In the past, developers would throw a few chairs and tables into a large room and call it a 'common room' or a 'recreation space' and leave it at that. Today, however, there's more to designing, maintaining and upgrading a successful common…
One universal truth on which we all can agree is that kids like to play. They love little more than getting together and having a bang-up good time. And in almost any cooperative, condominium or homeowners’ association, there is likely to b…
Many times I have looked at a repair bill or troubleshooting project and said to myself, “there had to have been a more effective and less expensive way to have found this out or to have accomplished the same results.” Look for Ways to Sav…
The lobby of a resident’s building is the first thing a shareholder, unit owner, guest or prospective buyer notices when they come through the front door. That said, it stands to reason that comfortable, appropriate lobby furnishings are a …
After a mild winter but cold spring that New Jerseyans are now experiencing, summer can’t come soon enough for many Garden State’s residents. But don’t be surprised when people start forgetting about the cold and start complaining about the…
Here in the Garden State, the uniformity of condo exteriors is mind-numbing, with the vast majority seemingly identical. Typically, they feature tedious, monochromatic curb appeal, void of color or creative material elements. Within these b…
If it's like a ghost town in your building and summer hasn’t hit yet—where is everybody? Maybe they’re on a winter hiatus and are inhabiting their second home in Florida—and that possibly means a season-long absence from their co-op or co…
In this challenging economy, many condo and HOA communities are struggling to pay their bills while planning for future needs. Still, most boards are loathe to raise maintenance fees or levy special assessments on their residents until ther…
Winter in New Jersey can be brutal—piles of slushy gray snow to wade through and frigid winds that keep you inside. So you curl up with a good book, sip a cup of tea and watch the flurries through the window. As the flakes fall, you might f…
When most people think of landscaping, especially in the Garden State, they think of shrubs, trees, meticulously laid-out and maintained flowerbeds, and artful plantings scattered around a building or development. However, landscaping doesn…