The word community, like many words in the English language, has more than one interpretation. A community can be identified as a geographical location—a physical infrastructure of streets, parks and buildings, defined by tangible brick an…
On any given night, you will find hoards of people swarming the densely populated cities and townships in New Jersey in hopes of getting a good parking spot—or any parking spot for that matter. Between tourists and locals buzzing about the…
Olivia Pope, the main character on ABC’s Scandal, is a professional fixer. If you have a problem—any problem—she can fix it. Over the past two seasons plus, she’s rigged elections, covered up murders, employed professional hit men, exposed…
As jugglers of multiple and oftentimes complex tasks, property managers must be adept at mediating between board members and unit owners, as well as resolving all manner of maintenance and legal issues. To this end, property managers don’t…
Whether a building is a luxury high rise with an in-house movie theater, rooftop pool, and climate-controlled wine cellar or a much more modest low-rise or townhome community with a simple community room or gazebo, managing common amenitie…
Whether change is good or bad often depends on who you talk to; even a welcome change produces a certain level of stress and adjustment. Personal changes are challenging enough, but for co-op and condo residents, a board decision to change…
Holiday decorations are an easy way for an association to spread some seasonal cheer and add a cozy, communal vibe to the neighborhood. But what was once a practice limited to a couple of lights, ornaments and a menorah or two has migrated…
This country was founded with a heavy dose of independence and a strong “Do-It-Yourself” attitude. The DIY mindset, with roots in Europe and European culture, crossed the Atlantic Ocean with the earliest immigrants and became part of the A…
Many aspects of the American work landscape have changed radically in the last two decades. As the service and information economies have overtaken manufacturing and other more traditional forms of labor, the old 9-to-5, office-bound workd…
The vast majority of condo and HOA residents are regular folks who wouldn't dream of disrupting life in their community by harassing their neighbors, bombarding their board and manager with endless complaints and threats, or filing lawsuit…