Walk through once. Write everything down.
Start at the entrance and work room by room. Give each item a location and a plain description: “bedroom two, door catches at the top” tells more than “fix doors.” Keep symptoms separate from proposed fixes. A stain is an observation; repainting is only one possible response.
Choose the result you actually need.
Put an A beside anything that affects daily use, a B beside visible finish work and a C beside optional improvements. For each A item, describe what a satisfactory result looks like. If a door needs to latch, say so. If a wall needs to look even in daylight, say that too. Different expectations can mean different amounts of work.
Group by material and access.
Five small paint touch-ups may involve five different colours, three sheen levels and several drying periods. A single room repaint may be simpler to organize. Group similar surfaces and note which rooms can be available at the same time. Existing paint tins, spare flooring and matching hardware are useful information even when their suitability still needs checking.
Take one wide photo, then one close-up.
The wide view shows where the problem sits and how to reach it. The close-up shows the condition. Add a ruler or another familiar object if scale is unclear. Photograph in ordinary light and avoid filters. Do not include people, personal papers, entry codes or other private details.
Name the boundaries.
Decide what you want to keep. A room refresh might include walls, trim and hardware while keeping the layout and built-ins. Say who moves the furniture, who supplies the materials and whether disposal is needed. A clear exclusion is useful: “do not replace the door” is a real part of the scope.
Agree what happens if something changes.
A small visible defect can sometimes reveal damage underneath. Before booking, agree how additional work would be described and approved. Keep optional improvements out of the initial job until you have seen their effect on the price and schedule.
A useful starting point
A useful first message includes your community, the top three items, a few clear photos and any access or timing constraints. You do not need to diagnose the repair yourself.