Who this article is for
Buyers and buyer’s agents using Cohabit to review a strata building
Buyers who want to see the actual documents behind their building data
What “strata records” means in Cohabit
In Cohabit, strata records are the files linked to your building, such as:
Owner ledgers
AGM or committee meeting minutes
Insurance certificates of currency
Budgets and financial statements
Compliance certificates (e.g. fire, pool, lift)
Maintenance & works reports
Other historical documents and files
These are stored in your building’s Files tab and can be filtered so you can quickly find exactly what you need.
Step 1 – Open your building
Log in to Cohabit.
Go to My buildings or use Search.
Enter the building address or strata plan (SP) number.
Click the building to open its Building Profile.
(Screenshot: My buildings screen with a building selected)
(Screenshot: Building Profile header with building name/address)
Step 2 – Go to the Files tab
On the Building Profile, look for the Files tab.
Click Files to open the list of strata documents linked to this building.
(Screenshot: Building Profile with “Files” tab highlighted)
(Screenshot: Files tab open showing a list of files)
This is where Cohabit stores all the files we’ve been authorised to use for your building.
Step 3 – Filter by Document type and Section
To quickly find what you’re looking for, use the filters at the top of the Files tab.
Document type = what the file actually is
Document type describes the specific kind of document, such as:
Owner ledger
AGM minutes
Committee minutes
Insurance certificate of currency
Financial statement
Budget
Compliance certificate
Maintenance report
Use Document type when you know what you’re trying to find.
Examples:
Filter by AGM minutes to see annual general meeting records.
Filter by Insurance certificate of currency to see the current insurance documents.
Section = where the file is stored/used in Cohabit
Section describes the part of the building profile the file belongs to, such as:
Financials
Meetings
Compliance
Works & Maintenance
Defects
Issues
Historical documents and files
Use Section when you know which area of the building the file relates to.
Examples:
Filter by Section = Compliance to see all compliance-related documents (e.g. fire, pool, lift certificates).
Filter by Section = Meetings to see any kind of minutes stored under meetings (AGM, EGM, committee).
Expiry date filter
You can also filter or sort by expiry date for documents where this matters, such as:
Insurance certificates of currency
Compliance certificates (pool, lift, fire, etc.)
This helps you quickly see what is current, what is expiring soon, or what may be out of date.
(Screenshot: Files tab with filters visible: Document type dropdown, Section dropdown, Expiry filter)
Step 4 – Preview a file
You don’t need to download every file just to check what it is.
Find the file you’re interested in.
Click it to preview.
In the preview, you can:
Confirm the document type and section
Check the date and key details
Scan the content to see if it’s what you need
Depending on your setup and permissions, you may also be able to download files for your own records or to share with your conveyancer/solicitor.
(Screenshot: file preview open – e.g. AGM minutes or an insurance certificate of currency)
Step 5 – (Optional) Upload your own files if something is missing
If you notice that important documents are missing or out of date, and you have a copy (for example, from an agent, vendor, or your own records), you may be able to upload them to Cohabit.
In the Files tab, click Upload or Add file (if available to you).
Choose the file from your device.
Select:
The correct Document type (e.g. AGM minutes, insurance certificate of currency, owner ledger), and
The appropriate Section (e.g. Meetings, Compliance, Financials), and
An expiry date if relevant (e.g. for insurance or compliance certificates).
Confirm the upload.
(Screenshot: Upload file modal with fields for Document type, Section, Expiry date)
This can help:
Make your building’s record more complete, and
Give Cohabit and any experts better information for health scores and future insights.
If you’ve purchased an Expert Report
If you’ve purchased an Expert Report (Building Insight Report) for the building:
You’ll also see related files surfaced inside the relevant insight sections (for example, Financials, Meetings, Compliance).
Those files are the same underlying documents you can access from the Files tab – the insight just links them to the expert’s commentary for that section.
So you can either:
Go straight via the Files tab (as above), or
Start in your Expert Report → open a section → and view the associated files from there.
If you don’t see many files
Some buildings will naturally have more records than others. Common reasons for limited files:
No owner lot connection request yet.
No buyer request (health score or Expert Report) for the building.
The strata manager hasn’t provided many documents to Cohabit yet.
The building is new or has limited history.
If your building looks light on records, see Why is my building missing data?
FAQs
Q: Why don’t I see any files in the Files tab?
This usually means Cohabit hasn’t yet received or processed strata records for your building, or we don’t have authority to inspect them yet.
Q: What’s the difference between Document type and Section?
Document type = the kind of file (e.g. AGM minutes, insurance certificate of currency, owner ledger).
Section = the area of the building it belongs to in Cohabit (e.g. Meetings, Compliance, Financials).
Q: Are these files always the latest versions?
Not necessarily. Files reflect what was available at the time of the most recent inspection or upload. New versions may not appear until they are provided and processed.