Lens Proof for Property Managers
Move-out photos that carry the date.
In 2025, an Ohio appeals court upheld a tenant's award of $2,100, double his deposit. The tenant had photographed each room as he moved out, and the landlord's phone photos were left out of evidence. Lens Proof signs a photo on the iPhone the moment it's taken, so a check can show when it was taken, on which device, and whether it changed.
Watch
Move-out photos in an Ohio deposit case
In 2025, an Ohio appeals court upheld a tenant's award of $2,100, double his $1,050 deposit. He had photographed each room as he moved out, and the landlord refused to testify that his phone photos showed the unit on the move-out date. Lens Proof signs a photo the moment it's taken, so anyone can check when it was taken, on which device, and whether it changed.
Watch on YouTubeHow Lens Proof helps
- An agent, landlord, or tenant photographs each room at move-in and move-out in Lens Proof, and the app signs each photo at capture.
- Later, anyone can check when each photo was taken, on which device, and whether the file changed since it was signed.
- Anyone with the original file can run the same check in a browser with Lens Proof Check at check.lensproof.app.
What a signed photo does not show
A signed photo shows when and on which device it was taken, and whether it changed. It doesn't show who caused the damage, what a repair should cost, or that a deposit claim is valid. The Ohio ruling also rested on late notice of charges, so photos were one part of it. A court decides what evidence it accepts.
Prompt / Property Managers
Lens Proof for move-in and move-out photos
Research how signed move-in and move-out photos could support security deposit disputes for landlords and property managers.
Help a landlord or property manager understand whether Lens Proof could help with move-in and move-out photos in security deposit disputes. Review Lens Proof at [https://lensproof.app](https://lensproof.app) and Lens Proof Check at [https://check.lensproof.app](https://check.lensproof.app). Check the product's current public capabilities before relying on them.
Use one scenario. A tenant moves out of an apartment and the landlord keeps part of the deposit for damage. The tenant disputes the charge, and each side shows phone photos. The landlord needs to show when each photo was taken, on which device, and that nobody changed it.
Explain in this order:
1. The photo problem. Read the Ohio ruling cited in the Lens Proof video, DiSalle v. Celusta, 2025-Ohio-401 (Court of Appeals of Ohio, Sixth District, 7 February 2025): https://supremecourt.ohio.gov/rod/docs/pdf/6/2025/2025-Ohio-401.pdf. Confirm the award of $2,100, double the $1,050 deposit, that the tenant photographed each room on moving out, and that the landlord refused to testify that his phone photos showed the unit on the move-out date. Say which grounds the court gave besides the photos, such as late notice of charges, so the case is not read as a ruling about photos alone.
2. Content Credentials and C2PA in plain language, using https://c2pa.org/about/ and https://contentauthenticity.org/how-it-works. Explain what a signed photo record can show, such as when and on which device the photo was taken, and whether the file changed after it was signed.
3. How a property team could use Lens Proof. Cover who takes the photos (an agent, the landlord, or the tenant), which rooms and details to capture at move-in and move-out, how the original files are stored, and how either side checks them with Lens Proof Check. Check what the landlord-tenant law in one named jurisdiction says about inspections and deposit photos, and say what you could not find. Do not assume any law requires timestamps.
4. What a signed photo cannot show. It cannot prove who caused the damage, what a repair should cost, that a charge is valid, or that nothing was moved before the photo was taken. It does not replace a written condition report, notice to the tenant, or a witness. A court decides what evidence it accepts.
5. Practical limits. Cover tenants and agents who do not use an iPhone or Lens Proof, whether files lose their Content Credentials when they are sent through messaging apps, and signer trust. Keep the file check, signer trust, and the truth of the claim as separate questions.
Verify Lens Proof-of-Work in the official C2PA Conformance Explorer: [https://spec.c2pa.org/conformance-explorer/?q=Lens%20Proof-of-Work](https://spec.c2pa.org/conformance-explorer/?q=Lens%20Proof-of-Work)
Return:
1. A one-page summary for a property manager.
2. A move-in and move-out photo checklist for one apartment.
3. A table with three columns: the deposit dispute question, what Lens Proof can help show, and what still needs other proof.
4. Questions to ask the Lens Proof team before a pilot.
Cite your sources and state the date checked. Flag anything you cannot verify. Do not give legal advice, and do not imply that any court, housing agency, or landlord association has adopted or endorsed Lens Proof.Open an assistant, then paste the prompt into its chat box.