New England Condominium’sCondo Expo was a beehive of activity on May 21, as thousands of community  association board members, homeowners and industry professionals gathered at  Boston’s Seaport World Trade Center.  

 The fifth annual event once again drew visitors from throughout New England, who  took advantage of the opportunity to explore new products and services, get  free advice from association experts, and participate in educational seminars  covering topics from legal concerns to pest control.  

 “Obviously our goal is to present attendees with information and products that  will make running their communities easier and more efficient,” says Yale Robbins, president of Yale Robbins, Inc., Expo producer and publisher  of New England Condominium, “but we also put a great deal of thought into the bigger picture, anticipating  trends and trying to broaden and build on our offerings from one year to the  next.”  

 Henry Robbins, executive vice president and director of sales for Yale Robbins,  Inc., added that despite a sluggish economy, overall attendance and interest in  the Expo—both from vendors and attendees—has grown each year since the show was launched in 2009. “It's really our exhibitors and our attendees who make this show what it is,” says Robbins. “Their enthusiasm and interest is contagious—the fact that the event grows and draws more people each year is proof of that.” The 2013 Expo included more than 140 exhibitors and attracted more than 1,400  registered attendees.  

 Visitors stopping by the New England Condominium booth on the trade show floor  consistently gave high marks to the quality of the seminars and the breadth of  products and services displayed by exhibitors. The trade show encompassed every  aspect of community needs, from financial services to fencing and flooring.  Energy, environmental and security issues were clearly on the minds of visitors  who stopped by to chat with professionals and gather literature on a host of  topics. Exhibitors, meanwhile, displayed new technologies, materials, and even  a bedbug-sniffing canine as they introduced expo attendees to the myriad  products and services available to today’s associations and owners.  

 Head of the Class

 Beyond the exhibits featuring community essentials, the New England Condo Expo  offered seminars designed to enlighten attendees about key issues affecting  both condominium and apartment building management.  

 Attorneys Richard Brooks and Janet Aronson from the law firm of Marcus, Errico,  Emmer & Brooks, P.C., kicked off the day’s seminars with a program entitled “Default: Examining Lien Enforcement, Foreclosures and the Super Lien Law: What  You Need to Know.” MEEB’s legal team examined the serious problem faced by associations today in  collecting arrears and what can be done to enforce their rules and regulations.  

 Offering tips for associations to “Stay Ahead of Trouble,” Goodman, Shapiro and Lombardi, LLC Attorneys Ellen Shapiro, Frank Lombardi and  Henry Goodman looked at the “good, the bad and the ugly in the law,” and the importance and means of complying with local, state and federal laws.  

 Trimming energy costs can not only help an association’s bottom line, but also add value to the property, Monica Tawfik from National  Grid and Vincent Graziano of Rise Engineering told a packed room during a  seminar sponsored by National Grid Energy. National Grid has a multi-family  program designed, they said, to help associations and building owners with  energy efficiency upgrades.  

 Association trustees also picked up tips on landscape and pavement maintenance  in a seminar sponsored by Curb Appeal Consulting. Speaker Gary Goldman  connected the dots for those in attendance, covering the relationships between  contractors, boards and managers during the progress of capital improvement  projects.  

 Seminars for Apartment Managers

 In a second series of seminars targeted to multi-family properties, speakers  enlightened an audience from both the condo and apartment sides of the industry  — including a popular discussion on “Roaches, Bedbugs & Mice, Oh My!” Bedbugs, noted Boston lawyer Frank Flynn, continue to be a major headache for  many buildings, due in no small part to their persistent nature. Among the issues covered by Flynn, Richard Versailles of Braman Termite & Pest Elimination, and Sterling Services president David J. Levy, was the  challenge posed by bedbug re-infestations after an initial treatment for the  pests.  

 Also attracting interested audiences on the multi-family side were seminars on  maintenance and collections. Andrew Hughes from Barkan Management was joined by  Skip Schloming of the Small Property Owners Association and attorney Mark  Laverty from the law offices of Russo & Scolnick in a lively discussion of “Maintenance Matters” — covering hot button topics ranging from right-of-access to security deposits.  Schloming returned to the podium for a program on collections and evictions,  co-hosted by attorney Gary Daddario from Perkins & Anctil, PC, and Caitlin Tee and David Barrett from Crowninshield Management.  

 Gifts & Giveaways

 As always, the 2013 Expo delivered more than information, too. In addition to  showcasing their products and services to association and building  decision-makers, exhibitors offered a host of gifts and prizes to attendees.  Exhibitor-sponsored prizes included iPads, Red Sox tickets, vendor services and  gift cards. A highlight of the event was the grand prize, a $2,500 contribution  to an association’s reserve fund account, courtesy of Yale Robbins Publications, LLC, and New  England Condominium.  

 The cyber cafe and food court provided an oasis for guests, and attendees were  also able to seek advice from a distinguished array of residential industry  professionals who generously donated their time in the “Free Advice” booths.  

 Reserve Fund Winner

 The winner of last year's reserve fund drawing was on hand to receive a check on  behalf of her board. Lorraine Hartnett, a board member from Seawatch Towers in  Revere, MA, won the $2,500 reserve fund drawing. Yale Robbins, publisher of New  England Condominium and Joanna DiPaola, director of marketing and events for New England Condominiumpresented Lorraine with the check. One of the attendees at this year's show will  be the lucky winner of the 2013 reserve fund drawing. That winner will be  announced in an upcoming issue.  

 Next Year’s Expo ….

 Even before the 2013 Expo closed shop and exhibitors started taking down their  booths, planning and preparation began for the sixth annual expo, scheduled for  Tuesday, May 20, 2014. Stay tuned throughout the year to these pages and the  Expo website, www.ne-expo.com, for updated information, important deadlines and  online registration.