Q. I am a 65-year-old disabled homeowner (I own a co-op apt. in Forest Hills). I have been a recipient of the STAR DHE property tax abatement for the last 8 years. This year the management of our co-op decided to replace the abatement wit…
As more and more new condominium construction projects are built, completed and sold off (as well as cooperatives and homeowners associations, although less common) there has been a correspondingly large number of what have come to be known…
Even with proper risk management best practices, it’s impossible to completely avoid all types of insurance claims from happening. At heart, a claim is like any other business dealing—a negotiation. Your ability to convincingly argue your p…
Most board members can use all the help they can get when it comes to understanding the rules, laws, and other factors that guide how they will help govern their community. Senior board members are a terrific source of information, as is a …
Just as the ways in which we socialize have changed in recent years, so too have the spaces in which that socializing has traditionally been done. Common spaces and amenities in multifamily buildings and condo associations have evolved to s…
No matter what the size of their portfolio, a property manager must wear a great many professional hats: human resources pro, administrator, mediator, organizer, social director, project manager, sounding board—sometimes even therapist. I…
A cooperative, condominium or homeowner's association is more likely than not governed by a ragtag band of brave volunteers. Oftentimes, these folks have outside jobs that have little to do with maintaining a residential real estate propert…
"I wish someone had told me the nuances of trying to cultivate a community while also trying to manage a business,” said Pat Burke, the current president of the Fieldstondale co-op in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, when asked what he w…
Like beauty, what constitutes an 'amenity'—particularly a 'luxury' amenity—may well be in the eye of the beholder. Young families may want indoor and outdoor play equipment, while professionals may appreciate a well-appointed gym, and senio…
For over a century, states have had laws, rules and regulations in place to ensure that employees who are injured while performing their jobs are adequately taken care of. An uninsured employer that finds itself embroiled in a workers' comp…