Property management
Vendor documentation checklist for property managers
The checklist, visit by visit
Nothing here needs software. Each item is something you can capture with a phone and keep in a folder, as long as you do it every time and file it where you can find it again.
Before the visit
- Agree the scope in writing: what work, where, and the price, before the vendor starts.
- Note the scheduled date and the arrival window.
- Record who to contact on site and any access notes.
- Write down what "done" looks like, so completion is not a judgment call later.
On arrival
- Capture that the vendor reached the right site: the date, the time, and the location.
- Photograph the starting condition — the problem, or the area before any work.
During the work
- Take photos of the work in progress, not only the finished shot.
- Photograph anything about to be hidden — behind a wall, under new material — before it is covered.
- Note and approve, in writing, any change to the agreed scope.
At completion
- Photograph the finished work from the same angle as the "before" shot.
- Record the date and time the work was completed.
- Capture any materials, model, or serial numbers the job required.
- Keep the vendor’s own completion note or sign-off with the photos.
After the visit
- Match the invoice to the agreed scope and the completion evidence before paying.
- File everything by site and date so the right visit can be found later.
- Keep the record long enough to outlast a dispute — these can surface months later.
The whole point is boring consistency: the same record, captured the same way, on every visit. That is what turns a folder of photos into an answer you can produce the day someone disputes the work.
Common questions
What should you document for every vendor visit?
Five things: the scope you agreed on in writing, a record that the vendor arrived at the right site, photos during and at the end of the work, the completion date, and an invoice that matches the scope. File it by site and date so it can be found months later, not just today.
When should you take photos of vendor work?
Before, during, and after. Photograph the starting condition, the work in progress, anything about to be covered up, and the finished result from the same angle as the before shot. The before-and-after pair, taken at the site, is what makes a photo set convincing when someone questions the work.
How long should you keep vendor documentation?
Long enough to outlast a dispute, which can surface months or even a year after the work. Keep the records searchable and filed by site and date rather than scattered across text threads and inboxes, so producing the right visit later takes seconds instead of an afternoon of scrolling.
Does the timestamp on a phone photo prove when the work was done?
On its own, only weakly: a date a phone writes into a photo can be changed with free tools. What holds up better is a time set by a server rather than the device, recorded when the photo is submitted, plus a way to show the file has not been altered since. That is the line between a claim and a record.