If you live in a condo or a co-op, you’ve probably noticed that your building has at least one annual shareholders’ or unit owners’ meeting each year. It’s not random. The annual meeting is actually an Illinois state-mandated la…
A well-run condominium or co-op requires that it is getting its supplies and services smoothly and at the best price, which is why a board of directors or management company needs to stay on top of its vendors and its contracts with th…
This in an anxious time in which to sit on the board of directors. With defaults and foreclosures accounting for some 20 percent or more of the units at some condominiums, frustration among association members is off the charts. …
The relationship between boards and management is, by its very nature, a deep one. The two teams rely on each other to ensure the smooth oversight of their co-op and condo communities. Both are dedicated to doing everything possible to …
The date is fast approaching for The Chicagoland Cooperator’s first annual Chicagoland Condo, HOA, & Co-op Expo, to be held at Navy Pier Convention Center on Wednesday, November 16, 2011 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Along with the booths and n…
With the leafless trees and icy winds blowing along the shores of Lake Michigan, it is the perfect time for condo or co-op managers and building administrators to start thinking about repair and maintenance work for the upcoming spring.…
Q I am buying a condo. The developer wants me to waive the implied warranty of habitability? Is this normal? His reason being they rehabbed the building and didn't build it from scratch. Should I be alarmed? —Prospective Shopper …
Q A condo owner in my building added an extra room to her condo in our common basement—now the basement is getting smaller and her condo is getting bigger. Is it fraud or theft to the member association? What can we do? She has been add…
Q I live in a very small building and our condo board has turned over our building to a manager, who is running the condo as if unit owners work for her—not vice versa. The board likes not having to do anything. What recourse do unhappy …
“Sue“ is a retired professional who is well-to-do, rarely eats at home and has lived in her condo for decades. While everything seems perfect from the outside, Sue is the keeper of a dirty little secret. When the unit above he…