In a few months, the hot summer weather will be just a distant memory, and all that time spent trying to get cool will be behind us. Instead, co-op and condo residents will be turning up the thermostat for some soothing warmth. Now is the …
Scenario: A shareholder or unit owner suddenly demands an inspection of the board's "books and records." Since the board is not guilty of financial impropriety or the squandering of funds, it has nothing to hide. Nevertheless, the b…
Following up on the success of the informal roundtable discussion jointly hosted by The Cooperator and the Federation of New York Housing Cooperatives and Condominiums (FNYHC) this past February, a group of area co-op and condo board presi…
"I'm on the board of my co-op in Queens, and there's a problem with our current president; without consulting the other board members, he has cancelled our upcoming meeting, saying there's "˜nothing on the agenda,' and he signs service and …
It's not easy to be a smoker in New York City these days. It has become commonplace to see office workers in front of skyscrapers lighting up, or to hear announcements prohibiting smoking in theaters and other public venues. And now, under…
Bad things happen to good buildings; it's a fact of life. From tyrannical sponsors to maintenance mishaps, there's plenty to go wrong - and when it does, your life can be made miserable. But sometimes a truly inspired manager can pull a ha…
Driving around Manhattan can be a hazardous sport. Cabbies signal lane changes by changing lanes. Brazen bike messengers yield for few things, and stop for fewer. Congested pedestrian groups form walls as they cross the street, stymieing c…
Of all the goings-on in the thousands of co-op and condo buildings in New York City, perhaps none inspires more questions and confusion than board and shareholders' meetings. How often must meetings be held? What gets decided at meetings? …
New York City's eight million hardy souls are used to a lifestyle in which the best of everything is at their disposal. But now residents may have to do more with less as the city struggles to find its way out of a deepening fiscal crisis.…
With all the recent concern over environmental hazards in residential buildings - mold, funguses, and various allergens - it makes good sense to discuss one of the most dangerous of the invisible problems that can plague a home or building…