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Life Spans of Building Systems
Even when living in a multi-family building, individual residents must handle
some of the same responsibilities as those of a single-family homeowner. While
board members will be more involved than other residents in helping to ensure
proper maintenance of their community’s infrastructure, every resident of a co-op or condo community shares partial
ownership of the community’s common property—and that should translate into awareness of the community’s common needs.
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If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix It
As technology leaps forward, countless pieces of formerly indispensable equipment become obsolete, outdated, and replaced. In light of these technological advances, it’s interesting to think of the things that have not changed—inventions that function the same way today as they did when they were first introduced, having warded off replacement by newer, shinier incarnations. The short-list of timeless classics would have to include the Hula-Hoop, the Slinky…and the roof tank? Yes, the rooftop water tanks that dot the New York City skyline. Read More
Duct and Air System Upkeep
It creeps in silently and is everywhere at once. It is totally invisible to the naked eye, but often carries potentially dangerous materials. It can cause sickness and discomfort without ever being detected. What on earth could it be? Read More
Working with the New Building Codes
If you’re part of a co-op and condo community, you’ve definitely had to deal with the New York City’s Building Codes. They’re a complex set of regulations, documents, amendments, local laws and more,
regulating all sorts of things, from boiler maintenance to elevators to
exterior walls. Read More
Doing it Yourself, and When to Call a Professional
No matter how conscientious your residents, no matter how dedicated your super
and support staff, it’s inevitable: your building’s common areas are going to take a beating. Foot traffic can damage flooring,
and everything from luggage to people’s hands can add wear-and-tear to walls and fixtures. There are steps your
building’s staff can take, however, to lessen the potential for damage done, and to
repair it once it happens. Here’s what you need to know, and when you’ll need to call in the professionals to keep your common areas looking their
best.
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Electrical Demands Call for Building Upgrades
A few generations ago, even the largest residential buildings had basic electrical needs, such as lighting the building and running some washing machines. Residents back then generally only had a TV, a radio, some lamps and a few kitchen appliances. Until not long ago, older residential buildings that were constructed more than a century ago and electrified later were able to provide enough power for their residents' needs. Read More
Installing & Maintaining Laundry Facilities
Clean laundry. It’s one of those basic things without which we would go mad but which we rarely
stop to consider. Within New York’s co-op and condo complexes, laundry room facilities are an integral part of a
happy, functioning environment. Over the last decade, those facilities have
evolved to suit changing needs and expectations from residents and managers
alike. As a result, many laundry room service providers are offering new
options that put them squarely at the forefront of customer service, both for
individuals and the buildings as a whole.
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More Than Just Scratching the Surface
Whether a building is old or new, built of stone, brick, glass or some other
material, trouble with or damage to its façade is a serious emergency. Telltale signs of building breakdown on the outside—a growing crack or crumbling mortar for example—is unintentionally advertising to potential residents that the building is,
sadly, being poorly maintained. Anyone who can see the deterioration on the
exterior will rightly wonder how well management is taking care of the
interior.
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Management in Crisis
Every property manager has a horror story or two—or three, or four, or forty-seven—about the sub-zero winter night when the boiler in a 400-unit high-rise went kaput, or what happened when the sprinkler system decided to turn on for no discernible reason and drenched several newly-remodeled hallways, or the spring rainstorms that helpfully revealed the dire condition of the building's World War II-era roof by flooding the penthouse owner's collection of Picassos. Even the best-maintained buildings sometimes experience what might be called maintenance meltdowns, and when disaster strikes, it's up to the management, board and building staff to get things under control and back on track as quickly as possible. Read More
Elevator Safety & Inspections
Ever since the first hydraulic passenger elevator was installed in New York City
in 1870, the city has relied upon elevators to support its upward growth. Given
that few would care to contemplate living or working in a 20-story walk-up,
transporting people upward and back down again quickly and safely was a crucial
component to the Big Apple’s development into a world-class city.
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The Role of the Super
The co-op we owned in Astoria was a huge brick prewar building. Three of its sides were either attached to other buildings or else sealed off by
high barbed-wire fencing. The only way into the building was the front door, and that meant going through
the lobby, past the super’s apartment. Read More
Maintaining Efficient Climate Control
With winter kicking it up a notch, co-op and condo residents inevitably begin thinking about their heating systems. How can we save money in a time of soaring energy costs? What technology upgrades are available for city co-ops and condos that might help decrease these costs and promote energy efficiency? Read More
How to Deal with Urban Construction
Say that you and your neighbors have been living a quiet, peaceful life on your tree-lined city block for years and years. Suddenly, you see construction workers digging in that vacant lot next to your condo or co-op building. So you go down to the city offices—or these days, go online—and find out that some Read More
The Many Faces of Chinatown
"Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown.” An immortal line from a beloved movie, and perhaps a reflection of how many
Western urbanites over the years have viewed the large pockets of Asian
immigrants that have settled in their cities. Chinatowns dot the country from
coast to coast, but their residents have often been treated with suspicion,
discrimination, and outright hostility.
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Dealing with Building Violations
No matter how conscientious your residents, no matter how dedicated your super and support staff, it’s inevitable: your building’s common areas are going to take a beating. Foot traffic can damage flooring, and everything from luggage to people’s hands can add wear-and-tear to walls and fixtures. There are steps your building’s staff can take, however, to lessen the potential for damage done, and to repair it once it happens. Here’s what you need to know, and when you’ll need to call in the professionals to keep your common areas looking their best. Read More
Transitioning from Sponsor to Board Control
Building a successful enterprise from the ground up involves the talent and
commitment of dozens—if not hundreds—of people. It’s no different with a co-op or a condo, especially in the earliest days of its
existence when it makes that transition from sponsor-run to board-run.
Sometimes that transitional road can be bumpy, and it can be a challenge
turning the seeds of a co-op or condo into a full-grown, fully functioning
community—especially if the sponsor and the board in question don’t always see eye to eye. If all of the parties involved can maintain focus and
keep the greater good in mind, however, the effort ultimately will pay off. Read More
Beating "Sick Building Syndrome"
Want to hear a phrase that will scare away just about any potential homeowner—"Sick Building Syndrome." Read More
Dealing with Objectionable Behavior
Even before the landmark “Pullman” case in 2005—in which a co-op board and shareholders voted unanimously to evict an especially
troublesome and disruptive shareholder from their building—New York co-op residents have grumbled about “objectionable tenants” and how to deal with them. The term “objectionable” is subjective, and the behavior that can fall under that label ranges from
constant noise and offensive cooking smells to ranting at and even assaulting
neighbors or board members in the lobby.
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When Repairs Need to Be Done
When you live in a Manhattan co-op or condo, one of the things that you need to
be aware of is what sort of building systems exist on the property, and more
importantly, which of these you are accountable for. Read More
Ordering Supplies for Your Building
Along with big-ticket items like boilers, HVAC systems, and the like, residential buildings also have to purchase lots of little, everyday things like cleaning supplies, light bulbs, and paper products to keep up with day-to-day maintenance and operations. Though not necessarily expensive in and of themselves, costs for these small things can definitely add up over the course of a year. As the ones charged with ordering and inventorying these supplies, it’s up to managers and building staff members to keep a lid on costs and be conscientious about limiting waste. Read More
From Dutch Traders to Wall Street Traders
In the late 1980s, seeking high-growth, low-risk investment opportunities, and
with an affinity for brick and mortar, European pension funds began to invest
heavily in the American real estate market. So much money poured into the United States, in fact, that the pension fund
managers decided to start a not-for-profit association for the non-U.S. real
estate investment community doing business here. The result was the Association
of Foreign Investors in Real Estate, better known by its acronym, AFIRE.
Read More
Sidewalk Care and Liability
No doubt about it, the Big Apple is a pedestrian town: according to the New York
City Department of Transportation (DOT), over eight million people tread the
city’s approximately 12,750 square miles of sidewalks each day.
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Finding the Money
Taking the plunge and renovating an existing multi-family building to be more energy-efficient is an important and exciting endeavor. The long-term financial payback from increased energy efficiency in a building is well documented. These significant potential savings, while tempting, doesn’t always seem to be enough to encourage people to make the necessary upgrades to their own buildings. To renovate a building can require a considerable initial investment and capital expenditure that can easily dissuade people from choosing to go through with a project. Securing financing and paying for a project can be difficult and is getting more complicated as financial markets are tightening. Thankfully, there are options available to help a residential building finance a large construction project in the short term to allow them to take advantage of the long-term financial benefits? Read More
Passing the Pest Test
Few things inspire more disgust in an apartment owner than an infestation, be it bugs, rodents, or other vermin. Unfortunately, pests are often part-and-parcel of life in a sprawling metropolitan area. Roaches, mice, rats, ants, bedbugs and the occasional invasion of centipedes are some of the more common unwelcome "guests" in New York City buildings. Read More
Leak Lessons: A True Story
Leaks happen all the time. American Leak Detection, a nationwide company (unrelated to the Scooter Libby trial), claims to have discovered 1.4 million leaks last year alone—and that's just one company! Common as they are, leaks can cause quite a bit of damage. The drip-drip of a leaky bathtub is literally the sound of money going down the drain—and if the leak is hidden deep in a wall somewhere, the damage can worsen and spread for months before you even know there's a problem. Read More
A Word on Holiday Tipping Etiquette
According to some sources, the word “tips” is actually an acronym—it’s short for “To Insure Prompt Service,” and the list of people who are commonly tipped—at least in the United States—includes everyone from hair and nail salon workers to bellhops, cab drivers,
newspaper delivery people, porters, valets, bartenders, and, of course,
restaurant wait staff.
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Preserving a Unique Heritage
New York City has long been defined by the wide array of ingredients and
seasonings thrown into its cultural pot. Though the flavor of the Big Apple has
changed and evolved constantly over the years, at the city’s center are the deep-rooted ethnic neighborhoods that make New York the diverse
place it’s always been. And of those neighborhoods, Little Italy has always held a
special place in the city’s history. Read More
Letting the Sun Shine In
From paying $15 to travel 10 gridlocked blocks in a taxi to shelling out about
$10 for a kosher deli sandwich, New Yorkers are used to paying through the nose
for the privilege of living in their beloved city. But the dollars really add
up, and they don’t stop at transportation and entertainment. Fuel prices continue to climb as
well, and as city dwellers are forced to pay more and more to heat, cool, and
power their homes, real estate developers and building administrators are
looking for alternative ways to power their buildings while saving themselves
and their residents money. Read More
Care and Maintenance for Marble Flooring
Nothing says luxury and elegance quite like acres of polished marble— particularly in the lobby of an upscale co-op or condo building. Marble has been used in palaces, temples, and homes for thousands of years, and is prized for its beauty, durability, and vast variety of colors and patterns. Stone floors need maintenance, however, and knowing what they need can make them look better and last longer. Read More
New System Tracks Down Hard to Find Rodent Entry Points
Keeping your property free of rats and mice is a perpetual problem for home and property owners. New York City recently put noted rodentologist Bobby Corrigan on the payroll fulltime to combat its burgeoning rat problem. Heading a beefed-up squad of special inspectors known as the “Rat Pack,” Corrigan and his crew are patrolling the city to root out rodent infestations, visiting as many as 200 buildings a day. If cited, property owners have two weeks to evict the varmints or face a fine. Read More
Keeping Your Boiler Efficient All Year Long
Now that winter is drawing to a close, residential and
commercial buildings will soon be switching their heating systems off and
their air conditioning systems on. This is the ideal time of year to begin
preparing your boiler for the next heating season assuring the building
that the boiler will continue to operate at peak efficiency which
translates into meaningful dollar savings. Recent inflated oil prices have
alerted many buildings to the basic fact that an inefficient boiler will
cost a building unnecessary wasted dollars that could be saved with proper
maintenance. Read More
A Serious Problem for Boards and Homeowners
Over the past three years, bedbug infestations have increased exponentially in New York City, causing panic among homeowners, co-op/condo boards and property managers. In 2004, there were 1,800 bedbug complaints recorded by the city. By last year, complaints had more than tripled, topping 7,000. Concern that 2008 will see even more bedbug activity recently prompted the city government to sponsor educational seminars for residents and property managers aimed at preventing and eradicating bedbug infestation. Read More
