Page 5 - New England Condominium February 2019

March Exterior Maintenance April Landscaping & Lawn Care May Recreational Amenities June Law & Legislation July Community Budget & Finance August Insurance/Board Training September Energy & the Environment COMING UP Publisher Yale Robbins yale@yrinc.com Executive Vice President Henry Robbins henry@yrinc.com Associate Publisher Joanna DiPaola joanna@yrinc.com Advertising Director Alyce M. Hill alyce@yrinc.com Senior Editor Hannah Fons hannah@cooperator.com Associate Editors David Chiu david@cooperator.com Pat Gale patgale@yrinc.com Staff Writers Michael Odenthal michael@yrinc.com Alan J. Sidransky alan@yrinc.com Art Director Shirly Korchak shirly@yrinc.com Production Manager Aetna Dowst aetna@yrinc.com Traffic Coordinator Victor Marcos victor@yrinc.com Copyright 2019 by New England Condominium Magazine LLC, dba Community Association Publishing. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission. New England Condominium is published monthly in New York, New York by New England Condominium Magazine LLC, dba Community Association Publishing, 205 Lexington Ave., 12th Floor, New York, NY 10016. 508-753-4630. ISSN 1550-946X. Periodical postage paid at New York, New York and additional mailing offices. Subscriptions are available free by request to condominium and homeowner associations. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to New England Condominium Magazine, 205 Lexington Avenue, 12th Floor, New York, NY 10016. FREE Subscriptions for Board Members, Trustees, Property Managers and Real Estate Decision Makers. To Subscribe, please visit us at: newenglandcondo.com/subscribe TABLE OF CONTENTS THIS MONTH’S FOCUS: BOARD RELATIONSHIPS THE CONDO, HOA & CO-OP RESOURCE CONDOMINIUM NEW ENGLAND NEWENGLANDCONDO.COM NEW ENGLAND CONDOMINIUM - FEBRUARY 2019 5 6 Pulse/Calendar 7 Legal Q&A 22 Marketplace DEPARTMENTS: Board Optics By Mike Odenthal Community association and co-op boards typically consist of elected volunteers whose job is to serve the best interests of the community in day-to-day decisions both big and small. In an ideal world, every board would live and die by its fiduciary duty, making well-informed choices that not only keep its community or building solvent, but also maintain a pleasant environment in which to live. 10 Board Demographics By A J Sidransky Volunteerism is arguably the bedrock of co-op and condominium communities. One buys into one or the other with the expectation of participating in the governance and operation of the property. Volunteering for board or committee service, though, is often a matter of time – something many of us don’t have much of these days, especially the ‘extra’ kind. Self-Management Strategies By A J Sidransky One of the most important factors in the decision to purchase a condominium or co-op is lifestyle. Many who live in residential communities, particularly those in single-family HOAs, choose community living over a single-family home for the convenience of what they don’t have to do: no snow shoveling, no grass mowing, and no cleaning the gutters or falling off the ladder while doing it. 14 Managing Board Conflict By Mike Odenthal In a community association, it falls on the board to put out any fires that ignite among the property’s residents. But what happens when that blaze springs up between the board members themselves? 16 8 Trends: City Versus Suburbs By Mike Odenthal The ‘big city’ is known for its breakneck pace, as life whirls around the unprepared out-of- towner in an overwhelming swirl. Suburbia, on the other hand, is supposed to be a respite from that intense metropolitan grind–a place to patiently teach the kids how to play tee-ball out in the yard until it’s time for dinner. 18