Dashboard & navigation: how-to

Step-by-step instructions for getting around COHO. For what everything means, see Dashboard & navigation; for problems, see Dashboard & navigation: troubleshooting.

Find your task

If you’re here because…	Go to
You’re new to COHO and want to know where to start	Get started as a new user
You want to see what needs doing today	Check what’s going on today
You only care about your own work, or one group of properties	Filter the Dashboard tiles
A number looks out of date	Refresh the Dashboard numbers
You want to open a panel such as Maintenance or Deposits	Open a panel from the Menu
You’re on a room and need to get back to the property or the Dashboard	Move between organisation, property and room
You need a tenant, property, room, owner or job quickly	Search for something
You want to add an onboarding, viewing or maintenance issue from anywhere	Start something from the Menu
You want to send a message, add a note or log rent quickly	Use Global options
The page is too busy, or panels have disappeared	Turn focus mode on or off
You’d like the Menu smaller, on the other side, or in dark mode	Change the Menu layout and theme
You’re also a property owner, supplier or tenant	Switch between dashboards
You work for more than one organisation	Work in another organisation
You want to read or hide an announcement or tip	Read or dismiss announcements and tips
You’ve finished setting up and want the Dashboard back	Finish or remove Explore COHO
You need help from COHO	Get help and support
You’d like to use COHO on your phone	Use the mobile app

Get started as a new user

Do this when you’ve just joined COHO, or a colleague has invited you.

Before you start: accept your invitation email and log in.

1. Look at the top of the Dashboard. If Explore COHO is there, work through its sections: Getting Started, Personalisation and Add Details.
2. Click Menu (top left) to see the panels you have access to.
3. Open Properties and click a property to see the property level, then click a room to see the room level.
4. Read the guide for each area you’ll use; see Guides for every area.

What happens next: each morning, start from What is going on today? and click a number to go straight to the work.

Tip

Panels with a settings cog have options for that area. It’s worth opening each cog once.

Check what’s going on today

Do this at the start of the day, or whenever you want to know what’s waiting.

Before you start: you need view permission for at least one of the tiles’ areas.

1. Open the Dashboard (click the COHO logo, or Management Dashboard in your profile menu).
2. Look at What is going on today?. Highlighted numbers need attention.
3. Click a number to open its panel:
   • Onboarding: the Onboarding panel;
   • Viewings: the Viewings panel; New leads: the Leads panel;
   • Maintenance: New and In progress open the Maintenance panel on that category;
   • Availabilities: the Availabilities panel;
   • Actions: the Actions panel, showing yours or everyone’s to match the tile;
   • Payments: Unassigned opens Rent Collection; Matches, Unreconciled and Connect a bank account! open Transactions.

What happens next: the panel opens and the page scrolls to it. In focus mode, it opens on its own; click Back to dashboard to return.

Filter the Dashboard tiles

Do this when you want a tile to count only your work, or only some properties.

Before you start: the person icons show only when your organisation has more than one user, and the tag icon only once your properties have tags.

1. On a tile, click the two-people icon (All users) to switch to Yours only, or the one-person icon to switch back.
2. To limit by property tag, click the tag icon, choose tags in Limit to tags…, then click the tick.
3. To remove tags, click the tag icon, clear the tags, then click the tick.

What happens next: the tile recounts. COHO remembers your choices on this browser.

Note

Yours only counts items assigned to you. Unassigned items appear only under All users.

Refresh the Dashboard numbers

Do this when you’ve just dealt with something and the number hasn’t changed.

1. Under What is going on today?, click Refresh.

What happens next: every tile shows fresh numbers. Without a refresh, most tiles can be up to 10 minutes old, and Payments up to an hour.

Open a panel from the Menu

Do this when you want a panel that isn’t on screen.

1. Click Menu (three lines, top left).
2. In the section named after your organisation, click the panel, for example Deposits.

What happens next: COHO goes to the Dashboard and opens that panel. If a panel isn’t listed, see A panel or Menu item is missing.

Move between organisation, property and room

Do this to change level.

1. To a property: open Properties and click the property, or search for it.
2. To a room: on the property page, click the room or unit, or search for it.
3. To a panel on the property or room: open the Menu; the property’s or room’s section is open, so click the item.
4. Back to the Dashboard: click the COHO logo, or an item in the organisation section of the Menu.

Search for something

Do this when you know a name, number or reference.

1. Click Menu, then click Search.
2. Type at least three characters (two if they’re digits). For example:
   • a tenant’s name, phone number, full email address, tenancy number or rent payment reference;
   • a property name, reference or postcode;
   • a maintenance job number such as M194;
   • a tag.
3. Wait a moment for the results, then click one. Use the arrow keys and Enter if you prefer. If a tenant has more than one tenancy, their tenancies are listed under their name; click the one you want.

What happens next: COHO opens it. Tenants open on their room, at that tenancy. Your search is saved under Recent; click the cross beside it to remove it.

Caution

Search doesn’t look in messages, suppliers, transactions or actions, or at deactivated properties and rooms. See Search can’t find something.

Start something from the Menu

Do this to add an onboarding, a viewing or a maintenance issue without finding the property first.

Before you start: you need edit permission for that area.

1. Click Menu.
2. Under Start something…, click Onboarding, Viewing or Maintenance.
3. Fill in the form (Add onboarding, Add viewing or Add maintenance issue), choosing the property and room in it.

What happens next: the same as starting it from the panel. See Onboarding, Viewings, Availabilities & Leads or Maintenance.

Tip

Welcome Tour under Start something… replays COHO’s short tour of the main features.

Use Global options

Do this for quick jobs that aren’t tied to one page.

Before you start: each button needs edit permission for its area.

1. Click Menu.
2. Under Global options, click:
   • Message or Email to write to tenants, owners or suppliers;
   • Note to add a note;
   • Action to create an action;
   • Financial item to add income or an expense;
   • Log rent to record a rent payment.

What happens next: the form opens over the page you’re on. See Message Centre, Actions, Finances & reports and Rent Schedules & Rent Collection.

Turn focus mode on or off

Do this when you want one panel at a time, or when panels seem to have disappeared.

1. Click Menu.
2. Click the focus icon at the top (Toggle focus mode). It’s highlighted when focus mode is on.

What happens next: with focus mode on, clicking a Menu item shows only that panel, and Back to dashboard returns you. With it off, every panel is shown on one page. COHO remembers this on your browser.

Change the Menu layout and theme

Do this to make the Menu suit your screen.

1. Click Menu.
2. Use the buttons at the top:
   • minimise / maximise: shrink the Menu to icons, or expand it;
   • left / right arrow: move the Menu to the other side;
   • moon / sun: dark or light mode.

What happens next: layout choices are kept on this browser; dark or light mode is saved to your account. Minimise and the arrows only appear on wide screens.

Switch between dashboards

Do this when you’re also a property owner, supplier or tenant on COHO.

1. Click your picture (top right).
2. Click Management Dashboard, Owner Dashboard, Supplier Dashboard or Tenant Dashboard.

What happens next: COHO shows that view. Only the dashboards for roles you have are listed.

Work in another organisation

Do this when you work for more than one organisation on COHO.

1. Log in with the email address that belongs to the other organisation.
2. If one login belongs to several organisations, COHO opens your home organisation (the one you own, or else the one you joined first). Contact COHO support if you need a different one.

Note

There’s no organisation switcher for customers at the moment.

Read or dismiss announcements and tips

Do this when there’s news at the top of the Dashboard or in the Menu.

1. Read the announcement, or click its button to try the feature. Some have a button to give feedback.
2. Click Dismiss X to hide it.
3. In the Menu, under ✨ What’s New?, use ⬅️ Prev and Next ➡️, Read more, or Dismiss X.

What happens next: a dismissed announcement, update or tip doesn’t come back, on any device. Clicking an announcement’s button also hides it.

Finish or remove Explore COHO

Do this when your organisation has finished setting up.

Before you start: this removes Explore COHO for everyone in your organisation.

1. On Explore COHO, click the settings cog.
2. Switch on Permanently remove Explore panel, then click Save.

What happens next: the Dashboard shows What is going on today? for everyone. If you just want a break, close the panel instead, so you can come back to it.

Get help and support

Do this when you have a question or a problem.

1. Click Menu, then Help & Support.
2. Click Get Support to chat with COHO, Tutorials for videos, or AST Merge Fields for tenancy agreement templates.
3. When you ask for help, include a screenshot, the property or tenant, and the steps you took.

What happens next: replies come back in the support chat; a number on Get Support shows unread replies.

Note

COHO doesn’t manage properties. Tenants with questions about their home should contact their landlord or letting agent through the speech-bubble icon in My COHO.

Use the mobile app

Do this when you want COHO on your phone.

1. Install COHO from the App Store or Google Play.
2. Log in with your usual email and password.
3. Allow notifications if you want push notifications.

What happens next: you see the same COHO as on a computer. Links to other websites open in your phone’s browser. If the app can’t connect, click Retry connection, or Report issue to tell COHO.