How to make a home inventory for insurance (room by room)

Most people underestimate what they own by a wide margin, and it's hard to list a whole home from memory on the worst week of your life. Homeowners and renters both benefit: renters insurance covers your belongings, not the building, so the inventory is the claim.

How to do it in an afternoon

• Go room by room. Start each room with a wide shot from the doorway, then the far corner.
• Open closets, drawers, and cabinets. Contents are what people forget.
• For electronics and appliances, add a close-up of the model and serial number label.
• For valuables, capture brand names, hallmarks, signatures, and any certificates.
• Photograph receipts, appraisals, or original boxes for anything expensive.
• Say it out loud: a short video walkthrough where you name items and roughly when you bought them helps later.

Don't skip

• Garage, basement, attic, and storage units: tools, bikes, and seasonal gear add up
• Clothes, shoes, and bags (replacement cost is often a large share of a claim)
• Kitchen contents: cookware, small appliances, dishes
• Jewelry, watches, art, and instruments, which may need separate coverage
• The home itself: flooring, fixtures, and upgrades you paid for

Keep it somewhere the disaster can't reach

An inventory on a laptop that burns with the house doesn't help. Keep a copy in the cloud or with someone outside your home, and update it once a year or after big purchases.

This is general information, not insurance or legal advice. Check your policy for what's covered, limits on valuables, and how your insurer wants claims documented.