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Multifamily Inspection Checklist

A walkthrough you can run on a phone, a tablet, or on paper. The template is already written, so you are reading the same list every time and not rebuilding it at the curb. Name the buildings and the units, put your own A, B, C or D on each area as a gut check, and write what you saw. Educational only.

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Educational checklist, not an inspection, appraisal, or engineering report. Engage licensed inspectors, and licensed trades for anything they flag, before you rely on what you recorded here.

1 building and 1 unit in this walk, across 5 categories. Printing gives you the same checklist as a document, filled in or blank for a clipboard.

Your A B C D gut check

These letters are yours. They record what you thought of what you saw on the walk. Alchemist Nation does not grade, score, rate or judge your property, and nothing here adds your letters up into an overall verdict.

A: What you saw looks sound to you, with nothing to address before use.
B: What you saw is serviceable, with small work you would schedule.
C: What you saw needs real work, and you want a licensed trade to look at it.
D: What you saw is past what a walkthrough can read, and you want a licensed professional on it.

Step 1 of 5Building 1

Roof

Read from the ground, from a ladder if you can safely get one up, and from the top floor ceiling underneath.

Covering
Material, apparent age, patches, curling, missing pieces, granule loss, ponding on a flat roof.
Flashing and penetrations
Chimneys, vents, stacks, skylights, parapet caps, and every seam around them.
Drainage
Gutters, downspouts, scuppers, internal drains, and whether water actually leaves the roof.
Structure from below
Sag along the ridge or field, daylight through the deck, staining on the top floor ceilings.
Access and fall safety
Hatches, fixed ladders, guard rails, anchor points, and how a trade would get up there.
Rooftop equipment
Mechanical units, curbs, condensate lines, satellite and antenna mounts, and what they are fastened to.

Your gut check on this area

Nothing is marked here yet, and nothing is assumed for you.

What you saw

1 / 5

Educational checklist, not an inspection, appraisal, or engineering report. Engage licensed inspectors, and licensed trades for anything they flag, before you rely on what you recorded here.

A.: What you saw looks sound to you, with nothing to address before use.
B.: What you saw is serviceable, with small work you would schedule.
C.: What you saw needs real work, and you want a licensed trade to look at it.
D.: What you saw is past what a walkthrough can read, and you want a licensed professional on it.

Building 1

Roof

Read from the ground, from a ladder if you can safely get one up, and from the top floor ceiling underneath.

A B C D

Covering. Material, apparent age, patches, curling, missing pieces, granule loss, ponding on a flat roof.

Flashing and penetrations. Chimneys, vents, stacks, skylights, parapet caps, and every seam around them.

Drainage. Gutters, downspouts, scuppers, internal drains, and whether water actually leaves the roof.

Structure from below. Sag along the ridge or field, daylight through the deck, staining on the top floor ceilings.

Access and fall safety. Hatches, fixed ladders, guard rails, anchor points, and how a trade would get up there.

Rooftop equipment. Mechanical units, curbs, condensate lines, satellite and antenna mounts, and what they are fastened to.

Your notes.

Exterior and site

Walk the full perimeter, then walk it again looking only at where water goes.

A B C D

Foundation and grade. Cracks and their direction, movement, spalling, and whether soil slopes toward the building.

Walls and cladding. Siding, masonry, mortar joints, paint, sealant, penetrations, and open holes into the wall cavity.

Windows and exterior doors. Seals, glazing, rot at sills, operation, weather stripping, locks, and frame condition.

Porches, stairs, balconies, decks. Framing and ledger connections, guard and hand rails, tread condition, and anything that moves under load.

Grounds, paving and lighting. Walkways, parking, curbs, trip hazards, retaining walls, trees over the building, exterior lighting.

Where the water goes. Downspout discharge, standing water, saturated ground, and any path from the roof back to the foundation.

Your notes.

Building systems

Find every panel, every shutoff and every mechanical room, and write down what you actually see rather than what you are told.

A B C D

Electrical service and panels. Service size, panel make and age, labeling, double taps, open knockouts, exposed or spliced wiring.

Plumbing supply. Pipe material, visible leaks and staining, main and unit shutoffs, water pressure at a far fixture.

Waste and venting. Drain material, stacks, cleanouts, slow drains, and sewer odor anywhere in the building.

Heating and cooling. Equipment type and age, fuel, who pays for it, distribution, thermostats, combustion air, flues.

Water heating. Unit count, age, capacity against unit count, relief valve and discharge line, venting, pans.

Life safety. Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, extinguishers, emergency and egress lighting, fire doors, sprinkler and standpipe if present.

Your notes.

Common areas

Everything a resident touches that is not inside a unit, plus everywhere the building hides its problems.

A B C D

Entries and lobby. Doors, closers, locks, buzzer and intercom, mailboxes, floor condition, and how secure the entry actually is.

Corridors and stairwells. Flooring, hand and guard rails, lighting levels, ceiling stains, fire rated doors and whether they latch.

Laundry and utility rooms. Equipment condition and ownership, dryer venting, floor drains, water supply lines, past water damage.

Basement, crawl space and attic. Moisture and efflorescence, sump operation, ventilation, insulation, framing, pests, and stored material.

Trash and recycling. Enclosure condition, capacity against unit count, access for pickup, odor and pest evidence.

Security and access control. Key or fob system, who holds keys today, cameras, exterior and parking lighting, sight lines.

Your notes.

Building 1. Unit 1

Unit interior

Repeat this section for every unit you can get into, and record which ones you could not.

A B C D

Kitchen. Cabinets, counters, sink and faucet, appliance condition and ownership, ventilation, under sink leaks.

Bathrooms. Fixtures, tile and grout, caulk, ventilation, soft flooring at the toilet and tub, staining on the ceiling below.

Floors, walls and ceilings. Damage, patching, stains and their pattern, out of level floors, doors that will not close square.

Windows, doors and closets. Operation, hardware, glazing and seals, condensation between panes, egress from every sleeping room.

Unit systems. Outlets and their grounding, unit panel, heat and cooling delivery, water pressure and drain speed.

Moisture and pests. Odor, staining, soft surfaces, droppings, insect evidence, and anywhere air moves that should not.

Occupancy and turn state. Occupied, vacant or mid turn, how it was kept, what a turn would take, and whether you got full access.

Your notes.