Signs of a good building gone bad

Is your co-op or condo building in trouble and you don't even know it? Co-op and condo lawyer Stuart Saft compiles a handy list (useful for prospective buyers too) of 17 warning signs in the July/August issue of Habitat Magazine (not yet online). 

Find Your Next Home

NeighborhoodCentral HarlemEast HarlemHamilton HeightsHarlemHudson HeightsInwoodManhattan ValleyMorningside HeightsMt Morris ParkSugar HillWashington HeightsWest HarlemUpper West SideUpper East SideUpper ManhattanMidtown WestMidtown EastDowntownBattery Park CityCentral VillageChelseaChinatownCivic CenterEast VillageFinancial DistrictFlatironGramercy ParkGreenwich VillageLittle ItalyLower East SideLower ManhattanMurray Hill Kips BayNohoNomadSohoTribecaUnion SquareWest 30SWest VillageBrooklynBay RidgeBedford StuyvesantBensonhurstBoerum HillBrooklynBrooklyn HeightsBushwickCanarsieCarroll GardensClinton HillCobble HillColumbia Street WdCrown HeightsDitmas ParkDowntown BrooklynDumboDyker HeightsEast FlatbushEast New YorkEast WilliamsburgFlatbushFlatlandsFort GreeneGowanusGreenpointGreenwoodManhattan BeachMidwoodPark SlopeProspect HeightsProspect LeffertsProspect Park SouthProspect-Lefferts GRed HookRedhookSeagateSheepshead BaySouth SlopeSunset ParkVinegar HillWeeksvilleWilliamsburgWilliamsburg N SideWindsor TerraceQueensAstoriaBelle HarborBriarwoodCoronaElmhurstFar RockawayFlushingForest HillsForest Hills GardenForest Hills GardensHoward BeachHunters PointJackson HeightsKew GardensLong Island CityRego ParkSunnysideBronxBedford ParkBronxdaleConcourseConcourse VillageFieldstonFordhamHigh BridgeKingsbridgeMarble HillMorrisaniaMott HavenNorth RiverdaleNorwoodRiverdaleSoundviewSouth RiverdaleSpuyten DuyvilUniversity HeightsWestchester SquareLocust ValleyLong BeachUpper Brookville

Priceup to $500,000up to $750,000up to $1,000,000up to $1,250,000up to $1,500,000up to $2,000,000up to $3,000,000up to $5,000,000up to $6,000,000up to $7,000,000up to $8,000,000no maximum

Bedroomsstudios or at least 1 bedroomat least 1 bedroomat least 2 bedroomsat least 3 bedroomsat least 4 bedrooms5 or more bedrooms

Bathroomsat least 1 bathroomat least 1.5 bathroomsat least 2 bathroomsat least 2.5 bathroomsat least 3 bathroomsat least 3.5 bathrooms4 or more bathrooms

Search

Presented by  

A few are kind of obvious (annual meetings are disrupted by angry owners, dirty/moldy/vermin-infested common areas, multiple lawsuits resulting from an "overly aggressive board, disturbed owners, a fee-hungry lawyer"), but others are not necessarily so, such as:

• Board meetings take more than two hours a month ("either the board is dealing with too many issues or nothing is being accomplished")
• Many owners are breaking the rules ("could be a sign that the residents know that the board is weak...or worse, the board members themselves are violating the rules")
• Some owners are treated differently than others ("there is nothing that creates more dissension in a building")
• Sales prices are more than 10% lower than neighboring buildings  ("find out why and do something about it")
• Every year, audited financial statements delayed more than 4 months past end of the year ("the problem may not be [understaffed] accountants completing the audit, but their concerns over what they found or their inability to have their questions answered")

(HabitatMag.com)

Related posts:

6 tips for holding an annual meeting instead of a bloodbath (sponsored)

Approval, schmooval! Renovation perks for board members

Dealing with problem condo owners (sponsored)