Condo owners at 443 Greenwich have been suing developer for years (NY)

Bloomberg had the story this week, and I have since traced it through court records: Since 2021, the “board of managers” (is that what folks call a condo board?) of 443 Greenwich, aka the celebrity dorm between Desbrosses and Vestry, has been in court with its sponsor owners and architect over a laundry list of […]

Property owners group sues City of Newburgh (NY)

Hudson Valley Property Owners Association, Inc. Tuesday filed suit in Supreme Court in Orange County against the City of Newburgh and New York State Division of Housing & Community Renewal, challenging the legality of Newburgh’s imposition of rent control through the adoption of the Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 1974 (ETPA).   Read the article…………………………….

Lawsuit Based on Racketeering Act Seeks Ouster of Fifth Avenue Co-op Board (NY)

The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act was designed to help prosecutors go after mobsters. Recently it was used to bring charges against former president Donald Trump and his allies for their efforts to reverse the 2020 election results in Georgia. Now it’ss the basis for a lawsuit in a tony co-op on Manhattan’s […]

In New York, the Trump Brand Is Costing Some Condo Owners (NY)

When Donald J. Trump became president, condominiums in buildings emblazoned with his name began selling for less, according to an analysis.  In the world of real estate, Donald J. Trump’s name has long been synonymous with luxury.   Read the article…………………………….

Brooklyn Condo Owners Face $90,000 HVAC Repair Bill: A Tale of Legal Accountability and Community Livelihoods (NY)

A Brooklyn condo building’s faulty HVAC system leaves owners facing a $90,000 repair bill. Residents question if the building’s sponsor holds responsibility due to potential design flaws or installation errors. Legal experts advise reviewing offering plans and contracts for potential solutions.   Read the article…………………………….

The big bad board: How do we replace our entire condo board? (NY)

Q: I live in a New York City condo building where over 50 percent of the unit owners have met and decided it is necessary to replace the entire board without consideration of their particular running terms. We know there is a process that needs to be followed. How do we go about replacing the […]

Several Departments Battle Long Island Condo Fire (NY)

A fire broke out at a Long Island condominium complex, leaving residents displaced, authorities said.   Officers and firefighters were able to evacuate residents safely, and no injuries were reported.     Read the article…………………………….

Condos lose special street claim (NY)

Two condominiums adjacent to Franklin Place, a mid-block alley in lower Manhattan, asked that Franklin Place be designated as a fire apparatus access road in order to prohibit parking next to condominiums.  Read the article………………………………….

New Deadline for Parking Structure Inspections (NY)

The roll-out of the city’s garage inspection program has just been accelerated. The city has posted a new deadline that requires all buildings with garages to complete an initial safety inspection of the structure by b.  Read the article………………………………..

2 Firefighters Injured In White Plains Condo Blaze (NY)

Two firefighters were sent to the hospital after battling a three-alarm fire in White Plains Thursday.  The blaze at Chateau Condominiums on North Broadway impacted nine apartments,   Read the article……………………………

Gramercy Park Co-op Board Gives Cold Shoulder to Heating Law (NY)

A co-op in the pricey Gramercy Park neighborhood in Manhattan is very chill — in the wrong way. Shareholders complain that there has been no heat after 10 p.m. this year. That the heat comes on late in the morning. That windows are drafty — but the shareholders voted down building-wide window replacements, and the […]

In some states, it’s ‘nearly impossible’ to buy a home that isn’t part of a homeowners association, expert says

Homeowners associations, also known as HOAs, are self-governing organizations that implement rules for homeowners and renters within common-interest communities. A board of directors, made up of volunteer homeowners in the community, run the HOA. The board may choose to hire a management company, many of which are for-profit, to help run day-to-day operations.    Read the […]

Tenants at Harlem condo find solution to bird collision concerns (NY)

Bright glass buildings in New York City have become death traps for birds that are killed by the impact of flying straight into the windows.  As a result, residents at a condo building in Harlem are stepping up to make their building safer for birds.   Read the article…………………………….

White Plains condo challenges city OK of DISH antennas (NY)

A White Plains condominium claims that city officials abused their discretion when they approved plans by DISH Wireless to install wireless telecommunication antennas on a rooftop near the condo.    Read the article…………………………………

Luxury Condo Feels the Sting of Fannie Mae’s New Guidelines (NY)

When buyers at 75 Wall St., a luxury condo in Manhattan’s Financial District, were denied residential mortgages earlier this year, it became clear the building was a casualty of stricter enforcement of Fannie Mae’s new lending guidelines.   Read the article……………………………..

WarHorse CEO suing Halfmoon neighbors for $600K (NY)

The CEO of a prominent Saratoga Springs nonprofit for veterans, who has posted signs outside her home threatening to shoot trespassers. is now suing her neighbors for $600,000 over claims of antisemitism.   Read the article………………………………

Co-op Board Hit With $3.5 Million Lawsuit Over Brown Water (NY)

Brown water coming out of is a common sight in New York City, especially after a water shutdown. Usually it’s caused by sediment in the ancient lines that bring water down from upstate reservoirs. One solution is to install a water filtration system, which can cost as much as $80,000.     Read the article………………………..

Zoning Changes Will Help Co-op and Condo Boards Install Green Retrofits (NY)

Co-op and condo boards struggling to reduce their buildings’ carbon emissions just got some good news. The City Planning Commission (CPC) advanced a sweeping rewrite of New York’s zoning law Monday that would eliminate bureaucratic barriers to climate-friendly building projects. The zoning changes will now be aired at a public hearing, Crain’s reports, then voted […]

One woman dead after fire in Irondequoit (NY)

Several witnesses tell officials that they could see flames shooting out from a nearby window air-conditioning unit and after that, the condo was fully engulfed in flames.  Fire crews were able to pull a 59-year-old woman from the condo. She was taken to Strong Memorial Hospital where she died from her injuries.   Read the article………………………..

Retailer Sues Condo Board for $10 Million Over Lost Rent (NY)

The landlord of the storefronts at 2373 Broadway, a full-block, mixed-use building whose retail spaces have been dark for years, has sued the cond-op board representing the upstairs residents for $10 million for supposedly killing a pair of retail deals by delaying approval of new ventilation equipment, Crain’s reports.   Read the article………………………..

Pre-School Sues Condo Board Over Sidewalk Shed (NY)

There’s no shortage of reasons why New Yorkers loathe the protective sheds that cover 400 miles of city sidewalks. They’re ugly. They’re dirty. They’re magnets for sketchy characters. They stay in place way too long. Now here’s a new one to add to the list: they’re also bad for school enrollment.   Read the article………………………..

Co-op and Condo Residents Join Protests Over Migrant Shelters (NY)

More than 200 angry New Yorkers, many of them residents of co-op and condos, rallied outside a shuttered Staten Island nursing home on Sunday to protest its proposed conversion to a migrant shelter, The New York Post reports.   Read the article………………………..

Trump Org’s sweet deal in Turtle Bay approved by judge (NY)

Apartment owners at Trump World Tower who opposed leasing the Trump Organization’s commercial unit there suffered a loss in court Friday.  A Manhattan judge ruled that the sponsor of the Turtle Bay building, a company affiliated with the Trump Organization, can renovate the 2,500-square-foot space it owns and bill the $1.75 million construction cost to […]

City Seeks to Tighten Garage Inspections After Deadly Collapse

One good turn deserves another. As the first round of the city’s new six-year cycle of mandatory garage inspections draws to a close, the city council is considering even tighter rules — in response to the parking garage collapse in April in Lower Manhattan that killed one and injured five.    Read the article………………………..

Roofing Contractor in $3.7M Stalemate with Suburban NYC Condo Complex

A 157-unit condominium complex in Westchester County, NY, is fighting with the roofing contractor firm hired for a reroof of its 15 buildings in the hamlet of Hartsdale, located in Greenburgh, a commuter suburb of New York City, at a cost of $3.7 million.    Read the article………………………..

Co-op and Condo Boards Are Getting the Jump on Garage Inspections (NY)

When a poorly maintained, century-old parking garage collapsed in Lower Manhattan on April 18, killing one person and injuring five others, alarms sounded in co-op and condo board rooms across the city.  “That was definitely a wake-up call,” says Eric Cowley, principal at Cowley Engineering and one of 52 city-approved inspectors of parking structures. “We […]