Social activities offer an opportunity to improve relationships within the  community and add a far more convivial atmosphere to condo properties—something many prospective owners anticipate in a new location.    Sponsoring leisure…

 Sometimes condominium units become “home” to people who really don’t belong there. With the proliferation of “over-55” communities in recent years, aging baby boomers and an economy marked by  unemployment and foreclosures, there may be r…

 If you want to find out about the history of any town, region or country, head  to a museum or look it up on the Internet. If you want to find out about your  family’s history, look at your photo album, whether it’s in a book or online. A…

 Walls are the only separation between you and your neighbors when you live in a  densely-populated area, and privacy sometimes goes out the window. People hear  their next-door neighbors talking, footsteps from above or even music blaring…

 While the vast majority of one-time projects and long-term service contracts  involving vendors and service providers and their condominium or HOA clients go  smoothly and either conclude or continue without incident, a small percentage  …

 When Superstorm Sandy hit the New England states last fall, the U.S. Department  of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was quick to offer federal disaster  assistance to the states affected to supplement the lo…

Q Are there any restrictions or rules that would permit videotaping of condo board  meetings? Is it legal? If taping is permissible, do the parties in the room  being taped have to be told of it beforehand?    —Keeping it Confidentia…

 Management of any property requires a varying degree of resources and skills.  Materials, capital, and personnel are required for everything from ordering  supplies to the complete overseeing of a multi-unit, high rise condominium.  Above…

 In a movement to protect the populace from second-hand smoke, municipal  governments are coming up with increasingly-strict bans on smoking in public  places—even on streets, as evidenced in some California communities. Not surprisingly, …

 Lawsuits are usually not an association’s go-to method for dispute resolution. Expensive and time-consuming, they can  quickly turn into a financial burden and may create strained relations in the  community. Unfortunately, in some cases …