2006 Oct
Focus on... Board Operations

Board Operations Running the Gauntlet
2006 Oct Running the Gauntlet

Talk about tense situations. There’s the sweaty-palm inducing job interview or the anxiety-riddled prospect of getting down on one knee to propose. And who can forget those tense moments scratching out an answer on the SAT test, knowing …

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Board Operations Following the Money
2006 Oct Following the Money

Fall is here and with it comes the season for watching football. Football seems to dominate American culture. There are pro games four days a week, pre-season, post-season and Pro Bowl games, college, indoor, fantasy football, and of cou…

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Board Operations It's Good to Be the President
2006 Oct It's Good to Be the President

It’s not a thankless job, necessarily—every once in a while residents will express their gratitude, if the elevator ride is sufficiently awkward—but it is a moneyless one. It’s also a hefty part-time job at best, and can at times take up…

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Board Operations Getting Good Help
2006 Oct Getting Good Help

Attracting new members to join your board of directors may be a daunting task. As current board members, you know that occasionally you need new members to keep the business of your co-op running smoothly—but people are often reluctant t…

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Board Operations No Sale Ever Final
2006 Oct No Sale Ever Final

Whether you’re part of a giant co-op the size of Co-op City, a 21-story building with over 15,000 residential units, or a small 25-unit condo in Staten Island, whether your building is self-managed or uses a management company, your boar…

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Board Operations I Got Rights!
2006 Oct I Got Rights!

In many ways, a co-op or condo building is a lot like a tiny democratic nation. Like an independent state, a building elects its leaders, and those leaders have certain responsibilities to the people who elected them. Each “citizen” of the …

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Organizations Building Community and Value
2006 Oct Building Community and Value

One visit to Great Neck and it’s not hard to figure out why it’s become such a desirable neighborhood to live in. The first Nassau County town you reach driving east out of New York City, Great Neck offers scenic waterfront views, proxim…

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Neighborhoods Forest Hills
2006 Oct Forest Hills

Some call it the Garden City. Others call it the heart and soul of Queens. About 4,500 people call it home, but one thing’s for sure—just about everyone who has seen Forest Hills calls it beautiful. Sandwiched between Rego Park an…

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Buildings Royal Treatment
2006 Oct Royal Treatment

Manhattan’s Upper West Side is a repository of striking architecture—it seems like every block features a different, breathtaking example of residential construction. One of these is the Park Royal, located on 73rd Street between Columbu…

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Law & Legislation Need Answers?
2006 Oct Need Answers?

Your roof terrace leaked and the neighbor below you sued for damages. Do you have any recourse? The heating system in your apartment failed to work and the managing agent sent you the bill for its repair. Do you have to pay? The a…

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Board Operations No Sale Ever Final
2006 Oct No Sale Ever Final

Whether you’re part of a giant co-op the size of Co-op City, a 21-story building with over 15,000 residential units, or a small 25-unit condo in Staten Island, whether your building is self-managed or uses a management company, your b…

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Q&A Q&A: Use of the STAR Abatement
2006 Oct Q&A: Use of the STAR Abatement

Q Our co-op owners were just notified that the board has decided to appropriate the New York state School Tax Relief (STAR) tax abatement due to us for 2001/2002 and 2002/2003 as an assessment to do work on the building. Is this legal? …

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Q&A Q&A: One Good Reason
2006 Oct Q&A: One Good Reason

Q When an applicant applies to buy into a co-op and pays the high application fee, yet is denied by the board, shouldn’t they be given a reason why they were rejected? I feel strongly that the board is wrong in turning someone away with…

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Q&A Q&A: Closing Question
2006 Oct Q&A: Closing Question

Q I have an accepted offer on a condo in Manhattan, and I have a letter of commitment from my lender. Before proceeding to submit my application to the board, I was instructed by the managing agency that submission of tax returns, payr…

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Q&A Q&A: Lethal Airborne Waste?
2006 Oct Q&A: Lethal Airborne Waste?

Q I live in a large co-op on the Upper East Side which consists of 300 units. Six residents on the second floor, including myself, have terraces. Over the years large quantities of various items have come out of the windows above us and…

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Q&A Q&A: A Receipt for Maintenance
2006 Oct Q&A: A Receipt for Maintenance

Q Do we, as a co-op collecting maintenance, need to comply with a shareholder’s written request, pursuant to RPL: Article 7 Section 235-e for written receipts for maintenance paid by personal check? Does this section even apply to maint…

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Q&A Q&A: Surpassing the Shareholders?
2006 Oct Q&A: Surpassing the Shareholders?

Q Several others and I are shareholders in a co-op on the East Side of Manhattan. Our board and management company are putting through Local Law 11 repairs. This is not a problem. However, they have refused for any of the shareholders t…

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