When Local Law 152 of 2016 for periodic gas testing came out in 2016 all of us in the property management world were not sure how it would be set up, tracked and enforced by the city. Recently, we gained a lot more clarity to which buildings are subject to the testing in certain years and what the testing entails. (more…)

Pursuant to a new New York State regulation, Board Members belonging to all Cooperative and Condominium Associations will be required to provide an annual report to the members of your cooperative or association containing information on any contracts made, entered into, or otherwise voted on by the Board that were considered a related party transaction; such as a director with an interest in the company or a relative of the director with an interest in the company that a contract has been entered into with.

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Beginning October 1, 2017, pursuant to Local Law 86 of 2017, the regulations regarding providing heat during the nighttime hours have changed. During the Heat Season (October 1 – May 31), property owners must maintain an indoor temperature of 62 degrees inside all apartments at all times.

The former outdoor temperature trigger of 40 degrees outdoors is no longer in play and heat will now always need to be provided. This is also a 7 degree difference inside, as the old regulations provided for the landlord to provide heat to 55 degrees inside when the temperature fell below 40 degrees outside.

If the inside temperature falls below 62 degrees, tenants may file a complaint about inadequate heat with 311. Please take necessary action to ensure that your heating system will be provide heat according to the law beginning October 1st. Daytime heat must still be provided at a minimum of 68 degrees once it is below 55 degrees outside and hot water must be still be maintained at 120 degrees.

The New York Foundation for Senior Citizens has a program that is dedicated to making minor home repairs easier for senior citizens within the confines of New York City.

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Are you on the Board and using either your personal or work email address to conduct Board business? If so, this may be a bad practice that can affect your personal and work lives. What do we recommend? Each board member should set up a brand new email address specifically for all board related items.

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Between the years of 1992 and 2013 buildings that carried an assessed value of less than $40,000 were eligible to file for a J-51 for renovation work that qualified for the abatement. In 2013, the limits were tightened to an assessed value of $30,000 or less, leaving a large chunk of middle-income buildings in the lurch when it came to receiving abatements to offset the very expensive work that they were doing.

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In what can be a sign of things to come in the future of New York City’s continuing fight against Airbnb’s short-term rentals, the New York State Senate recently passed a bill that would make it illegal to advertise any short-term rentals (short-term is classified as anything less than 30 days) for entire homes on their website.

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As per NYC Department of Environmental Protection Code, Buildings in New York City are now required to perform a tune up/overhaul and efficiency test on an annual basis by a certified technician. In addition, it is now required that all buildings keep a log book of maintenance of the boiler. The super must sign this book weekly. If this maintenance and testing is not performed by the end of each calendar year, the building will be subject to a fine.

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As per the yearly requirement in New York City, properties that are greater than three (3) units need to file their annual property registration with HPD. As of today, the filings for 2016 – 2017 are available to update on the HPD website.

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Many buildings, both large and small, manage their properties in-house, without a professional management company involved. These buildings can be cooperatives or condominium complexes (or a mixture thereof). There’s certainly a benefit to self-management; the building saves on the fee that they would pay an outside company, but in some cases the dollars saved are not what they seem to be. There’s an upside to everything, but also a downside. Let’s explore this more in depth.

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