Home Insurance Inventory for Military Families
Military families may move every 2–3 years, which means lost and damaged household goods are a real risk. A home inventory is the best way to protect yourself when it's time to file a home insurance claim.
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Frequent moving is part of your life as a servicemember, especially early on in your career. To counter risks linked to moving, having a list of your belongings and valuables, such as technology, jewelry, or firearms, for your home insurance coverage can make sure you can recoup value if anything is damaged or lost.
What Military Families Should Include in a Home Inventory
A home inventory list should include all belongings that have value to you. A few quick ideas may include things like:
- Televisions
- Computers/laptops
- Firearms and accessories
- Jewelry
- Clothing
- Furniture and appliances
Those are just a few. Maybe you have a family heirloom or antique that is important to you; make sure to list it!
When you list all your items, be sure to include a rough estimate of each item’s value. This is easier for something like a shotgun that costs roughly $400, or for jewelry you bought for your partner with a $1,000 receipt. However, when it comes to items like clothing, whole-number estimates for your entire wardrobe are likely best practice. We’ll touch more on this later on the page.
Photographing Belongings for Home Inventory
In addition to writing down your belongings, take a picture of them! First, it proves ownership; secondly, it can be evidence of the item’s condition. You’d hate to move into your new house and have a moving company claim that the giant dent or scratch on the refrigerator was there before the move, when it actually wasn’t. This documentation can also help with insurance and PCS claims.
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Why You Need to Create Your Home Inventory
For those going through a PCS move, many of you might be asking, “Why can’t I just let the PCS movers conduct the inventory? That’s what I’ve done in the past.”
It’s a fair point, but let’s go ahead and look at some of the advantages of making a self-conducted inventory of your property rather than one conducted by the movers:
Mover Inventory vs. Personal Inventory
| Feature | Mover-Conducted Inventory | Personal (Self-Conducted) Inventory |
|---|---|---|
| Level of Detail | Often vague (e.g., “Box,” “Kitchen Goods,” “Misc. Tools”). | Specific (e.g., “KitchenAid Mixer – Onyx Black,” “Set of 4 Le Creuset Dutch Ovens”). |
| Condition Assessment | Frequently marked with “pre-existing damage” codes (scratches, dents) to limit liability. | High-resolution photos and videos showing the actual condition immediately before packing. |
| High-Value Focus | Relies on the user declaring items on a specific “High-Value Sheet.” | Comprehensive record of serial numbers, models, and current market value. |
| Legal Weight | Primary document for the shipping contract. | Critical supporting evidence for Full Replacement Value (FRV) claims. |
As you can see, having a more detailed inventory of your goods can make it less complicated when having to file a claim later.
How to Make Your Home Inventory
Above, I mentioned a rough idea for approaching a list. Now, let’s take a deeper look at the step-by-step process of making a detailed self-conducted inventory.
1. Document with Photos, Videos & Spreadsheets
Once you are ready to start your inventory, visual documentation is your best friend. As you start your inventory, be sure to get photos and videos of all your items. Take extra time to document your most valuable items. Using a spreadsheet might seem like too big a task, but don’t worry, it’s not as cumbersome as it might sound.
“We had a client who lost their entire house, and they had 10 or so short, one-to two-minute videos, and we were able to recreate a pretty decent list of their entire house [inventory] from that.”
While it may take you a full evening, or a couple of nights after work, doing a walkthrough in your home, going room-to-room to get good visual documentation of your household items, will pay off in the long run, especially if you find yourself filing a home insurance claim.
Another upside of pictures and video, let’s say on your phone, is that the phone offers digital timestamps that date your property as being in good shape and undamaged while in your possession.
“You might not get every single individual item [while recording], but you do have some sort of documentation. Recently, I’ve seen these insurance companies dive into it a lot more, in that they want the original videos or photos, because it does have metadata.”
2. List High-Value Items Separately
Getting back to your spreadsheet, make sure to list your high-value items separately from similar items of lesser value. For instance, if you have a box full of low-value jewelry, you might list that entire box — jewelry included — at a modest “guesstimate” value.
However, if you have an expensive pair of diamond earrings mixed in with that box of jewelry, make sure to separate out those earrings, visually document them, and list them separately on your spreadsheet.
A good practice is for your spreadsheet to have columns like:
- Purchase date
- Estimated value
- Original receipt (in the case of high-ticket items like those diamond earrings)
Since you’ll be maintaining this list for more than one PCS move, you can also take a photo of the receipt and drop it into the spreadsheet, adding to it as needed.
If you find you are “guesstimating” the value of multiple items all lumped together, you may want to reassess. A bunch of low-cost items can add up before you know it.
“When I took a photo of my junk drawer, and then I inventoried the drawer using [my company’s] inventory system…it ended up coming out to like, $600. So, when I talk to homeowners about creating an inventory, I tell them not to skip the small items.”
3. Use Additional Digital Tools
In addition to your trusted spreadsheet, there are numerous other digital resources to assist you with your household goods inventory. A quick online search for apps that can assist with your PCS will reveal a plethora of options.
I’d also recommend backing up this list on a cloud-based service so you can access it anywhere there’s an internet connection. A few good resources for this are:
- iCloud (Apple/Mac)
- Google Drive (if you have a Gmail account)
- OneDrive (Microsoft)
These are just some of the larger, more common options. However, you can search for other cloud storage services, some of which may be paid subscriptions that include more online security measures.
Documenting Firearms for Home Insurance
When creating a home inventory, firearms and tactical gear deserve special attention, especially in military households. These items often represent some of the most valuable personal property military families own, yet they’re also among the most commonly underinsured.
For each firearm, record the following:
- Make
- Model
- Caliber
- Serial number
- Purchase date
- Purchase price
- Estimated replacement value
- Any aftermarket upgrades or customizations, such as upgraded triggers, stocks, suppressor-ready barrels, or other modifications (document those separately and include receipts whenever possible)
Photos are equally important. Take clear, well-lit photos of each firearm from multiple angles. Include close-up images of the serial number and any unique features or modifications. Store digital copies of these images in a secure cloud account or encrypted storage device.
Note: Don’t forget about accessories. In many cases, the optic mounted on a firearm may be worth as much as—or more than—the firearm itself. Scopes, red dot sights, thermal optics, weapon lights, slings, bipods, foregrips, suppressors, magazines, and other accessories should be documented separately with their own photos, receipts, and replacement values.
This level of detail matters because many renters and homeowners insurance policies impose special limits on firearms coverage. A rifle equipped with a quality optic, weapon light, and accessories can easily represent $2,000 to $4,000 in value. Yet some standard renters insurance policies limit firearms theft coverage to as little as $1,500.
If the value of your firearms collection exceeds your policy’s coverage limits, consider a firearms rider or scheduled personal property endorsement. These optional coverages allow you to insure specific firearms and accessories for their full value.
Finally, store your documentation somewhere other than where the firearms are kept. A secure cloud backup, encrypted external drive, or safety deposit box can help ensure your records survive the same event that damages or destroys the property you’re trying to protect.
How to Use Your Home Inventory
Ok, so you’re done conducting your own home inventory of household goods. Now what?
With your new inventory in hand, you can approach your PCS move with more confidence. Your inventory can be stored digitally and later uploaded to the Defense Personal Property System1 during the claims process if needed. It can be used as documentation of your property’s pre-move condition, and all of the dutiful documenting you did, both visually and in writing, can now be used to compare the condition of your pre-moved items against their condition post-move.
Note: When your mover comes and notes the condition on your packing list, be sure to reference the home inventory you shared with them. That way, you won’t sign off on a condition determined by the movers accidentally.
Insurance Claim Help
Additionally, your personal inventory has the potential to help speed up insurance claims; it can help limit disputes with the moving company over your property’s value, and having a solid inventory can help improve the likelihood of you and your family being fully reimbursed for lost or damaged goods.
In terms of how to file a claim2 for lost or damaged goods, it’s important to be mindful that you typically have 180 calendar days from the date of delivery to give your transportation service provider, or TSP, a written notice of all missing and/or damaged items you plan to file a claim on.
Following that, you have 12 months to file the actual claim3 for moves that started on or after May 15, 2026 (9 months for moves that started prior), at which point you will then work on assessing your claim with the TSP. Eventually, the TSP will provide you with an itemized offer detailing the value of each item, which you can either accept or reject.
Common Home Inventory Mistakes to Avoid
Lastly, let’s talk about some common mistakes to avoid when it comes to managing your home inventory.
- Don’t only document your most expensive items. Remember: Melzer’s $600 junk drawer?
- Avoid worrying about the value fluctuation of your items. Once you have a value set, stick with it.*
- Forgetting to update your inventory every time you procure a new item in your household.
- Not reviewing your list before you PCS to ensure it is up-to-date.
- Failing to take new photos or record new videos. Last year’s photos may not hold much weight if you need to file a claim.
*Note: When it comes to insuring the value of your items, you will need to choose between two types of policies. The first, an actual cash value policy, pays the depreciated value of your items at the time of the loss. The second, a full replacement-cost policy, pays the amount needed to replace the damaged item with a new one of a similar type and quality, without deducting depreciation. The latter type of coverage comes with higher premiums, but it can help you avoid high out-of-pocket costs, as the former type of coverage would.
Home Inventory FAQs
What is the best way to document household belongings for insurance purposes?
Do a video walkthrough, alongside a written spreadsheet with serial numbers, stored in cloud storage. Be sure to grant your spouse or family access, especially when deployed.
Do I need to document every single item I own?
No, but document everything, room by room, and be thorough, especially for high-value items like electronics, firearms, furniture, and appliances. While small items add up, documenting the big-ticket items matters more.
How do I document firearms for insurance purposes?
Document the make, model, serial number, and purchase price. Take photos featuring the serial number and accessories, while storing documentation separately.
How do I create a home inventory for renters insurance?
Follow the same process for renters insurance as you would for homeowners, but pay particular attention to what the policy’s sub-limits are for specific categories like electronics and firearms.
Where should I keep my home inventory records?
Your inventory should be saved to cloud storage with shared access, not only on local devices —this is especially important for military families whose devices may be in transit during a PCS.
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