Let your imagination run a little wild. The kids are creating a nuisance at the condo pool this summer, so wouldn't it be popular to create an adults-only swim time? Or better yet, why not pass a new rule banning teenagers from skate…
Much as the subprime mortgage market has dominated recent financial news, there is no readily agreed upon definition of the term. The most common description is the lender-given designation for borrowers with low credit scores (FICO scor…
In the fall of 1989, I delivered a presentation at the National Conference of Community Associations Institute in Dallas, Texas. My presentation was about why buildings leak. At that point in my career, I had been involved with thousands…
Imagine a perfect neighborhood: it's reminiscent of the neighborhoods of the 1950s. Warm, friendly faces, holiday parties, carpools, and unlocked doors are the norms. Such neighborhoods do exist today, but in modern times that perfect im…
Technology has changed the way we communicate and the way we think about communicating. Cell phones, which didn't exist a decade ago, have become not just an addition but an appendage. No one, it seems, leaves their home (or office) with…
As downsizing Baby Boomers join first-time buyers in their initiation to condominium living, industry professionals say both groups have a lot to learn about condominium insurance. Many new owners mistakenly believe that unit owners …
In January 2006, we reported on the reemergence of bed bugs in the Northeast. Unfortunately, bed bug infestation problems in condominiums have not lessened at all during the ensuing period of time. Quite the contrary: property managers, …
Can you believe it?" my friend Faith confided. "Gerald takes eight different pills a day, and I think all that medication mix is affecting him. The doctors are working on figuring out what to do." Her confidences concerned her overweight…
Given the attention that well-managed condominiums pay to preserving architectural integrity and fostering a carefully maintained appearance, it's no wonder that they bristle at the appearance of flamingo lawn ornaments or other outdoor …
Until recently, Massachusetts encouraged the development of affordable housing through Chapter 40B, an unpopular law characterized by critics as a sledgehammer that allows developers to bypass local zoning laws and build developments tha…