Final Walkthrough Checklist: What to Check and Record
What to record at the final walkthrough, how to prepare for it and how to go through the building. With a checklist.
Updated October 11, 2026
What the final walkthrough is for
At the final walkthrough, the owner and the contractor look at the finished work together. The protocol records what they found and agreed on, and everyone present signs it.
A handover usually has legal consequences. What they are in your case depends on your contract. Get advice if you are unsure.
What belongs in the protocol
- Project, place, date and time.
- Scope: what is being handed over, all of it or a part.
- Participants: name, company and role. Also note who was invited and is absent.
- Defects and outstanding work: each with its location, a photo and a deadline.
- Result: accepted, accepted with reservations, or refused.
- Reservations that anyone declares.
- Objections of the contractor to individual points.
- Handed over: documents, keys and meter readings.
- Signatures of everyone present.
How to prepare
- Agree on the date with everyone involved in good time, and pick a time with daylight.
- Have the contract, the plans and the list of open items at hand.
- Walk through alone beforehand and note what you notice.
- Bring a tape measure, a level, a flashlight and a charged phone.
How to walk through
- Go room by room in a fixed order. Do not forget the basement, the roof and the outside.
- Record every defect right away, with a photo and its location.
- Test what should work: open and close windows and doors, run the water, try the heating, the lights and the outlets.
- Hand over: pass on documents and keys, read the meters and note the readings.
- Close: record the result and the reservations, read the protocol together and sign it.
After the walkthrough
The defects of the protocol belong on the punch list, with their deadlines. Track them there until they are done, and check the fixes at a re-inspection.
The walkthrough on your phone
The handover app TagFix leads you through the walkthrough step by step: type and participants, the walk with defects and photos, the result, reservations and signatures on the screen. The finished protocol is filed in the project as a PDF, and its defects are on the punch list afterwards.
This guide is general information, not legal advice.