Many aspects of the American work landscape have changed radically in the last two decades. As the service and information economies have overtaken manufacturing and other more traditional forms of labor, the old 9-to-5, office-bound workd…
Living in a condo means putting up with certain occasional inconveniences: that curious odor emanating from the neighbor’s unit, the downstairs saxophone player who practices every Tuesday afternoon, or that one resident that insists at ev…
You may love your building. You may even love your neighbors and the members of your board. But there are few people who can say that they love their monthly board meetings or annual owner or shareholder meetings. That’s because these meet…
Finding the right balance of involvement between HOAs and condo boards and residents can be like maintaining a healthy relationship with a significant other—you want to be compassionate, responsive and attentive, but not too needy, nosy or…
There’s nothing worse than being a unit owner in a building and seeing someone on your board breaking a rule and seemingly getting away with it. Some board members believe that they are “above the law” so to speak, and seem to be ope…
It’s no secret that lawsuits are expensive, acrimonious undertakings that can severely erode both the finances and morale of building communities. When a disagreement between a resident and the board escalates into a serious dispute and th…
Every year the cycle repeats itself in co-ops and condo communities in New York City: as temperatures drop and snow begins to swirl, flocks of empty nesters and others fortunate enough to own a second home in a warmer climate pack up and h…
Freelance photographer Jocelyn A. lives in a charming, post-war brick townhouse community of over 1,600 units and a $3 million annual budget. She receives a monthly newsletter with over 20 pages of everything to keep residents informed,…
Being on a board of a condo or co-op is no picnic. There are tons of decisions to be made, disputes to settle, finances to keep track of and a chance of being sued for a slip-up. So why do so many people decide to serve on a board—some …