Emily Myers

It’s not uncommon for new board members to be viewed as outsiders by more experienced members.Approach this situation with a long term strategy—educating yourself about how the board functions, seeking areas of agreement, and over time, encouraging other like-minded shareholders to join you on the board.

Under the warranty of habitability you are entitled to a maintenance abatement if your co-op is uninhabitable. You will have to decide if it is worth the battle.

A shareholder wants to know if a new co-op board can end their prior subletting agreement and kick them out for illegal subletting. Our experts say eviction is highly unlikely. Read on for more intel.

Whether you hire a staging pro or decide to DIY it, you’ll want to avoid these common mistakes, most notably not painting the place, forgetting about curtains, or not paying attention to lighting.

A long-time renter in Brooklyn asks if they can fight a rent increase of 80 percent. If it is a market-rate apartment, the landlord is permitted to increase the rent as much as they want, provided they give you adequate notice.

Once a renovation has stopped, contractors don’t usually hang around waiting. Neither does the clock stop, so if you’ve agreed to complete the work within a specific time frame you may be responsible for liquidated damages if the work runs longer than the time allowed by your building. That’s in addition to the extra cost of getting the contractor to come back to finish the work.

If you thought NYC renovations were complicated before the pandemic, they are about to get even more so when New York opens up—and remain that way until a vaccine is widely available. You’ll need to factor in additional time and costs for new cleaning and safety requirements, and mitigate disruption for residents, many more of whom may continue to stay home even as the city opens up.

Closing credits are refer to discounts passed from seller to buyer at closing and can range from 0.5 to 6 percent of the purchase price, and they’re higher for new condos.

Renters get to share feedback on their place.

One of the downsides of owning a townhouse is that it’s all on you when something goes wrong. Here are some ways you can manage maintenance and repair issues, as well as snow removal.