Kitchens and bathrooms are the hardest, most expensive rooms in an apartment building or business - especially in Manhattan - to install, renovate or remodel. A variety of skills, trades and materials come into play; the job requires extra…

The death of a loved one not only brings grief and sorrow, but an agonizing pile of paperwork to tend to and affairs to get in order. For residents of New York City, it also means figuring out the fate of the deceased's co-op or condo apar…

Picture this: the mom-and-pop dry cleaner that has inhabited your building's ground floor retail space for years is moving out and a broker tells you that an upscale clothier wants the space for triple the rent. Or perhaps one of the many …

As buildings age, they inevitably need repairs and capital improvements - a boiler needs replacing, the façade needs repair, or the outdated lobby can use a facelift - to name a few. For cooperative buildings with healthy reserve funds, t…

The turning of a new year is always a time to reflect on the old one, make personal resolutions for the next 365 days, and maybe make some wishes. 2002 was a roller coaster year for New York real estate, charting spikes and lulls in activi…

One of the main documents governing the majority of New York City's co-op buildings is the antithesis of the well-known Oldsmobile ad: it is your father's proprietary lease, and many of its parts are not exactly of-the-minute. Sponsors of …

Co-op boards make decisions for the good of all shareholders, not just one or two. Though board membership may be a selfless proposition, productivity results from a concerted effort to put duty first, with personal conflicts and interpers…

If there was a fire in your building, are you confident that you and your family would be adequately warned, protected and saved? If you're not absolutely certain, consider this: last year, there were 27,788 structural fires in New York Ci…

Getting around in New York City can be difficult, even at the best of times; traffic, crowds, construction, and inclement weather can all conspire against even the most able-bodied city-dweller. The situation can be more troublesome still …

In the future, we might have molecular transporters or some other newfangled invention defying the laws of gravity, but for some 150 years, Elisha Graves Otis' method of transport - the elevator - has stood the test of time. Since th…