Category: Association Operations

As the 2012 federal legislative fiasco over the debt ceiling—as well as any number of other spending bills proposed since then—demonstrated, balancing a budget can be like pulling teeth. Balancing a condo or HOA community's budget can some…

Preparing the annual budget is by no means an easy task. Those charged with preparing cooperative, condominium or HOA budgets will soon begin reviewing costs, gathering data and projecting expenses for the coming year. Communities, busines…

New Jersey is synonymous with many things, but iconic architecture isn't usually among them. To be sure, the state is full of historical landmarks, from the Jersey Shore to Princeton University, but there isn't the same kind of overall foc…

Allegedly, on his death bed and with his last breath, the great writer Oscar Wilde said, “This wallpaper is dreadful; one of us will have to go.” The quote conjures a mental picture: Wilde, pale and bedridden, propped up on massive Victori…

Ask people to list the household chores they dislike most, and chances are, doing laundry will consistently rank among the top ten. The need and appreciation for clean clothes gets overshadowed by the inconvenience of constantly having to …

Years ago, when you bought a co-op or condo apartment, you looked for a unit that had the right number of bedrooms and bathrooms, a perfectly-sized kitchen, and some great living space. For the longest time, that ideal combination was all …

Sixty years ago, work and play were very different. A majority of women remained in the home, in both urban and suburban settings. The mostly male heads of households went off to work, and children went off to school and play. Since then, …

These days, it seems like everybody is looking to 'go green.' The term is shorthand for a movement of environmental awareness that involves everything from the way architects design new buildings and homes to the ways co-ops, condos and HO…

While crime rates are steadily decreasing nationwide—even in the tri-state area—multifamily dwellings are often more difficult to 'police' due to the number of residents, visitors, delivery personnel and third party workers such as contrac…

Flanked by two major cities, New Jersey has just about every type of housing stock there is. Many suburban homeowners have dreams of that legendary white picket fence, but those who live in urban areas can also definitely appreciate the im…