12 move-in checks before renting a flat in Azerbaijan

Check the ID of the person letting the flat against the name on the extract from the property register (DERX — the State Service for Registration of Immovable Property). If a 'representative' is letting the flat, demand a notarised power of attorney; without one, do not sign the agreement.

If the flat was bought during a marriage and is registered to one spouse, written consent of the other is formally required for a long-term tenancy. It is rarely checked, but in a dispute it protects the contract from being declared void.

Find out whether anyone else is registered at the address. Otherwise a month later a 'distant relative' with a legal right to live there may appear, and you will have no legal way to remove them.

Photograph electricity, water and gas meters in close-up, with the date and serial number visible. Enter the figures in the handover act and sign it together with the owner.

30–50 photographs: each room from a wide angle, furniture, kitchen, plumbing, every scratch and stain. Save them to cloud storage with an automatic date stamp — that is your evidence if the landlord tries to withhold the deposit for 'damage'.

Attach a list of furniture and appliances with condition notes ('working', 'scratch on door') to the agreement. The more detailed the inventory, the fewer disputes on move-out.

Record how many keys you received and which locks they fit. Return exactly the same number when you leave. If the flat has an electronic lock, ask for the code to be changed.

Ask for fresh bills or a certificate confirming there is no debt. Debts of a previous tenant are not your liability, but unless you fix the 'zero point' you will have to prove that in a dispute.

Clarify in whose name the internet contract is and who pays for it. Ideally — re-register the contract in your own name, or pin that obligation down in the tenancy contract.

Switch on everything included in the rental: hob, oven, washing machine and dishwasher, air conditioner, boiler. Whatever is broken must be noted in the act — otherwise the repair will be pinned on you.

The deposit is documented separately, not as part of the tenancy contract. The receipt must show: the amount in words, the date, the basis ('deposit for the rental of the flat at address…'), both parties' ID details and signatures.

Agree which channel (WhatsApp / Telegram / e-mail) you will use to communicate and to log complaints. Keep the correspondence — it carries the same weight in court as a written letter.