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Changing Your Condominium's Tax Filing Status Can Net Savings
For the uninitiated, tax filing for something as complicated as a community association can seem a daunting task. Fortunately, there are multiple options for homeowners associations, and with a little background knowledge, you can take the first steps toward making the right choice for your particular situation. Read More
Mortgage Products
Although New Jersey housing cooperatives may be rare compared to the numbers of co-ops in New York City, suburban co-ops face the same types of issues as their big-city neighbors. One of the primary concerns of nearly all co-ops is the building's underlying mortgage, which is paid for by shareholders as part of their monthly maintenance fee. Sometimes, special circumstances arise that require the board to take another look at the co-op's mortgage. Read More
Financial Planning
In a co-op or condo community, the responsibility of the homeowners association goes beyond setting house rules. The association also has a fiduciary responsibility to collect maintenance fees from its residents, create a budget to account for where that money will be spent, and raise enough capital to cover long-term special projects and repairs. The budget includes operating expenses, repairs and upkeep of the building and other structures, landscaping, lighting, and special projects, such as new playground equipment. Read More
Deciphering Your HOA's Finances
It was comedian Jackie Mason who said, " I have enough money to last me the rest of my life—unless I buy something." Mason was making a joke, but if your homeowners association isn't adept at managing its books, it might also be an unpleasantly accurate description of your community's finances. Read More
Money-Making Opportunities for HOAs
It's a profound story of how reserve funds can go seriously awry—within months of buying an apartment in a new New York City building, David and all his new neighbors were informed that they would have to contribute out-of-pocket to help build the co-op's reserve fund. Each shareholder would have to pony up a month's worth of additional fees—which for David meant over $1,000. Final total: the residents coughed up around $45,000 to put aside just in case something went wrong. Read More
Raising Maintenance Fees
They say the only two inevitable things in life are death and taxes. Well, for condo and co-op owners you can add a third—maintenance fees. As long as roofs are going to have to be repaired, snow is going to have to be plowed, and grass has to be cut, unit owners and shareholders are going to have pay for their share of the cost for maintaining the property where they live.
Read MoreNot in the Garden State
New York co-op boards are notorious for scrutinizing prospective buyers with the intensity of federal investigators. The application and interview process can be lengthy and exhausting for someone looking to move into a cooperative. As such, many buyers look to condos as a way to avoid the whole daunting process. However, condos in New York City have their own way to screen buyers: the nearly universal—though rarely invoked—right of first refusal (ROFR), which is written into the bylaws of most New York condominiums. Read More
Catching Financial Irregularities
Instances of out-and-out fraud are rare in the world of condos and homeowners associations, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't look out for them and know how to spot signs of trouble. Read More
Surviving Financial Storms
Planning is the key to maintaining a balanced budget for co-op and condo associations. Knowing your budget, predicting expenses, even predicting the unpredictable are all vital components to having a sound bottom line and keeping your shared community financially healthy. Read More
Warranties for Capital Improvements
When we think of product warranties, most of us think of the standard green registration cards that are found inside the box with the product alongside the operating instructions. We can register our new purchase by filling out the card and mailing it back to the manufacturer, or with Internet access, we can register at the manufacturer's Web site. In turn, we have a contract with the manufacturer that outlines the agreement of the warranty. Read More
