Getting the most from Stead.
A plain-English walk through what Stead does and how to use it, from your first sign-in to the landlord tools. Skim the section you need, or read it end to end. We keep this updated as new features land.
Jump to a section.
- Getting started — signing in, choosing your mode, setting up your home.
- Your dashboard — the home screen and what needs your attention.
- Your property and energy rating — the property report and your EPC.
- Maintenance and reminders — staying on top of jobs and renewals.
- Documents — certificates, warranties and manuals in one place.
- AI Fix, the diagnostics assistant — describe a problem, get next steps.
- Emergency information — the details you need when something goes wrong.
- Landlord tools — multiple properties, finances, notices and energy standards.
- Account, notifications and security — settings, reminders, two-factor and app lock.
- Your data and privacy — exporting or deleting everything.
Your first few minutes.
When you first open Stead you create an account with an email and password, or sign in with Google, Apple or Microsoft. From there a short setup walks you through your home.
Choosing your mode
Stead works three ways, and you pick the one that fits:
- Homeowner — for the home you live in and own.
- Renter — for a home you rent, with the tenancy details that matter to you.
- Landlord — for one or more properties you let, with the extra tools that come with that.
You can change your mode later from Account, so don't worry if your situation shifts.
Setting up your home
Enter your address and Stead looks up your home's official energy certificate for you, fills in what it can about the property, and sets up a starter set of reminders. You can label your rooms then or come back to it. The "finish setting up your account" card on the dashboard nudges you through the first few useful steps, and clears them off as you go.
What needs your attention.
The dashboard is your home screen. At the top you'll find your property name (tap it to switch property if you have more than one), and a quick view of what's outstanding.
The health ring
The ring shows a count of the things that need sorting: overdue tasks, documents that have expired or are about to, and an expired energy certificate. A green tick means you're all clear. Tap the ring to open a list of those items and jump straight to each one.
Seasonal tips and suggestions
Through the year Stead surfaces timely home-care prompts, tailored to your home and the season, like clearing gutters in autumn or lagging pipes before winter. You can add any of them as a task in one tap, ask AI Fix about it, or dismiss it. The Tasks tab also has a "Suggested for your home" card with jobs matched to your property's type, age and heating.
The property report.
Your property report pulls together the official energy certificate for your address along with the key facts about your home. It works for current and expired certificates, and across England, Wales and Scotland, with Northern Ireland covered where the data is published.
Your energy rating
You'll see your current and potential energy band, the estimated annual running costs, and how each part of your home, walls, roof, windows, heating and so on, is rated. If your certificate has expired, Stead flags it and helps you arrange a new one, and adds a renewal reminder.
Improving your rating
The report lists the improvements your certificate recommends, with indicative costs. Where a measure has no cost on the certificate, Stead shows a general guide figure so you still get a sense of the scale. Landlords also get a clear read on the energy standards that apply to rented homes, and a "getting to band C" view that ties the suggested improvements to the parts of the home scoring worst.
Nothing slips through.
The Tasks tab is your home's to-do list. Stead sets up a starter set of routine jobs, and you can add your own at any time, with a due date and how often they repeat.
Reminders
Tasks and document expiry dates can remind you before they're due. You choose whether to be reminded in the app, by email, or both, and how often you'd like a summary, all under Account then Notifications.
Service history
Tap the history icon on a task to log work that's been carried out: the date, what was done, who did it and what it cost, with a running total. You can save the tradesperson to your contacts at the same time, and landlords can log the cost straight to their finances.
Everything in one place.
Keep your certificates, warranties, manuals and photos together in the Documents area. Add an expiry date to anything that has one, and Stead can remind you before it lapses.
Your files are encrypted and stored on servers in the EU, visible only to you. You can search your documents by name, category or notes, and find them again quickly.
Describe a problem, get next steps.
Something not working? Open AI Fix, describe what's happening, like a radiator that won't heat up or a damp patch, and you'll get practical next steps, what to check first, and when it's time to call someone in.
On the web you can attach a photo of the problem to help. Your conversations are saved so you can come back to them, which doubles as a handy record if you ever need to show what was tried. When AI Fix suggests a fix you can turn it into a task, so it doesn't get forgotten.
The details you need in a hurry.
The Emergency area keeps the things you'd scramble for in a crisis to hand: where your stopcock and fuse box are, how to turn off the gas, and the numbers that matter. Every property starts with the key national emergency numbers built in, and you can add your own contacts, like your plumber, electrician or letting agent, on top.
For homes you let.
Switch to landlord mode and Stead grows to match. You can add as many properties as you manage and switch between them from the top of the dashboard.
Finances
The Finances area is a per-property income and expenses ledger, with categories that line up with how rental income is reported for tax. See your net profit at a glance, switch between tax year and calendar year, and export a tidy report as a PDF. Add your company details once and they'll appear on the report header.
Notices
The Notices tool helps you put together a draft possession or eviction notice, with the right structure and a suggested earliest possession date. It's a starting point to take to a solicitor, not legal advice, and Stead is clear about that throughout. A qualified review is always needed before a notice is served.
Energy standards
Your property report spells out the energy efficiency standards that apply to rented homes, what's in force now and what's proposed, and shows a path to a higher band with indicative costs.
Settings and keeping your account safe.
The Account tab is home to your settings. Manage your properties, your home details, and how you're reminded under Notifications.
Security
Under Account then Security you can turn on two-factor sign-in (with one-time recovery codes to keep safe), set an app lock that uses your device's fingerprint or face unlock, and sign out everywhere if you've used a shared device.
Switching theme
Stead has a light and a dark theme. Toggle between them from the top of any screen.
It's yours, and only yours.
Your home data is private to you and stored securely in the EU. We never sell it.
Any time you like, you can download a readable copy of everything from Account then Security then Download my data, and Stead files a copy in your Documents too. If you ever want to leave, deleting your account from the Danger zone removes your account and all its data. For the full detail, see our privacy policy.
Still have a question?
If something here doesn't cover what you need, our Help page answers the questions we hear most, and you can always email us or report a bug from inside the app under Account then Support.