Every co-op or condo has rules and regulations that have been put in place to define the board’s authority and limitations of power, as well as outline the rules for the community, residents or shareholders. And although the governing d…

Turn on daytime television and you might get a false impression that people like to go to court to work out their differences. There are so many cookie-cutter judicial shows like “The People’s Court,” “Judge Judy,” and “Judge Joe Brown,…

Q I’d like to ask about the transfer tax in co-ops. I have been living in a co-op unit with my brother for 11 years. It is currently under both of our names, but now I want to change it to my name only. How does the transfer tax figure…

Q I am a shareholder in an eight-unit co-op in Brooklyn. The board is composed of all eight owners, of which there are four officers. My apartment is on the top floor, and over the past few years I have sustained over one dozen water l…

Q My question is about the co-op’s building sponsor. I understand the building is owned by each shareholder and that they vote in a board to run the corporation. How does the sponsor factor into all of this? Is the sponsor part owner a…

In most buildings—even otherwise well-run, well-managed ones—building staff and administration can sometimes get a little bit lax in their day-to-day maintenance duties. Equipment doesn’t get serviced. Paint peels. Dust and dirt accumula…

The boards of some co-op and condo buildings pride themselves on not raising their monthly maintenance fees for years at a time. At first glance, this might seem like a good thing—after all, low fees are appreciated by residents and can…

Tax time is coming soon, and a time no one really enjoys will likely be even less fun thanks to the current recession. In the case of condo and co-op buildings however, accountants and attorneys may be able to help the communities they…

Remember Stanley Roper from the 1970’s sitcom Three’s Company? To some, he might still be their idea of a property manager—the upstairs landlord or the guy you’d call when your plumbing’s on the fritz. And indeed, when the plumbing in you…

Last January, not even television psychic, Ms. Cleo, could have predicted the events that were set to unfold in 2008. With the unraveling of the economy that we’ve already heard quite a bit about and forecasts for a gloomy start to 2009…