One of the most effective means of enhancing the value of an apartment or house is through "cosmetic" renovations. These types of improvements are, ostensibly, surface upgrades that address the appearance of a property, rather than such s…
Locked out? Need your heat fixed? Perhaps your apartment has a problem with multi-legged creatures. Who are you going to call? Your building superintendent, of course. Your super is there to repair the broken, find the missing, and restore…
In many ways, a building is like the human body: If you want it to function properly over the long haul, you have to take care of it with clean fuel, regular maintenance, and the occasional visit to a specialist. And like a body's vital or…
We all know it's a good idea to keep tabs on the everyday supplies needed to keep our household clean and running smoothly: simple things like light bulbs, cleaning products, and perhaps, the odd spare roll of duct tape. The same is true f…
Every five years, the boards of co-ops and condominiums are forced by law to consider how to execute repairs to their exterior facades. Unless there is a known dangerous condition, not too many buildings consider the issue well in advance …
Every year, co-ops and condos in New York City pay millions of dollars in utility expenses, including electric, water/sewer, gas, and steam. Are you certain your building is paying the correct amount? What if it isn't? Without an expert au…
Time was, if a residential building was suffering heat loss, leaks, or other infrastructure problems, it was up to a team of engineers, contractors, and perhaps architects to investigate where the problem lay within the building's walls an…
Effective August 2, 2004, a new lead-based paint regulation will force New York City property owners to change the way they deal with lead based paint in their properties. "Local Law 1 of 2004," overseen by the Department of Housing Prese…
While it may be a cliché, it's entirely true that few things are more important than keeping a solid roof over your head. And like any other aspect of a building's structural composition, your roof has a life span that is dictated by time…
Whether it's cash in hand or borrowed dollars, your properties are constantly faced with competing demands on scarce resources. These financial pressures can keep you from replacing an old, unreliable, repair-intensive, under-performing ch…