Why accept status quo?

Inflation is not just the increased price of milk or a gallon of gas, it is something that affects virtually every aspect of our (economic) lives. This obviously also relates to coop and condominium living.

We are currently in an environment where inflation is at a 30-year high, due in no small part to a Keynesian economic approach of massive government spending and intervention. While we hopefully will not return to the days of 18% mortgages, we all must do everything we can to protect property values by reigning in expenses wherever possible. MORE=>>>

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Is your co-op or condo board guilty?

So, you live in a New York City apartment building and you have a problem in your apartment (or building), what do you do?

Of course, it may depend on whether you live in a rental building, a cooperative or condominium, or live in a sponsor unit. In some cases and depending on the issue at hand, a call to the super or the property management firm, or the sponsor should suffice. MORE=>>>

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No Quarters Asked, No Quarters Given

In apartment buildings, including coops and condos, the leasing income that we see most frequently is for leasing out the laundry room. A majority of the services in a multifamily building are owned by the housing corporation, but the laundry room is typically handled by a third-party laundry company that renews every few years. We bring in alternative laundry service providers to increase the lease income to the coop while providing a better service experience. Read our top 5 tips for coop and condo boards to keep in mind when reviewing your coop or condo’s laundry lease MORE=>>>

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From gatherings to group chats, our ideas will make you ask, “Will you be my neighbor?”

When building up the community in a coop or condo, there are some common and very effective tools that a co-op board or condo board can use. But first, let’s talk about building a community in general.

Like all other aspects of my life, I spend a lot of time building relationships and my community.

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What’s up with everyone’s lack of time? Whether for running the business or being on the coop or condo board, it seems like everyone is short of time. As we know, there are only 24 hours in a day, so we can’t create more time. However, we can free up more hours in a day by properly delegating. Delegate tasks so that you have time to focus on your business; delegating will allow you to take a step back from the day-to-day and start thinking more strategically about your company's or building’s goals. I’ll share 6 tips for delegating efficiently so that you don’t needlessly get bogged down by the details of every project or task.

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Is your co-op or condo board staying virtual?

You’ve all spent a year and a half on Zoom, Teams, Meet or some alternative thereof. Whether for your regular work, for networking, for seeing family and friend, or for your various volunteer work, you’ve all spent many hours in virtual meetings. The question becomes, when do you go back to business as usual? Will all meetings go back to business as usual, or will some remain virtual?

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We know that, in life, two things you can always count on are death and taxes. But did you know that the third thing you can always count on? Your co-op or condo building’s maintenance fees regularly increasing. With rising service costs and living expenses, the problem can seem inevitable, especially when the board and their property management firm insists these costs are fixed.

After helping many buildings throughout New York City, we have learned that these costs are not necessarily set in stone. Evaluate the following “fixed” expenses to leave no stone unturned:

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The creation of amenity spaces is a key element to increasing the real estate value of your co-op or condo building and improving the marketability of available units. Amenity spaces also improve community spirit, giving residents a place to make connections with other residents. For older buildings in the city, there are few areas that are deemed “auxiliary,” but many spaces can be repurposed for the benefit of all owners or shareholders: poorly utilized storage areas, unused basement spaces and super’s offices, and old laundry rooms. Here are some ideas to consider:

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Don’t settle for surface-level solutions.

No one likes to get hit with a huge cost that puts a dent in your co-op or condo board’s budget. A large repair or construction project could dip into the board’s reserves or even impose a special assessment. It’s understandable, then, when board members hesitate to make such big changes and instead opt for “band-aid” quick fixes. However, pushing out major repairs in favor of cheap, temporary solutions only delays the inevitable and costs the board more long-term, not to mention the increased likelihood of the cheap repair spontaneously going bust. Consider if your board is putting band-aids on these issues:

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