Move-in and move-out inspection reports in Alberta

Last reviewed 20 September 2026

Alberta requires two inspection reports for every tenancy. The move-in report must be completed within one week before or after the tenant takes possession, and the move-out report within one week before or after possession ends. The landlord must offer the tenant two times to attend each one. If either report is missing, the landlord may not deduct anything from the security deposit for damage — no matter what condition the unit is in. Both reports are kept for three years after the tenancy ends.

Why this is the rule that matters most

Almost every lost deposit dispute in Alberta comes down to the same thing. The landlord was probably owed the money. The damage was probably real. But the move-in report was never done, or was done and can't be found, or exists but doesn't mention the item being charged for — and at that point the amount is irrelevant, because the statutory precondition for deducting anything at all wasn't met.

The reverse is also true and less often said: a landlord with both reports, dated photographs of the same items at both ends, and signatures is in a very strong position. These disputes are decided on documentation, and the documentation is entirely within your control.

The windows

Both windows are one week wide on either side of the change in possession, which gives you fourteen days of legal room but far less practical room.

• Move-in. Do it with the tenant on the day they get keys if you possibly can. An inspection done four days later has already had four days of someone living in the unit written into it.
• Move-out. Do it on the day possession ends or the morning after, before the cleaners and the painter arrive. Once a make-ready crew has been through, you cannot show what the tenant left behind.

Note what the clock does next: the move-out inspection feeds the deposit settlement, and the 10-day deadline to return the deposit or deliver a statement of account runs from the same date. An inspection done at the far edge of its window leaves you almost no time to prepare the statement.

Offering two times

The tenant has a right to be present. The landlord's obligation is to offer two separate times for each inspection, and it is worth doing that in writing so the offer itself is recorded.

If the tenant accepts one, inspect together. If they decline both, or accept and then don't appear, you inspect anyway and record what happened — the times offered, how they were communicated, and the fact of non-attendance. The report still stands. What you must not do is skip the inspection because the tenant wouldn't engage with it.

Alberta is moving toward permitting electronic service of notices, so record consent to email alongside the offers.

What to record

The report should describe the condition of the premises room by room, in enough detail that a stranger reading it in two years can tell what state the unit was in. "Good" on its own is not detail. "Kitchen flooring — good, light scuffing near dishwasher" is.

Four things make a report hold up:

1. Photographs, dated, of everything. Including the things that are fine. You cannot prove a wall was undamaged at move-in with a photo you didn't take.
2. Specific items, not general impressions. Walls, flooring, ceilings, windows, blinds, doors, counters, cabinets, fixtures, and each appliance by name.
3. Existing damage written down. The bent screen door you inherited belongs on the move-in report, or you will be arguing about it at move-out.
4. Signatures from both parties, and a copy to the tenant immediately after the inspection.

Record appliances individually

Most inspection forms have a single line reading "appliances". That line is where deposit claims die. Each appliance should be its own entry with its make, model and serial number, because at move-out you need to show that this dishwasher had an intact door seal when the tenant moved in — and because the same record tells your technician what parts to bring when it breaks in year three.

Room-by-room checklist

A practical starting list. Photograph each item at both inspections, from the same angle where you can.

What to do if a report is missing

If you've discovered at move-out that no move-in report was ever completed, the honest answer is that you cannot deduct for damage or cleaning and should return the deposit in full within ten days. Building a statement of deductions anyway will cost you the money plus the time spent losing at RTDRS.

Unpaid rent is a separate matter from damage and is not affected by the inspection requirement — but be careful to keep the two clearly apart on any statement.

Frequently asked questions

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