What documents should I get when buying a house?

From the seller and solicitor: the EPC, boiler service history and warranty, electrical and window certificates, building-regulations completion certificates, planning documents and the deeds bundle. Photograph everything in move-in week, while it’s in one place.

What should I photograph on moving day itself?

The meters (dated reading photos), the printed expiry dates on smoke and CO alarms, and — if renting — every room against the inventory. These are the photos that settle later disputes.

I’ve lost the EPC — is that a problem?

No: EPCs for England and Wales are on a free public register (gov.uk’s “find an energy certificate”), searchable by postcode. Most of the other documents on the list have no register — which is exactly why they need capturing.

27 Jul 20262 min readJoachim, FounderHome upkeep

Just moved in? Photograph these ten documents before they disappear

Move-in week is the only time all of a house’s paperwork is in one place — and the week you’re least likely to file it. Ten photographs now save years of hunting later.

Checked on 27 Jul 2026

General information, not legal or tax advice.

At a glance

Move-in week is the one moment a home’s entire paper history sits in one pile — it scatters within a month
The boiler warranty usually requires registration within weeks of installation — and annual services to stay alive
Smoke and CO alarms carry printed expiry dates almost nobody reads
Day-one meter readings and photos settle disputes that surface months later
Renting? The inventory and your deposit-protection certificate are the two documents that decide how the tenancy ends

There is exactly one week in which a home’s paperwork is all in one place: the week you move in. The solicitor’s bundle, the seller’s drawer of manuals (with the appliance ages hiding inside), the certificates taped to the boiler — it’s all briefly yours, together. A month later it has scattered into boxes, and you’ll next look for any given document at the precise moment you urgently need it.

The fix costs ten minutes and a phone camera.

The ten photographs

The EPC — you’ll need it if you remortgage, let or sell. (Lost already? England and Wales have a public register.)
The boiler’s service history — every stamped record the seller left. The warranty lives and dies by an unbroken annual history.
The boiler manual and warranty card — and if the boiler is new, check it was registered with the manufacturer; most warranties require it within weeks of installation.
Every appliance manual and receipt left behind — each one carries a model and serial number, which is how you find out what it should live to.
Electrical certificates — any EIC or EICR from past works; electricians ask “what was done before?” and this is the only answer.
Window and door certificates (FENSA or equivalent) — asked for at every sale, findable at none.
Building-regulations completion certificates and planning documents — for the extension, the loft, the log burner. The buyer’s solicitor will ask.
The meters, on day one — a dated photo of every reading has ended a thousand billing disputes.
The printed dates on your smoke and CO alarms — the whole unit expires, typically at ten years, and the date is on the casing.
The completion statement and deeds bundle — photograph the key pages even though the solicitor holds copies; solicitors retire, merge and archive.

Renting instead? Your list is shorter and sharper: the signed inventory (with your own dated photos of every room), the deposit-protection certificate (it must be protected within 30 days), and the gas and electrical certificates the landlord must give you.

Why photographs beat filing

A folder requires discipline forever. A photograph requires ten minutes once — and if the photographs land in KeepUp, each one is read, recognised and filed against the right appliance automatically: the boiler’s serial number becomes an asset, the service stamps become a schedule, the alarm dates become reminders. Move-in week is genuinely the single highest-value ten minutes the product has — it’s free for one place.

Document names vary by country — this list is UK-flavoured, but the principle (capture everything while it’s still in one pile) is universal.

Common questions

What documents should I get when buying a house?: From the seller and solicitor: the EPC, boiler service history and warranty, electrical and window certificates, building-regulations completion certificates, planning documents and the deeds bundle. Photograph everything in move-in week, while it’s in one place.
What should I photograph on moving day itself?: The meters (dated reading photos), the printed expiry dates on smoke and CO alarms, and — if renting — every room against the inventory. These are the photos that settle later disputes.
I’ve lost the EPC — is that a problem?: No: EPCs for England and Wales are on a free public register (gov.uk’s “find an energy certificate”), searchable by postcode. Most of the other documents on the list have no register — which is exactly why they need capturing.