With mortgages as common as they are today, most borrowers know the standard steps in securing a loan for a condo or co-op. In the simplest terms, a borrower must first pick a lending institution, be it a commercial bank or mortgage banker.…
The economic boom of the last few years has been a remarkable period of prosperity for the real estate industry in general, and co-ops in particular. Shareholders no longer need to feel trapped; the time is now for co-op boards to tackle th…
Out of concern over escalating property taxes, The Action Committee for Reasonable Real Estate Taxes was formed in 1990. Created by The Council of New York Cooperatives and Condominiums (CNYC), the committee uncovered a gross disparity betw…
"Foreclosure" is a word no co-op or condo owner wants to hear, but when residents fall behind on maintenance fees or common charges - when their financial burden becomes too large to shoulder - sometimes foreclosure can be the only answ…
You’re unmarried, but you want to buy a co-op or condo together. What do you need to know? Will it be difficult winning the board over? How do you plan for possibilities you’d rather not consider, like breakup or death? The decisions you ma…
All board members should be involved in the budgeting process of their building. However, board members come from a wide array of professional backgrounds, and often lack experience managing large budgets and do not know how to effectively …
The numerous, rapid conversions of the 1980s resulted in many cases of sponsor default in the early ‘90s. But as the number of building conversions slowed in the ‘90s, it seems that potential conflict between shareholders and the sponsor ma…
A good treasurer is crucial to the well-being of any co-op or condo. Unfortunately, the position is, without a doubt, one of the most challenging offices to hold. Carl M. Cesarano, CPA, a partner with Cesarano & Khan PC in Rego Park, Queens…
While the real estate market today is going strong, there are still buildings facing financial troubles. Many of these are victims of the collapsed real estate market of the late 1980s and early ‘90s. The market may have dropped after the c…
Vincent DiCeglio worked for the Long Island Lighting (LILCO) company for 24 years as a customer service representative. During that period, he discovered numerous errors on clients’ bills, and felt that consumers could use an outside advoca…