The Dubai move-in checklist.
What you should check, room by room, the day you move into a Dubai rental. Snagify automates the entire flow into a 20-minute walk-through that produces RDC-valid evidence by default.
Try Snagify free →What is a move-in checklist?
A move-in checklist is the standardized list of every item, fixture, and condition point you should verify and document the day you take possession of a Dubai rental property. It exists because Dubai's deposit return rules favor whoever has the better documentation.
A good checklist covers the obvious (walls, floors, ceilings) and the easy-to-forget (AC service date, water meter reading, key inventory, balcony lock condition). Missing any of these creates a gap an unscrupulous landlord can exploit at move-out.
Snagify turns the checklist into a guided flow. You can't skip steps. You can't forget rooms. AI catches what your eyes miss. The output is a signed PDF that the RDC accepts as evidence.
When you need it.
You're a tenant moving in for the first time.
You've never done a Dubai move-in before. You don't know what to check. A guided checklist makes sure you don't miss anything that could cost you 5,000 AED at move-out.
You're a landlord handing over a new tenancy.
You want a thorough, signed record. A standardized checklist gives you that consistency every time, regardless of which inspector or agent does the walkthrough.
You're an agency doing 5 inspections this week.
Your team needs to do every check-in the same way. A digital checklist enforces process discipline. Your reports look identical, your RDC defenses are consistent, your time per inspection drops to 20 minutes.
The Snagify approach.
Step by step.
Property identification
Building, unit number, Ejari (auto-detected), property type. Sets the report header.
Room-by-room photos
Living room, bedrooms, kitchen, bathrooms, balcony. Minimum 3 photos per room. AI tags issues automatically.
Appliances tested
Oven, fridge, washing machine, dryer, dishwasher, AC units. Each tested live, condition logged.
Key inventory
How many main door keys, parking remote, mailbox, service entrance. Each key counted and logged.
Meter readings
DEWA water and electricity meter readings at handover. Photos of the meters as evidence.
AC service date
Service sticker on AC units photographed. Verifies when the unit was last serviced.
Dual signature
Landlord and tenant both sign on the same device. The PDF is locked with SHA-256 and emailed to both parties.
What you get at the end.
A complete move-in PDF including property header, room-by-room photo grids, appliance test log, key inventory, meter readings, AC service date, dual signatures, and SHA-256 hash. Ready for the RDC if a dispute happens later.
Frequently asked.
Yes. DEWA bills the registered tenant from the day Ejari starts. Without a meter reading at move-in, the landlord can claim the previous tenant's outstanding usage was yours. A photo of the meter at handover prevents that.
At move-out, the landlord verifies you returned every key. Tenants who can't prove they only received 2 main keys often get charged for 'lost' third keys that never existed. Counting at check-in protects you.
Document it. Most Dubai tenancy contracts say the landlord covers AC servicing. If the unit hasn't been serviced in over 6 months at check-in, that's the landlord's responsibility. Photo of the service sticker is your evidence.
You can. But paper has no timestamps, no signatures cryptographically locked, no AI to catch what you missed, and no SHA-256 verification. It's also harder to share by email if a dispute escalates. The RDC accepts paper reluctantly.
Snagify's flow follows RERA inspection guidelines. Our checklist covers everything RERA expects in a tenancy inspection, plus a few additional items (AI tagging, SHA-256 verification, dual signature) that strengthen the report's evidentiary weight.