All communities, be they nation-states, municipalities, or co-op or condo buildings, have rules. Respect for -- and adherence to -- these rules is essential for many people to coexist peaceably in the same communal space. In the co-op …
If you’re one of the millions of people who have embraced this age of cell phones, BlackBerries, DSL and instant messaging, it’s hard to imagine life any differently. Access to information is instantaneous these days for most people — …
Some years ago, an acquaintance of ours worked as a “permit clerk” for a plumber while on summer vacation in college. The plumber would give him paperwork for a work project, he would go to the city offices, and, in theory, he would ge…
Few experiences can rattle the collective confidence of a co-op or condo community as much as charges of fraud. Trusts are broken and faiths betrayed, all in the name of personal gain. Boards and residents can protect themselves, thoug…
This winter, like all before it, is sure to see thousands of New Yorkers suffering from colds, sore throats, and run-of-the-mill-but-always-inconvenient flu. While fatigue, headaches, and even nausea are miserable in and of themselves,…
David Sack has lived in the West Village John Adams apartment building since 1998. The building is a 21-story, 404-unit, white-brick apartment complex built in 1963 and converted to a cooperative in 1980. When David moved in, he…
Boards of directors are usually made up of ordinary people, elected or appointed by their neighbors to run their building smoothly and efficiently. Most board members do their utmost to fulfill that expectation, but occasionally, even th…
Every co-op shareholder knows that their board president is responsible for making decisions that affect the entire building community—but not as many grasp the amount of responsibility and decision-making that a person undertakes when t…
Is there anybody in this world who likes sitting through meetings? Too often they seem pointless, endless and directionless. But they’re part of co-op and condo life, an important part in fact, so if you’re a board member or property man…
With upkeep and mortgage payments, even the occasional renovation, owning your own co-op or condo can be work enough on its own. Now imagine being responsible for 10 units, or 50, even 200. That daunting task is up to each building’s boa…