CooperatorNews Chicagoland, The Condo, HOA & Co-op Monthly

Management

Urban vs. Suburban Property Management

A People-First Job, No Matter the Location

CooperatorNews Chicagoland has been reporting on matters related to multifamily living, governance, and operations for t…

Management

A Red folder with Emergency response plan on the desk.

2023 Fall

Emergency Preparedness

Plan, Inspect, Communicate

2023 Fall

Social Programming

Tips for Bringing Neighbors Together

2023 Fall

Evaluating Management

How to Improve & When to Cut Ties

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2023 Fall

Conflict Management

How to Handle When Things Get Out of Hand

Finance

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Understanding Your Monthly Financial Information

Key to a Financially Healthy Association

Congratulations—you’ve just been elected to your HOA’s board of directors, and given your first monthly financial packet…

Finance

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Understanding Your Monthly Financial Information

The Key to a Financially Successful Association

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2023 Summer

The Collections Process

Why It's Critical to Community Health

Is Your Condo on Fannie Mae’s Blacklist?

Listed Communities Face Big Problems Borrowing

Bag with dollar symbol and protection shield. Concept security of money, guaranteed deposits. Client rights protection. Compensation for losses in inflation, safeguarded investment capital.

Fall 2022

Safeguarding Your Reserves

Key to the Financial Health of Your Association

On The Board

Choosing the Best Representation

What to Look for When Selecting Legal Counsel

‘Better to have and not need, than need and not have.’ This adage applies to umbrellas, insurance, and good attorneys. C…

Hoarder house junk pile of clothing bags, household objects, vintage electronics and miscellaneous objects.

2024 Summer

Respecting Rules & Rights

Strategies for Dealing With ‘Problem’ Residents

Top view image of piggy bank, calculator and money with text FINANCIAL LITERACY.

2024 Summer

Financial Literacy for Board Members

Knowing More = Governing Better

2024 Spring Expo

Holding Orderly, Efficient Annual Meetings

It’s Not as Hard as It Seems!

2024 Spring Expo

Boards & Boundaries

How ‘Available’ Should You Be?

No Spaces Anywhere

The State of Parking in Chicago

It’s 6 pm. on a Tuesday night when the Chicago Cubs are in town and it’s game night in Lakeview’s Wrigleyville neighbor…

2014 January

Knowing When to Call Your Manager

Response to Calls is an Essential Part of the Manager’s Job

2014 January

Secrets of Successful Managers

Communication, Accommodation, Cooperation

2014 January

Managing Amenities

Coping with Changing Trends

2014 January

Changing Managers or Firms?

Don’t Overlook the Details!

Neighbor Noise

When Enough is Too Much

Noise is an acknowledged part of urban life - particularly apartment living. Some of it - traffic, garbage collection, …

Secondhand Smoke Complaints

Bad Smells, Hard Feelings

Handling Harassment

When Trash Talk Turns to Transgression

Communicate...and then OVERcommunicate

Tips for Getting Residents Involved, Engaged, & Informed

2014 February

Keeping Track of Paperwork

Properly Managing Association Records

Maintenance

Man with tools holding bank payment terminal. Salary concept

Who’s Going to Pay for This?

Understanding Liability for Repairs & Claims

Unit owners, board members, and even property managers are often confused about their responsibilities regarding damage …

building facade renovation, house reconstruction, repair

2024 Spring Expo

Façade Maintenance Laws

Repair Requirements Vary Across Markets

2024 Spring

Roof Replacement 101

A Project Too Vital to Put Off

Waterproofing and insulation at construction site, waterproofing membrane preventing water penetration. Exterior vapor barrier for roof.

2024 Spring

Waterproofing Your Building Envelope

Protecting Structure & Health

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Winter 2024

Façade Maintenance Laws

Repair Requirements Vary Across Markets!

Waterproofing Your Building Envelope

Protecting Structure & Health

With severe weather events becoming ever more common—and more intense—waterproofing your building’s envelope against rai…

Winter 2024

Façade Maintenance Laws

Repair Requirements Vary Across Markets!

Worker in overalls washes a white wall from a siding with a water gun. Cleaning service for washing buildings and facades

2023 Spring

Façade Cleaning

Safety, Solvents, & Curb Appeal

Closely packed high rise buildings in city

2023 Spring

Dealing With Major Façade Projects

In Co-ops & Condos, the "F" Word is "Façade"

Adjacent Construction Risk Management

The Building (or Demolition) Next Door

Multifamily Developers Experiencing Pandemic-Related Delays

Construction Resuming - Slowly - as States Open Up

According to a recent press release, the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC) reports that more than half (53%) o…

2014 November

Your Building’s Plumbing

Plumbing the Depths

2014 November

Boiler Maintenance Basics

The Heat is On

2014 November

Your Building's Anatomy

Systems That Keep Your Co-op or Condo Building Running

2013 November

Where's the Money?

Alternative Funding for Capital Improvements

Insurance

a red up arrow and wooden house. The concept of the rising price of real estate, high demand for real estate, growth of rental rates and mortgage sales of apartments. Population grows.

Rising Insurance Premiums

High Costs Force Tough Decisions for Boards

Adequate Community Insurance Coverage

How Much Is Enough?

Insurance in the Multifamily Setting

Knowing Who Covers What is Key

Protecting Board Members from Claims

A Look at Liability & Insurance Coverage

Loss, Insurance, and Claims

A Primer

Design

Interior of modern beige armchair, small wooden modern table, planter with green bushes, and contemporary tall glass chandelier, in a hall with decorated wood cladding wall, and white marble floor

Lobby Décor

Trendy or Timeless, Your Building’s First Impression

Grey is Gone in '24

Fresh Trends in Common Area Design

Current Trends in Multifamily Design

Quality, Durability, & Texture Reign Supreme

Capital Design Projects

There’s Always Room for Improvement

Interior Design Responds to COVID

Flexibility, Technology, Nature, & Gratitude

Organizations

IREM Foundation Establishes COVID-19 Relief Fund

27 Chapters On Board So Far

A Look Inside IREM

Serving the Management Profession

The National Fire Protection Association

Working to Stop Fires Before They Start

SOARing High in Chicagoland

The Streeterville Organization of Active Residents

Keeping it Cool

The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engnieers

Upcoming Events

Thu, Oct 17, 9:00am – 3:30pm

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News

9/17/2024 Streeterville penthouse cuts its $14.3 million asking price by half as downtown condos languish - Crain's

A high-floor condo in Streeterville, first listed by its developer in 2019 at $14.3 million and unsold since then, is now priced at less than half that.
Read full story

9/16/2024 Woman fears foreclosure after carpet dispute with condo association in Prospect Heights - ABC Chicago

Chris Kraszynski lives in a condo in Prospect Heights and said her condo association has falsely accused her of removing the wall-to-wall carpeting, putting her housing at risk.
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9/13/2024 Obamas’ former Hyde Park condo listed for just $550K - Real Deal

A Condo in hicago's Hyde Park that formerly belonged to Barack and Michelle Obama hit the market for $550000.
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9/12/2024 Inside Strategic Properties of North America’s many multifamily woes - Real Deal

Strategic Properties of North America, a Chicago-area landlord that has made headlines for two failed condo deconversion deals, is facing legal turmoil with condo associations and fellow investors.
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9/11/2024 Chicago's Tribune Tower leans on history to sell luxury - Axios Chicago

Chicago's Tribune Tower may not house journalists anymore, but it is leaning on its history to lure potential condo buyers to the historic building. The big picture: The Tribune Tower has been converted from offices to a breathtaking luxury condo building that could anchor a new retail district on the Mag Mile.
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9/10/2024 Brookfield advances selling spree with South Loop listings - Real Deal

Brookfield Properties listed two Chicago multifamily holdings after recently selling two Magnificent Mile retail properties.
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9/9/2024 The summer of $7 million-plus sales isn’t over yet - Crain's

A Gold Coast condo that major leaguer Jason Heyward owned when he was with the Chicago Cubs sold for $7.3 million.
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9/6/2024 Oprah Winfrey Lists Her Chicago Condo For $7.75 Million, A Reasonable Price - Forbes

Oprah Winfrey has listed her condominium in Chicago's Water Tower Place for $7.75 million. The four-bedroom, five full and two half bath duplex is situated on the 56th floor of luxury condominium tower Water Tower Place, home to the Chicago Ritz-Carlton Hotel, and just off Chicago's Michigan Avenue. Oprah listed the property on Monday with luxury brokers Baird & Warner.
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9/5/2024 Greenstone Partners Brokers $7.1M Sale of Apartment Building in Chicago - Rebusiness Online

Greenstone Partners has brokered the $7.1 million sale of a 24-unit apartment building in Chicago’s Lincoln Square neighborhood. The property, located at 2247-49 W. Lawrence Ave., also features 1,950 square feet of ground-floor live-work space along with a rooftop deck. Jordan Multack of Greenstone represented the buyer, Breneman Capital, and the undisclosed seller.
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9/4/2024 Homeowner Associations Can’t Ban Native Plants, Thanks to New Illinois Law - WTTW

Native plants have been gaining in popularity as more and more gardeners have come to appreciate their ecosystem benefits, which range from supporting endangered wildlife to improving stormwater absorption. But not everyone is a fan. Homeowner associations (HOAs) across the country, including many in Illinois, have adopted prohibitions against native plants, enforcing rules through fines, tickets, peer pressure and other means. Among HOAs’ arguments against natives: They’re too tall, too weedy, too unkempt and too attractive to rodents.
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9/3/2024 Putting Chicagoland’s new-construction market into focus - Chicago Agent

Gauging the status of new construction in Chicagoland is not so easy in today’s market. This isn’t the building boom of the early 2000s, when modern three-flats and high-rise condo buildings sprouted across the city, while new subdivisions rose up out of the cornfields of McHenry, Kane, Kendall and Will counties. That was obviously a hot new-construction market. And this is also definitely not the late 2000s or early 2010s, when building ground to a halt during the Great Recession and some development companies folded up and never returned. That was clearly a frigid market.
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8/30/2024 2 rescued from South Shore condo during blaze - Chicago Sun Times

About 4:40 a.m., firefighters responded to the Doral South Condominium, 7854 S. South Shore Dr. for a fire on the fourth floor, according to the Chicago Fire Department.
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8/27/2024 Retired Blackhawks goalie Nikolai Khabibulin lists River North condo for nearly $2M - Chicago Tribune

Retired Chicago Blackhawks goalie Nikolai Khabibulin in June listed his three-bedroom, 2,300-square-foot condominium on the 37th floor of a River North high-rise for $1.95 million.
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8/21/2024 Lendlease gets $4.1M for penthouse in Cirrus condo tower - Real Deal

Condo sales at the building have been picking up this year after a slower start, said listing agent Brad Brondyke of Jameson Sotheby’s International Realty. It’s the second-priciest purchase closed in the building so far.
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8/20/2024 $7 billion ‘The 1901 Project’ to reshape Chicago’s West Side - Chicago Construction

Chicago’s United Center arena owners have announced a groundbreaking $7 billion investment poised to reshape the city’s West Side. This ambitious initiative, known as The 1901 Project, has been developed in collaboration with city officials and community leaders.
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8/19/2024 Taraji P. Henson Puts Adjoining Chicago Condos on the Market for a Hefty $3.3 Million - Realtor.com

Actress Taraji P. Henson is waving goodbye to the Windy City. And she’s not just vacating one home—she’s selling two Chicago condos for the handsome price of $3,379,000.
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8/15/2024 1 hurt, 4 rescued during condo fire in Arlington Heights - CBS News

Firefighters arrived at the scene around 8 p.m., where one woman was found hurt on the front steps.
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8/14/2024 Carpenter builds her career building Chicago’s apartment complexes - Multifamily Dive

Journeyman carpenter Patricia Brown started her construction career wanting to build furniture. Many years later, that passion has turned into creating much larger projects.
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8/13/2024 Oprah Winfrey Lists Chicago Condo for $7.75 Million - Yahoo

Slowly but surely, Oprah Winfrey is releasing her hold on high-end Chicago real estate. The TV talk show host turned media maven has listed her last Chicago condo in Water Tower Place for $7.75 million. According to the Chicago Tribune, Winfrey first bought a 57th-floor condo in 1985 for an undisclosed amount. Seven years later, the Tribune reported, she bought the unit directly below it for $1.0625 million.
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8/12/2024 See A Stager Transform This Open-Living Chicago Condo - MSN

Sometimes even small design and furniture changes can make a huge impact on the look and feel of a space. Home stagers know this well - and they use it to their advantage. Take, for instance, a compact one-bedroom condo in Chicago that stager and real estate agent Molly Marino transformed for a seller looking to offload the unit.
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Q&A: Noisy Neighbors

Everybody Hates Assessments

Rising Insurance Premiums

Who’s Going to Pay for This?

Choosing the Best Representation