Category: Building Operations

 The leading factor responsible for the Great Recession—fraudulent mortgage lending—remains a thorn in the side of the nation’s fledgling economy. It started with the false promise of home ownership to many  susceptible, under-financed peo…

 As the winter months fade into spring, it’s easy to try and forget about heating and all the costs it incurs. For  managers, board members and others with an eye on a co-op or condo building’s budgetary bottom line, now may be the perfect…

 Unless it's a thoughtful gift or a party in their honor, nobody likes surprises.  That's especially true when it comes to sudden, serious, or non-negotiable  repairs to a co-op or condo building. A building community must have enough  mon…

 It’s no secret these days that co-op and condo operating costs are going through  the roof, so to speak, and boards and managers are all looking for effective  ways to generate cost savings. Building management looks at fuel and energy  u…

 Whether it is redesigning light fixtures in a common space or replacing a roof,  repair jobs and capital improvement projects are like death and taxes, they are  inevitable. Whereas a building administrator or a managing agent most often …

Walking down the streets of New York City, the zig-zag iron work of fire escapes immediately evoke romantic images of a simpler time, having been immortalized in books, songs and plays from West Side Story to Rent. With some fire escape…

In New York City, urban high-rises with sidewalk frontage and outer-borough HOAs with walking paths, parking lots, and service roads are reliant on their paved surfaces and therefore need to regularly inspect and maintain their concrete…

As recently as the 1930’s, only 68 percent of American homes had electricity. By the middle of the last century however, most Americans enjoyed well-lit homes, and the light had started to spread outdoors as well. Initially, yards and g…

 The roof is the uppermost part of any residential building, serving as the first  line of defense against whatever the skies throw at its inhabitants. In many  New York co-op and condo buildings, the roof is also a social space, complete …

More often than not, when boards or associations broach the issue of their buildings “going green,” images of bamboo flooring, hemp drapes, or solar panels on the roof suddenly spring to mind. The impression seems to be that in a condo,…