Twice a year, The Cooperator Expo - Chicagoland , brings together scores of vendors and service providers to share information on new products, services, and best practices for multifamily communities – but that's not all it does! The re…

Q. Many owners have questions about what happens at the monthly board meetings. Our board refuses to release any meeting minutes to the owners. Also, the board has told me that they do not record in the minutes who voted for what. Can the…

Q. My HOA has threatened to confiscate my unit because I withheld/escrowed my June assessment soon after I learned the board refused to communicate or cooperate with my insurance company who was to cover other losses. This isn’t in the by…

A democracy fares best when its constituents are proportionally represented. For all intents and purposes, the board of a condominium, cooperative, or homeowners’ association is a democratically-elected entity, and as such, one could argue …

Everyone can use a little help now and again. The residents of condominiums, co-ops or homeowners’ associations are no exception. There are tons of tasks that just cannot be left up to the board or residents, who are busy people themselves,…

People often say, “If these walls could talk...”, when considering the variety of experiences that a room  has absorbed over the years and would now relate if it only could. But while talking walls are a purely hypothetical construct, prope…

Through the ages, architecture and design have been symbols of evolution and change within societies. From the grandeur of the ancient world, to the Baroque and Romanesque masterpieces of the late Renaissance, and to the towering fancies of…

There are plenty of reasons why a condominium, co-op or homeowners’ association might see fit to spruce up its common areas. Dated décor, seasonal inspiration, excess cash on-hand, or just sheer boredom with the current look all come to min…

Sometimes, even with the best of intentions, things go wrong. When it comes to a design project in a multifamily building, be it a lobby renovation, a roof deck build-out, or a repainting the common hallways, the ‘wrong’ part can involve an…

Q. Can a voice recording of an executive closed session of a condo board meeting by one of the board’s directors  be restricted by the board?  —Unit Owner Seeking Transparency A. “The Illinois Condominium Property Act generally requir…