On September 15, 2008, Lehman Brothers investment bank went under in the largest bankruptcy of all time. The economy was already on the decline, other august companies had already foundered, and both presidential candidates were procla…

Despite the collapse in housing prices in much of the country and a definite slowdown in sales, new residential development in New York City—and Manhattan in particular—continues, though at a much more modest pace than in recent years. T…

The year 2008 is likely to go down in history as one of the most disappointing (or maybe flat-out alarming) for the U.S. economy in general. To be fair, the city hasn’t suffered as much as most of the nation has—but the co-op and condo …

Q Our co-op has a prospective purchaser who refuses to buy the shares in his own  name. He wants the shares to be purchased by a holding company or limited  liability corporation (LLC) that was created specifically for that purpose. Ho…

Q We are in a small condo building of 3 units, hence we do not have (quite frankly, can’t afford) a management company, with the intention that the 3 owners share in building upkeep and responsibilities. One owner has since moved out…

Q I live in a co-op in the Lower East of Manhattan. We have an entrenched board, which is under the control of our building manager. Over the past few years, our building has made some ‘improvements’ to the tiles, windows, lobby, etc…

 Wayne Bellet, of Manhattan-based exterior maintenance firm Bellet Construction,  is getting a dose of his own medicine. At the time of this interview, it’s his own office that’s under construction, he explains over the racket of dueling h…

 Local Law 11 inspection is a requirement of the New York City Department of  Buildings that every owner of a building higher than six stories must retain an  architect or engineer to inspect their façades. Based on this inspection, a repo…

 In November of 2008, New York City’s Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) designated seven new properties with  landmark status—New York University’s University Village, the Guardian Life Insurance Co. annex, the Morris B.  Sanders Hou…

 Years ago, when I babysat for a young boy, I watched him create a multi-story  building out of empty cardboard boxes. The lad then ran around his proud  creation, flexing his muscles and crowing, “My house is indy-structible!” (He then pr…