Of all the duties of boards and managers, the safety of residents and their property is paramount. One crucial component of maintaining that safety is a fire-prevention plan that's thorough, functional, and up-to-date. In this clip, fire pr…
The governing documents of a housing development—be it a cooperative, condominium, or homeowners association—spell out the rules, regulations, and policies that all unit owners or shareholders are obligated to follow as a condition of their…
Back in September, Governor Cuomo signed into law a bill passed by the New York State legislature meant to make public knowledge the actual owners of one-to-four family homes purchased under the guise of LLC’s, limited liability corporation…
Whether you live in a suburb or in the heart of the city, life is expensive. Sometimes it can feel as though everybody from the barista at your favorite coffee shop to the kid who bags your groceries is trying to nickel-and-dime you half to…
Q. My 88-year-old mother has just moved into a co-op on Staten Island where I am also a shareholder with a legal parking spot in the building’s garage. My four sisters and I are her daily caregivers. She is unable to walk securely to any …
Q. For more than 30 years, my condominium building has had a resident-managed fund that collects cash gifts for the staff at holiday time. This has worked very well and was always 100 percent independent of the condominium board and the m…
Q. I live in a Housing Development Fund Corporation (HDFC) building in the Bronx. My building has no meetings or elections, and shareholders are not informed of our financial status at all. The treasurer’s son has taken complete control a…
Say you and your spouse own a single-family home. You’ve got two grown kids and a couple of grandchildren. When the time comes, assuming your will and other end-of-life documents are in order, seeing to it that your property and assets are …
Some lucky New Yorkers can come home from work on a cold winter’s night and warm their feet by a roaring fire while drinking a hot toddy. A working fireplace is a coveted amenity for many, adding a dash of vintage charm to prewar apartments…
Any time you have hundreds or even thousands of people living in close quarters – in a multifamily co-op or condo building, say – certain challenges inevitably will arise. One of the bigger ones is how to maintain the flow of fresh, hygieni…