2010 March
2010 March Vol. 8, No.3
Focus on...Exterior Maintenance
The New Jersey Cooperator's Condo, HOA & Co-op Expo
In a return engagement, The New Jersey Cooperator magazine and Yale Robbins,
Inc. invite all property managers, HOA board members, and unit owners to the
New Jersey Condo, HOA & Co-op Expo, a one-day trade show event on Wednesday, May 5, 2010 from 11:30
a.m. to 7:30 p.m. The 2010 Expo will again take over the Meadowlands Exposition
Center at 355 Plaza Drive in Secaucus with booths, seminars, and demonstrations
all day long.
Read More
Repairing Winter Damage
Spring beckons, with the promise of all those blossoms bursting with color from
early flowering bulbs. If only it were that simple. All too often, spring also
beckons with fungus on the lawns, dessicated trees with branches bent and
broken from heavy snow, fencing and rails bashed by snow plows, cracked
potholed pavement, and clogged drainage systems.
Read More
Exterior Maintenance & Repair
The facade is the first thing your residents and their guests see when they
approach and enter your building. It's the aesthetic face of your community, as
well as another layer of protection against the elements. Even though it may be
made of limestone, brick, or steel and heavy-duty glass, a building's facade is
far from invulnerable. Without good upkeep, your building's skin can suffer
from an array of insults, from construction defects to everyday wear-and-tear—and a beat-up exterior may be indicative of more things going wrong inside.
Read More
Through the Looking Glass
Doing a major window replacement or repair project in a building or association
that’s home to dozens, or even hundreds of people isn’t easy. There are any number of scheduling and access considerations, and time
is obviously of the essence, as it’s impractical and unsafe to leave a gaping hole in someone’s wall for any length of time.
Read More
Squirrels and Bats and Bears, Oh My!
When most managers and condo-dwellers think of “pests,” they're probably thinking of mice and bugs—especially if they live in an urban area. But in semi-rural and even suburban
New Jersey, any number of animals can make nuisances of themselves: migrating
geese can befoul golf courses, deer can chew hedges into mulch, and gophers,
raccoons, and squirrels can devastate landscaping, strew garbage for blocks,
and infringe on residents’ peace and quiet. In recent years, bears have even begun to join the fray as
housing developments encroach on their natural habitat.
Read More
Pardon Our Mess
Time was, when you had a big construction or renovation job, you hired a general
contractor, and if the job was big enough, that contractor hired
subcontractors.
Read More
Atlantic City
Utter the words “Atlantic City” and they conjure a wealth of imagery, from sandy beaches to the iconic
boardwalk to towering casinos and more. Long loved for its proximity to the
ocean and the cooling breezes that ease the swampy summer heat, Atlantic City
has been a destination for tourists and holiday travelers for centuries. The
city continues to evolve today, reshaping itself as a destination with much
more to offer than simple day trips to slot machines. Despite a difficult
economy, new restaurants and shops have sprung up, enticing more and more
people not simply to visit but to stay.
Read More
Responding to Residents
We all have needs. Wants, too. In a condo or HOA, the significant needs or wants
of the unit owners usually have to be routed through the board or management
company. In theory—and usually in practice—this is a sound and functional system. But it’s not perfect. Next to noise complaints, the single most common grievance voiced
by condo residents is that their board members and managers don’t respond quickly enough to phone calls and email messages regarding the needs
and wants as related to the building or their individual unit.
Read More
Q&A: Authority to Impose Fees
“I am the board president for a condominium development. At one point the board allocated space for storage cages and bike spaces at no cost. The board would now like to consider charging for these spaces (to existing owners as well as new owners). How can we implement this?” Read More
Q&A: Determining Guidelines to Prevent Liability
Our condo building has a lot attached with parking for six cars. On the far side of the lot is an in-ground pool. We have a member who has requested to use the parking lot (and pool) for a party. Cars will be coming in and out during the party, so while I don't want to be unreasonable, I feel it's dangerous to have people in the same area. Are there any guidelines about this issue that might help our condo association come to an agreement on this issue?” Read More
