2009 July
2009 July Vol. 7, No. 7
Focus on...Community Budget & Finance
Challenges Include Sagging Reserves & Unpaid Condo Fees
Even in the best of economic times, preparing a condominium’s annual budget is a tiresome task, fraught with uncertainty, estimations and
shifting numbers.
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Housing Stimulus Gives Homeowners & Buyers a Boost
Fresh from hoisting up the banking and automobile sectors, a newly muscular
Uncle Sam is now turning his attention to putting the skids on the real estate
meltdown.
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Evaluating Your Manager's Performance
As recent events in the financial and insurance sectors of our economy have
painfully demonstrated, oversight and accountability are vital components in
any healthy business relationship -- and that holds true whether you’re talking about a multibillion-dollar corporation, or the management of your
own 12-unit condo building.
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Warm Weather Considerations for Managers
Ah, summertime. It’s a great time for property managers to kick back and relax -- except for that
out-of-control grill fire on the deck of unit 31 that nearly spread to adjacent
units; that ornery 13-year-old who broke his finger during horseplay in the
community swimming pool, and the swarms of bloodthirsty mosquitoes congregating
around the drainage ditches along the perimeter of the property.
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Diverse Community with a Small-Town Feel
Lakewood Township is a diverse community with a rich history, a growing
population, and a wide array of attractions and amenities. Located in Ocean
County, the township's accessibility to major urban centers has attracted
residents who want to feel like they're part of a small town while having
access to New York City, Philadelphia and the Jersey Shore. Lakewood is home to
many ethnic and religious groups, young families as well as a growing senior
community.
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A Closer Look at the New Jersey Botanical Garden
If you’re looking for a lush patch of green in New Jersey, you’re in luck: the Garden State is so named because of the multitude of flora- and
fauna-filled havens to choose from when you’re looking for an escape.
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New Rules for Co-ops and Condos
In the last two years, Fannie Mae has amended it guidelines for selling and
serving mortgages on condominiums, cooperatives, and planned unit developments
three times. Why should service providers, cooperative corporations and community association
managers care about what the mortgage giant does?
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Q&A: Non-Payment for Amenities
“We have an owner in our condominium association who is several months behind in his fees. He currently has a tenant in his unit. The association pays the bill for his water, sewage, pool and other amenities. Do we as an association have the right to take any of these amenities away from the renter, and would it be possible to have the renter pay his monthly rent to the association until the delinquency is resolved?” Read More
Q&A: Developer Witholding Information
About 25 of the single-family homes in our 55+ community, purchased within the past three years, back up to a two-lane public road on the perimeter of the community. When owners purchased their residences, the land across that road was forested. This summer many acres of that forested land were clear-cut. It now contains a parking lot for about 60 buses, another parking lot for about 200 vehicles, an access road, a retention pond and will contain, rumor has it, sports fields. If our community's developer knew of the plans to alter this adjacent property and the adverse effect on our lifestyle, did the builder have an obligation under New Jersey law to inform prospective buyers of homes in our community? Might New Jersey's Consumer Fraud Act or Planned Real Estate Development Full Disclosure Act offer affected home purchasers some recourse in this situation? A school district official told me our developer had to know, because the land-use change was a seven-year process of hearings and acquiring approvals. It is also rumored our developer donated some of the land involved. Read More
Q&A: Board Members as Real Estate Agents?
My question concerns board members who are also real estate agents. How common is this? What must other board members watch out for to ensure that the board member/real estate agent doesn't cross the line and have a conflict of interest? What does the board do if they think a conflict of interest exists and the board member/real estate agent disagrees?” Read More
