In a New York TImes “Ask Real Estate” letter from last December, a co-op shareholder lamented the sorry state of her 10-unit building: the board president was abdicating his position with no willing successor, and the managing agent was opting not to renew their contract, leaving the co-op adrift as far as leadership was concerned. The latter development is particularly striking, since unlike the board president – who was most likely volunteering a generous amount of time to tend to co-op business – the managing agent was being paid to keep a firm hand on the tiller.     Read the article………………….