The course

What residents learn in about 20 minutes

Short cards on the phone, one idea at a time. Some ask residents to spot a risk in a picture, put steps in order or pick an answer. Cards marked "your building" show the landlord's own photo and words if they add them, and simple steps to find things if they don't. The whole course is in English and Spanish, and every card can be read out loud.

1. Welcome About 1 min

  • Welcome home
  • How it works

2. Water in the kitchen and laundry About 3 min

  • Most fixtures have a shutoff
  • Find your shutoff valves (your building)
  • Water is spraying
  • Spot the risk
  • Heading out?
  • Check the quiet spots
  • Your water heater (your building)

3. Toilets and bigger leaks About 2 min

  • If a toilet starts to overflow
  • What goes down the toilet?
  • The main water shutoff (your building)
  • Water and power don't mix

4. Freezing weather About 1 min

Only where pipes can freeze.

  • Keep pipes from freezing
  • A frozen pipe bursts

5. Fire safety in the kitchen About 2 min

  • Cooking is the top cause of home fires
  • Spot the risks
  • A pan catches fire
  • Fire in the oven

6. Smoke alarms and ways out About 3 min

  • Test your smoke alarms
  • Close before you doze
  • Know two ways out
  • Take the stairs (apartment buildings)
  • Walk your way out (your building)
  • The door is hot
  • Get low under smoke

7. When there's a fire About 2 min

  • The alarm goes off
  • If you can't get out (apartment buildings)
  • Your meeting place (your building)
  • Stay out
  • Fire extinguishers (your building)

8. Heaters and electricity About 1 min

  • Space heaters need space
  • Spot the risks
  • Warning signs
  • Your electrical panel (your building)

9. Dryers, candles and batteries About 2 min

  • Clean the lint filter
  • Laundry (your building)
  • Candles
  • Charging batteries
  • Charging overnight?
  • Grills (your building)

10. Carbon monoxide and gas About 3 min

  • Carbon monoxide
  • Engines and grills stay outside
  • The CO alarm goes off
  • If you smell gas (only in homes with gas)
  • A gas smell (only in homes with gas)
  • The gas shutoff (your building, only in homes with gas)

11. Emergencies and storms About 2 min

  • When to call 911
  • Urgent, but not 911 (your building)
  • 911 or maintenance?
  • After a storm

12. Final check and certificate

10 questions from a bank of 33, in a different order each time. 80% to pass. The certificate shows the building, the unit, the date and the course version, and anyone with the number can check it.

Where the facts come from

Every safety fact in the course comes from one of these public sources. We last checked them on September 30, 2026.

This is general safety information. It doesn't replace your building's safety systems, local fire code or your lease.

Try it on your building Get the move-in checklist