Renovation Completion Documents Checklist

Who this is for

Collect the paperwork before you pay the last bill. Each certificate, guarantee, manual and record the job should produce has a line to tick when it arrives, with the date and where you filed it, and a short list covers the last checks before the final payment.

Homeowners near the end of a renovation, extension, new kitchen or bathroom, rewiring or window replacement, and anyone who will one day need to show a buyer what was done.

What this helps you track

• Certificates for the work, from building control or the trades who did it
• Guarantees and warranties, and whether products have been registered
• Manuals, serial numbers and commissioning sheets for new equipment
• Photos of hidden pipes and cables, and the paint and finish details
• Where every document is filed, so it can be found when you sell

How to use it

1. Write the project, the contractor, the completion date and the final payment amount at the top.
2. At the start of the job, ask which certificates and guarantees it will produce, and cross out the lines that do not apply.
3. Tick each document as it arrives, with the date and where it is filed, on paper or digitally.
4. Chase anything missing before the final payment, and work through the checks at the foot of the sheet.
5. File the sheet with the documents; the browser version saves in your own browser.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Which certificates should I get?

It depends on the work and the rules where you are. Ask your builder and building control body at the start which certificates the job will produce, and cross out the lines that do not apply.

Why collect them before the final payment?

Once the last payment is made there is less reason for anyone to chase paperwork. Asking for the documents as part of handover, while the balance is still to settle, is simpler than asking months later.

Why photograph hidden pipes and cables?

Once walls and floors are closed, photos are the only way to see where services run. They help anyone drilling, fixing or repairing later and are worth filing with the certificates.

How is this different from the snagging list?

The snagging list records defects to be put right. This checklist gathers the paperwork: the certificates, guarantees, manuals and records that show what was done and help when the home is sold.