empty or during the first month the student can use the room. After that it is too late.
• Interim: if significant changes are made during the lease, for example a new kitchenette or a renovation, either party can demand an addendum to the inspection report. That addendum is also drawn up jointly, signed and registered. If one occupant leaves a shared lease, an interim report helps to allocate damage correctly.
• Move-out: if either party requests it, a detailed inspection report is drawn up jointly at the end of the lease, at the latest when the keys are handed back. If you cannot agree, an expert can be appointed through a petition to the justice of the peace, to be filed within one month after the room has been vacated.

What to describe, room by room

Detailed means detailed: a vague note like ‘in good condition’ is not enough. For each element, describe the condition, the material and any defects, including their location and size. Use this checklist as a starting point:

• Room or studio: floor, walls and ceiling, door and lock, windows, sills and window fittings, lighting, sockets, heating, smoke detector.
• Furniture and inventory: bed and mattress, desk, chair, wardrobes, shelves, fridge, with the number and condition of each item.
• Bathroom: washbasin, shower or bath, toilet, taps, grout and sealant, mirror, ventilation.
• Kitchen or kitchenette: hob, oven or microwave, extractor hood, counter and worktop, cupboards, appliances and whether they work.
• Shared areas listed in the contract, such as the shared kitchen, hallways or bicycle storage.
• Meter readings for water, electricity and gas, if you settle them separately.
• Keys and badges: number and type of every key, badge or remote you hand over.

Photos as evidence

The law does not require photos, but they make your inspection report much stronger. A description like ‘scratch on the desk’ leaves room for discussion; a dated photo showing the scratch does not. Take an overview photo of each room and then detail photos of every defect. Always work in the same order, for example clockwise from the door: that way you miss fewer details and can compare the move-out report more quickly.

Make sure the photos clearly belong to the inspection report: refer to the photo in the text, attach the photos to the document both parties sign and keep them with their date. At move-out, take photos from the same angles, so you can easily compare the condition at the start and at departure.

Signing and registration

To be valid, the inspection report must be dated and signed by both parties. Let the student explicitly add comments if they disagree with something, and process those in the document before you sign.

The move-in inspection report is attached to the rental contract and registered. The obligation to register lies with the landlord. For a property intended exclusively for housing, registration is free. It can be done together with the rental contract or later, online via MyRent of the FPS Finance. How that works is explained in our guide registering a lease via MyRent.

How is damage at move-out assessed?

The student is liable for damage and losses that occur during the lease, unless they prove these happened through no fault of their own. They must return the room as they received it according to the move-in report, except for what has worn out or been damaged through ageing or force majeure and repairs that are the landlord's responsibility.

In practice, you therefore compare the move-out report with the move-in report point by point. Normal wear after an academic year, such as light signs of use on a floor, cannot be charged. Real rental damage can: a burn mark in the worktop, holes in the wall or a broken window. You charge the costs based on a quote, invoice or an expert's estimate. If you do not repair, compensation for the loss in value is possible. Fixed damage amounts set in advance in the contract, regardless of the actual damage, are not advisable.

Shared areas are trickier, because there is often no detailed report for them. According to the FAQ of the Flemish housing agency, damage that cannot be attributed to one occupant is in practice divided among the number of tenants, taking into account anyone who proves they cannot have caused it. An inspection report of those spaces at the start makes this fairer.

Step-by-step plan for a student room inspection report

Follow these steps to create an inspection report that holds up in a dispute:

• 1. Plan in time: agree on a moment before move-in or at the latest in the first month.
• 2. Prepare the room: clean, test all appliances and note the meter readings.
• 3. Walk through together: describe room by room using the checklist above.
• 4. Take photos: overview photos per room and detail photos of every defect.
• 5. Record keys and inventory: number, type and condition.
• 6. Let the student add comments and process them before signing.
• 7. Date and sign with both parties, and give the student a copy.
• 8. Register the inspection report together with the contract or later via MyRent.
• 9. Repeat at move-out: the same order and the same photo angles, at the latest when the keys are returned.
• 10. Compare and settle: put move-in and move-out side by side and document every deduction.

Common mistakes in an inspection report

Most disputes about rental damage actually come down to a weak inspection report at the start. These mistakes come up often:

• Drawing up the report only after the first month, or not at all.
• Using vague terms like ‘good condition’ or ‘normal use’ without details.
• Taking no photos, or undated photos that are not linked to the document.
• Not dating the document or not having it signed by both parties.
• Letting the student fill in the document alone instead of drawing it up together.
• Forgetting shared areas, meter readings or keys.
• Charging the full cost of an expert to the student, while it must be shared.
• Not registering the inspection report.

How Kotmaster helps

With Kotmaster you create the digital inspection report on your smartphone, with photos per room, at both move-in and move-out. The report is signed digitally and you register it together with the contract in one click via MyRent. Everything ends up in the central document management per room, so at move-out you immediately find the starting condition. Explore the features, read how it works for landlords in Antwerp or Hasselt, or check the frequently asked questions.

This guide provides general information about the Flemish rules on inspection reports for student leases and is not legal advice. If you are unsure about a specific situation, consult a lawyer, an expert or your landlords' association.