Crowded together though they may be, most co-op and condo buildings seem to operate as little communities or villages unto themselves. They have their own individual boards, residents, managers, and even their own doorman and/or securit…
Disagreement and conflict between neighbors is something people have had to contend with since the first two Paleolithic human families decided to set up house in adjacent caves. While serious problems may be rarities in the suburbs and exu…
The house rules outline the do’s and don’ts of every co-op and condo community. By and large, these regulations are common sense directives aimed at protecting the safety of residents and generally keeping order without stepping on peopl…
As an attorney and an apartment dweller, Michelle Freudenberger has seen it all when it comes to living with difficult residents. “I lived next door to twin toddlers whose parents were both attorneys,” says Freudenberger, prin…
We all know the feeling—whether we encounter it trying to navigate the city bureaucracy, dealing with a far-flung credit card call center, or trying to resolve an issue with our cable box: the feeling that we’ve got a legitimate problem, an…
In what may prove to be a significant victory for cooperative and condominium boards sued for housing discrimination, an appellate court recently applied the protection of the business judgment rule to a discrimination claim for disabili…
Perhaps Benjamin Franklin said it best: “In this world, nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes.” And taxes aren’t just a certainty for co-op and condo buildings—they’re a complicated part of keeping a building co…
Molds are naturally occurring organisms that are present almost everywhere. While molds need both moisture and nutrients to grow, moisture is the primary factor that promotes indoor mold growth. Therefore, whenever there is a water leak…
Sometime in the future, perhaps, teleporters like those seen on Star Trek will be a reality. Every co-op and condo building will have one—not for purposes of travel, but for storage. Until technology allows us to beam our bins and boxes …
Managing a co-op or condo community is far from an easy job. Six managing agents from some of the city’s top firms recently participated in the continuing series of roundtable discussions hosted by The Cooperator and the Federation of Ne…