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Board members come in all shapes and sizes—literally and figuratively. In some buildings, no one wants the hassle of working a thankless job for no compensation, and the same four people are guilted into the job every year by default. In ot…
As any co-op or condo board member knows, serving on the board carries with it a responsibility to fellow residents and shareholders to make decisions in the best interest of the building. They don't leave their role as board members at the…
They torched cars and set fires throughout the park and around our building in 50 mile-per-hour winds. And, yes, the fire spread to unprotected areas. It may sound like a scene from a war zone, but that's actually a local resident's…
There I was, innocently removing empty cartons from my new condominium unit. I was approached by a woman on my floor asking why I'd left the cartons where I did. I politely, but firmly, informed her that I was following the superintendent's…
Admission requirements for co-op buildings in New York City are typically pretty stringent. A board has the authority to require prospective purchasers to provide extensive financial documentation along with social and personal reference le…
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…