Q I own a co-op apartment in the West Village and my girlfriend owns a house in Bucks County, PA, but works in New York City. We both want to enter into a mutual "living estate" will where either of us will have the right to live in …
Q I live in a co-op complex of a few hundred apartments. After 60 years without apartment insurance the present board suddenly decided that all shareholders must carry insurance. This translates into an additional expense of approxim…
Q We are having a debate among shareholders about whether a radiator within the apartment is classified as “standard building equipment.” We understand that we need to pay to replace a valve that leaks. But if that leaky valve causes…
The big secret regarding energy efficiency in co-ops and condos is window glass, which compared to insulated walls and ceilings, can be a source of serious energy waste. While we expect that energy-conserving walls and ceilings will dr…
Occupying the southernmost tip of Manhattan, New York City’s Financial District is the center of wealth and power for both the city and the nation, but until just a few years ago, the area was a ghost town after office hours. That began…
There have long been organizations that strive to strengthen and clarify the roles of owners, residents, and managers within the cooperative housing environment. But one essential player in the game—the superintendent—was the last to fi…
Last summer’s heat wave is just a fading memory, and it's that time again: time to get your building’s boiler operating and ready for the colder months. Before the first snow falls however, some maintenance and housekeeping to your buil…
You may have a roof over your head—but if that roof isn’t doing its job, you may as well be living on the cold, wet streets of New York City. Roofs serve as the first line of defense against whatever the skies throw at your bu…
“...We gather here today at the human resources department of Acme Property Management Company to bring together John Smith, property manager, with the building and board located at 123 Anywhere Street. If nobody objects to this arrang…
Eventually, most co-op owners will get bored with their surroundings and want to spruce up their apartment. Sometimes this will involve a full remodeling or redesign of the unit, while other times it simply means adding a new coat of p…