Category: Q&A

Q We’ve had problems with a corrupt management in the past. I’m suspicious of our current management and several board members receiving  kickbacks from vendors. Are there any steps that I can take to find out if this  is repetition of ou…

Q In the event that a shareholder has a “dispute” with another shareholder—and claims that many other residents of the building have complained regarding  the same issue—but refuses to provide the names of other complainants—how should th…

Q Some members of my co-op board want to change our transfer fees upon sale to assign a lower per share fee for those shareholders who purchased after the year 2000. Their reasoning is that real estate values decreased after 2000. Othe…

Q I live in a co-op in Manhattan and am planning to renovate my bathroom. My managing agent has informed me that I must pay a $500 fee to file my application for the renovation, which seems unusual. The renovation is simple—to replace t…

Q Is a condominium required to produce an annual financial report? If they don’t, what is the recourse? If the management company doesn’t allow me, an owner, to review the finances under the New York State Real Property Law, what is my …

Q Currently, I am on a board that is involved in litigation brought about because of a resale denial. I was recently told by a lawyer that if a co-op board is sued “personally and as board members” the following is true: The insu…

Q A couple of our co-op tenants are complaining of noisy neighbors. There is an issue of some residents not adhering to the 80 percent carpeting rule. As a result, the board voted that any new occupants be required to get wall-to-wall …

Q I live in a 100 percent owner-occupied condominium. Our bylaws and house rules very clearly state that unit owners may have no more than two pets, only one of which may be a dog. One of the unit owners (who is also a board member) kee…

Q I’m the president of our building’s board. One of our directors has recently become a licensed real estate broker, and has recused himself from interviewing any potential buyers. At first, that seemed to ward off the semblance of any …

Q My co-op has not had elections in many years, as the number of candidates always equals the number of seats on the board. This year, however, there will be more candidates than seats. Someone mentioned that we are supposed to have cumu…