Even before the landmark “Pullman” case in 2003 in which a co-op board and shareholders voted unanimously to evict an especially troublesome and disruptive shareholder from their building—New York co-op residents have grumbled about “obj…
"Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown.” An immortal line from a beloved movie, and perhaps a reflection of how many Western urbanites over the years have viewed the large pockets of Asian immigrants that have settled in their cities. Chinato…
Ever since the first hydraulic passenger elevator was installed in New York City in 1870, the city has relied upon elevators to support its upward growth. Given that few would care to contemplate living or working in a 20-story walk-up,…
Clean laundry. It’s one of those basic things without which we would go mad but which we rarely stop to consider. Within New York’s co-op and condo complexes, laundry room facilities are an integral part of a happy, functioning environm…
If you’re part of a co-op and condo community, you’ve definitely had to deal with the New York City’s Building Codes. They’re a complex set of regulations, documents, amendments, local laws and more, regulating all sorts of things, from …
Even when living in a multi-family building, individual residents must handle some of the same responsibilities as those of a single-family homeowner. While board members will be more involved than other residents in helping to ensure …
With the economy still in the weeds and building administrators looking for creative ways to save money and build up their bottom line, it’s no surprise to hear that co-ops and condos are taking a hard look at their maintenance and buil…
As the trilogy of real estate values rising, building usage changing, and cellphone and Internet communications became universal, wireless telecommunications companies became popular defendants in the Commercial Part of New York’s Civi…
When you rank the key players who keep your building functioning from day to day, the superintendent should probably be placed close to the top of the list. A building’s super has a tremendous amount of responsibility, including looking…
Fortunately for boards looking to cut costs while still providing needed services to their buildings, many vendors are advertising bargain basement prices to fortify their own business. Unfortunately, the risk of getting stuck with unf…