The Chicagoland Cooperator's 2013 Condo, HOA & Co-op Expo was a huge success as the event attracted thousands of attendees from all across the region for a full day of education and networking. The day was also a windfall for Donna H…

One of the biggest problems that can cause the downfall of any condo or co-op is a lack of funds, or more specifically, not enough money to keep operations running smoothly and to make the necessary repairs to keep everything up to par. …

As the 2012 federal legislative fiasco over the debt ceiling—as well as any number of other spending bills proposed since then—demonstrated, balancing a budget can be like pulling teeth. Balancing a condo or HOA community's budget can some…

Preparing the annual budget is by no means an easy task. Those charged with preparing condominium or HOA budgets will soon begin reviewing costs, gathering data and projecting expenses for the coming year. Communities, businesses, individu…

Last year I became disabled and applied to the board for approval for a companion dog. Upon approval, I signed an agreement that restricted the dog from certain areas and reiterated the dog could not be a nuisance to neighbors. I installed …

Q Earlier this month when the Chicagoland area experienced the polar vortex, I had both my windows in the living room and the glass door to my terrace crack due to the extreme cold. I informed the manager who then called a glass company, …

The headline of a recent Walpole, Massachusetts newspaper article reads: “Fight between Walpole selectmen cuts meeting short.” The first sentence of the article stated, “Selectmen came to verbal blows on Tuesday night, prompting other boar…

I Love Lucy is one of the most beloved sitcoms in all of television history. In one episode, after Little Ricky is born, the baby is screaming and screaming, keeping awake the next door tenant, Mrs. Trumbull. Mrs. Trumbull complains to lan…

Few things can raise one's blood pressure like signing a big contract. That can be especially true for board members or managers signing sometimes mammoth contracts on behalf of a co-op or condo association, obligating their neighbors, fri…

Much like corporations and charity organizations, condos, co-ops and HOAs across the nation are helmed by groups of residents who volunteer to serve their communities, and who are elected to their post by their neighbors. This is of course…