Sometimes insurance and the terms that accompany it can feel like a completely foreign language. It can be mystifying and overwhelming, whether for individual condo residents or the board members who oversee the community as a whole. The i…
When is a flood not a flood? That’s a serious question for the Garden State's residential communities. Even if they have flood insurance, damage caused by heavy rains and backed-up sewers may not meet the National Flood Insurance Program (…
Homeowners associations and co-ops alike are governed by a set of specific documents that lay out the administrative structure of the community, its rules and regulations, and protocols for decision-making. The certificate of incorporation…
You can’t turn on the television these days without seeing another show devoted to the legal genre—be it “The Good Wife,” “Suits,” “Franklin & Bash” or the many incarnations of “Law & Order.” These shows rely not just on great charac…
I Love Lucy is one of the most beloved sitcoms in all of television history. In one episode, after Little Ricky is born, the baby is screaming and screaming, keeping awake the next door tenant, Mrs. Trumbull. Mrs. Trumbull complains to lan…
Few things can raise one's blood pressure like signing a big contract. That can be especially true for board members or managers signing sometimes mammoth contracts on behalf of a co-op or condo association, obligating their neighbors, fri…
Much like corporations and charity organizations, condos, co-ops and HOAs across the nation are helmed by groups of residents who volunteer to serve their communities, and who are elected to their post by their neighbors. This is of course…
The 2014-15 legislative session in Trenton is underway, and as always, several housing-related bills are being debated or introduced. Some impact the state’s condos and HOAs as well as its relatively small number of co-ops. Others, while t…
The perks of living in the Garden State are obvious to anyone reading these pages, and won’t be listed here. But there is one glaring drawback to living in a densely populated metropolitan area: lack of space. We all have winter coats we d…
Seeing the positive in life is a wonderful thing, but when you’re a manager at a co-op or condo, regardless of its size or how civil and well-mannered shareholders and owners can be, there will always be situations that arise that need to …