While recent decades have seen the rise of glass-and-steel as architects' favorite materials for new construction, the bulk of New York City's facades remain clad in brick. From last-century red-brick tenement buildings in the Village …
According to U.S. Small Business Administration statistics, over half of all small businesses begun in the last decade have been home-based—that's more than 24 million in real numbers—with a new home-based business being launched every 1…
Drawing up a contract for management services looks at first glance like a simple task. Such contracts usually follow a particular format and outline similar services for both co-ops and condos, regardless of size. But what about contr…
Most buildings have emergency preparedness plans in case of fires, floods, or hurricanes. But there’s one form of crisis that very few have an organized response for: the public relations disaster. It could come in the form of a scandal…
As recently as five years ago, traditional phone logs and Rolodexes were a common part of a managing agent’s daily communications arsenal. Yet, with recent advances in property management software, such anachronistic methods are largely…
Kew Gardens in Queens seems to be just another urban neighborhood when you emerge from the Union Turnpike subway station. For instance, there is the long stretch of Queens Boulevard that is always busy with traffic. Lining the boulevard…
These days SoHo is populated by fancy eateries, high-end boutiques, the Apple store, and of course, the art galleries. On the weekends, the streets are packed with shoppers and tourists. This neighborhood is characteristic of several a…
A proposal to ban federal lenders from purchasing loans in co-ops that use flip tax fees or condos with deed-based transfer fees has housing community leaders worried the ruling would lead to diminished operating budgets and severely d…
The sitting president of a Connecticut condo board recently approached the property manager with a proposition: If he saw to it that her contractor boyfriend was awarded certain jobs in the building, the property manager would receive …
One of the most important recurring themes Cooperator readers are likely to encounter in these pages is that of communication; between board and manager, between building administrators and residents, and between neighbors. When commun…