2000 Apr
2000 Apr Vol. 20, No. 4
Focus on...Building Maintenance
Surviving Y2K
As the clock ticked down on December 31, 1999, the world could not help but watch with at least a little trepidation. But when the ball dropped in Times Square and the new year officially arrived, nothing happened except a huge celebration. Thankfully, the beast that was Y2K barely made itself heard. No cities went dark, few computers expired in a frenzy of confusion, the water systems pumped along smoothly. And few, if any, co-ops or condos reported problems with their systems. All was well. So why, given all the pre-event concerns, did everything go so smoothly? Read More
Spring Cleaning
Spring: Glimpses of forsythia overhanging the walls of the Central Park transverses, dogwoods and magnolias blossoming in the Strawberry Fields and crocuses sprouting from sidewalk planters. For many, spring is a rebirth, a reaffirmation of life, a season of optimism. For apartment dwellers, spring may simply mean changing the clothes in the closet, having the windows cleaned and planting flowers in the window box. For co-op and condo buildings, spring means painting the hallways and lobby, cleaning the awnings and polishing the brass and planting trees, shrubs and flowers on the grounds. In general, spring is a time to repair damages inflicted by the harsh winter. Read More
Ornamental Maintenance
Recently many northern tier cities have enacted building façade inspection laws to ensure public safety. One of the primary reasons for these laws has been aging and deterioration of the ornamental on older buildings, which is made from architectural terra cotta. When architectural terra cotta is maintained properly, it is a safe and beautiful material which gives older buildings their character. Read More
What's Happening on the Outside
In the past few years, new products have become available that offer many advantages to co-ops and condos. Here are just a few of the products that we have found most beneficial from the standpoint of economy and reliability. Read More
Leaders in Management
In many co-ops and condos it is the managing agent's responsibility to work with the board, superintendent and maintenance staff, vendors and other building professionals to create a safe and satisfying living environment for shareholders. Many times this job demands actions that go above and beyond the mere call of duty. A skilled agent knows what it takes to operate a building successfully. He or she must be prepared at any time to take charge of a crisis situation by making responsible decisions under pressure. Read More
Cover Story: The Web's Role in Real Estate
Once upon time, finding a new apartment in Manhattan began with the classified ad pages of the New York Times. Perused over Sunday morning brunch, and circled with red ink, these ads led the prospective buyer to brokers' offices, open houses, and apartment walk-throughs until the dream home was found. In the new millennium, however, the search for a home more than likely will begin at a computer terminal, on the Internet, where umbrella websites such as NYToday.com or digitalcity.com have reframed the classified ad, presenting it alongside supporting products like movers, mortgage auctions and furniture retailers. Or one could start with the web pages of an individual brokerage firm which, depending on the site, may have added features like neighborhood analyses, broker profiles, and mortgage calculators and applications, in addition to available properties. Either way, the Internet is empowering and informing buyers, and changing the face of the real estate industry. Read More
Can I Knock Down This Wall?
Imagine living in a building where your neighbors do whatever renovation work they want with no restrictions. Some believe they are do-it-yourself electricians and they move wiring within the apartment. Others put kitchens in the basement. Some decide to open the living room by knocking down a partition. Others want more modern picture windows. While they all may be well-intended, this scenario can lead to chaos and dangerous conditions in the building. The home wiring by an unlicensed electrician can lead to a fire. The wall that was taken down may be a load-bearing one. The picture window may make the whole building look "strange." Building alteration agreements are a vehicle for the building to have uniform rules and regulations to prevent unnecessary problems. Read More
James Ferrari, Model Broker
The offices of Benjamin James Associates, a 60-broker real estate firm in downtown Manhattan, look nothing like the typical brokerage firms dotting the city. No signs outside the old Broadway office building near Union Square announce the presence of this agency which did over $60 million in sales last year. Benjamin James' second floor office is housed in an open, loft-like space with high-tech lighting and the noise of constantly ringing phones. The brokers, many of whom have other careers, such as the theater professor from New York University, the actors and the fashion designers, are described by their boss, James Ferrari, as having a "great flow of energy" between them. Then there is James Ferrari himself - a strapping, former male model with no real estate background who, after a few years of a successful career on runways and in magazines, used his own savings to build what is now becoming a major full-service real estate brokerage firm in the city. Read More
