Page 17 - New England Condominium January 2020
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NEWENGLANDCONDO.COM 
NEW ENGLAND CONDOMINIUM  
-JANUARY 2020    
17 
practices, again, employees may contact  
their union, or the National Labor Rela- 
tions Board. Administrative grievances  
can be directed to the Department of La- 
bor or OSHA for health violations. 
The Final Word 
While there may be a lot of abbrevia- 
tions involved in the training and ongo- 
ing safety protocols for building staff,  
what should never be abbreviated are the  
actual precautions and information that  
are in place to ensure their safety. Proper  
education, implementation, and compli- 
ance—for both employees and their em- 
ployers—are the cornerstones of a safe  
and injury-free working environment  
for the doormen, porters, handymen, se- 
curity personnel, maintenance workers,  
elevator operators, and managers who  
service and support the city’s many co-op  
and condo buildings. Take advantage of  
the training, advocacy, and support that  
are  available through  a  variety  of  orga- 
nizations in the city and elsewhere, and  
always keep in mind that it’s better to be  
safe than sorry.    
n 
 Darcey Gerstein is Associate Editor and  
a Staff Writer for New England Condomin- 
ium. 
www.RiskStrategies.com 
Specializing in   
Insurance and   
Risk Management  
Services for: 
For more information Contact 
Thomas Shields | Producer 
E: TShields@risk-strategies.com 
P: 781-961-0314 
A: 15 Pacella Park Drive,   
Suite 240, Randolph, MA 02368 
Bernie Gitlin | Executive VP 
E: Bgitlin@risk-strategies.com 
P: 781-961-0330 
C 
ondominiums 
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ommunity 
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ssoCiAtions 
HoA C 
ommunities 
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ooperAtives 
www.RiskStrategies.com 
Specializing in   
Insurance and   
Risk Management  
Services for: 
For more information Contact 
Thomas Shields | Producer 
E: TShields@risk-strategies.com 
P: 781-961-0314 
A: 15 Pacella Park Drive,   
Suite 240, Randolph, MA 02368 
Bernie Gitlin | Executive VP 
E: Bgitlin@risk-strategies.com 
P: 781-961-0330 
C 
ondominiums 
C 
ommunity 
 A 
ssoCiAtions 
HoA C 
ommunities 
C 
ooperAtives 
www.RiskStrategies.com 
Specializing in   
Insurance and   
Risk Management  
Services for: 
For more in 
Thomas Shi 
E: TShields@ 
P: 781-961-0 
A: 15 Pacell 
Suite 240, R 
Bernie Gitlin 
E: Bgitlin@r 
P: 781-961-0 
C 
ondominiums 
C 
ommunity 
 A 
ssoCiAtions 
HoA C 
ommunities 
C 
ooperAtives 
um associations from a different point of  
view. Financing for capital improvements  
is now available. “Condos don’t borrow  
as often as co-ops,” says Freedland. “But  
there is financing available now, secured  
by the condominium’s receivables.” In  
other words, the association’s monthly  
common charges and reserve accounts  
are pledged as collateral against the loan  
– making the reserves even more impor- 
tant. “Lenders want to see that they have  
adequate reserves,” reiterates Freedland.  
When the Big Stuff Is Done 
Say you live in a successful, mature  
and well-functioning co-op property.  
Over the past few years, the building has  
pretty much handled all the major re- 
pairs and maintenance needed to keep it  
in good shape for the immediate future;  
the boiler has been refurbished, conver- 
sion from oil to gas is complete, the roof  
and sidewalks have been replaced, the  
elevators upgraded, and the lobby and  
hallways redecorated. Everything looks  
amazing  and  the  building’s  reserves  are  
slowly building back up from all the ma- 
jor  outlays, though  it’ll  take  awhile  for  
them  to  fully  rebound.  Do  you  need  to  
rush to replenish your reserve accounts  
to previous levels? 
“If it’s a timing issue, and if the build- 
ing has done all necessary work, it’s an  
individual decision,” says Prisand, adding  
that there are potential ramifications of  
not  replenishing.  Buyers’  attorneys may  
be uncomfortable with the low reserves,  
regardless of whatever major work has  
already been done. Potential lenders will  
have minimum reserve requirements that  
must be met, regardless of how new the  
roof is. According to all of our experts,  
the best path to replenishment is slowly,  
through small monthly increments in- 
cluded in common charges or mainte- 
nance so the financial pain is minimized.  
They also suggest that reserve funds  
should never be used to subsidize lower  
monthly charges to residents, and that  
maintenance or common charges should  
be increased by two or three percent each  
year on a regular basis to keep up with  
inflation, and to get residents used to the  
idea of regular increases, just in case. 
Potential Effects on Unit Sales 
Bobby Woofter is a broker with My- 
BostonCondo.com. He says of low re- 
serve funds and their potential to affect  
sales, “that often it depends on the pro- 
fessional guiding the buyer. It’s some- 
thing that someone who isn’t a real estate  
professional might too easily overlook. In  
reality, it’s a really good peek behind the  
curtain to see how a building is managed,  
an important indicator, not so much  
about the dollars as about the planning.  
If there are low reserves, you need a good  
explanation for the purchaser. If the low  
reserves are from work already complet- 
ed that’s one thing, but if it’s from bad  
management, that’s something else alto- 
gether.”   
Saving for a ‘rainy day’ is not only good  
advice, but good policy. Like individuals,  
co-op and condo buildings need savings  
in the form of reserve funds. We never  
know when an emergency will occur;  
that’s why it’s called an emergency. Keep- 
ing those reserves at an acceptable level  
protects the association or corporation  
and the residents against the unknown  
and helps them plan for regular mainte- 
nance. Like an insurance policy, reserves  
guard us against the unexpected, both  
physically and financially.                         
n 
Cooper Smith is a regular contributor to  
New England Condominium. 
UNDERFUNDED... 
continued from page 8 
York residential managers and manage- 
ment companies in the summer of 1994.  
Almost exactly five years later, 30 more  
individuals and 10 corporations were  
charged with stealing $4 million through  
kickback and bid-rigging schemes in an- 
other industry scandal.  
According to the Department of In- 
vestigation’s press release about the sec- 
ond  set  of indictments, Commissioner  
Edward J. Kuriansky said, “Bid-rigging  
and kickbacks have obviously been a way  
of  life  for  many  years  in  the  residential  
real estate industry. But, by violating their  
positions as managing agents, building  
BIDDING... 
continued from page 10 
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