Landlord Guides
Amending the By-laws
Under BCL 601 shareholders amend the by-laws by a majority of votes cast — and a board's power to amend, where it exists at all, is always subordinate to theirs.
Landlord GuidesBest Property Management Software for Small Landlords
Compare property management software for small NYC landlords, including rent collection, accounting, maintenance tools, tenant portals, pricing, and usability.
Landlord GuidesChanging Your Building's Managing Agent
When a board should switch managing agents, how to run the search, what the notice and transition require, and the records that must transfer completely.
Landlord GuidesCondo Board Approval for Renting
How condo lease approval actually works in NYC — what goes in the package, what a board can and cannot require, and why most delays are self-inflicted.
Landlord GuidesThe Co-op Board Package
What a NYC co-op board package contains, how the review and interview work, what boards may and may not consider, and why consistency protects the board.
Landlord GuidesCo-op & Condo Board Budget Season
How a NYC co-op or condo board builds next year's operating budget: what drives the increase, why reserves are a policy choice and not a legal minimum, and how to hold the vote.
Landlord GuidesBoard Conflicts of Interest
An interested director transaction is not automatically void in New York. BCL 713 sets out exactly how a board makes one valid — and what happens when it skips the steps.
Landlord GuidesBoard Elections & Annual Meetings
Notice, quorum, proxies and inspectors of election — how a NYC co-op or condo annual meeting is actually run, and why quorum is the thing that fails.
Landlord GuidesBoard Minutes & Records
BCL 624 requires a co-op to keep minutes of shareholder, board and executive committee meetings — but the statutory inspection right is narrower than boards assume.
Landlord GuidesBoard Officer Duties
What a president, treasurer and secretary actually do on a NYC co-op or condo board — and why officer titles change responsibilities without changing fiduciary duty.
Landlord GuidesMaster Policy vs. HO-6
Bare walls, single entity or all-in — the building's master policy decides what a unit owner's HO-6 must cover. Plus the loss assessment limit almost nobody has raised.
Landlord GuidesThe Co-op & Condo Tax Abatement
Tiered from 17.5% to 28.1% by average assessed value — and forfeitable for the whole building if the prevailing wage affidavit is missed. What boards need to track.
Landlord GuidesSublet Policy & Sublet Fees
A board's guide to setting and administering a sublet policy — term limits, fees, approval process, waiting lists, and the fee exemption that is no longer reliable.
Landlord GuidesThe Underlying Mortgage
The building's blanket mortgage is the largest number on a co-op's balance sheet and the one most boards think about last. What maturity means, and when to start.
Landlord GuidesDIY vs. Property Manager: The Real Cost
Compare self-managing a NYC rental with hiring a property manager, including time, fees, compliance risk, tenant communication, maintenance, and vacancy costs.
Landlord GuidesD&O Insurance for Boards
What directors and officers coverage protects a volunteer NYC board member from, how indemnification under BCL 722 and 723 works alongside it, and the gaps boards discover too late.
Landlord GuidesDOB NOW for Owners
Your architect files, but the application cannot be submitted until you personally sign it in DOB NOW. The account you need, the attestation, and how to check status.
Landlord GuidesDrafting & Enforcing House Rules
A board's guide to house rules — where the authority comes from, why consistency matters more than content, and the enforcement ladder that avoids litigation.
Landlord Guides10 Things Every First-Time NYC Landlord Needs to Know
Start with ten essentials for first-time NYC landlords, from HPD registration and rent stabilization to tenant screening, leases, deposits, repairs, and taxes.
Landlord GuidesHow Much Does Property Management Cost in NYC?
See what property management costs in NYC, how percentage and flat fees work, what services are included, and which setup or leasing charges to ask about.
Landlord GuidesHow to Find & Screen Great Tenants in Brooklyn
Find and screen reliable Brooklyn tenants with guidance on listings, applications, income checks, references, Fair Housing compliance, and lease approval.
Landlord GuidesInherited a Rental Property in Brooklyn
A step-by-step sequence for inherited Brooklyn property — establishing legal use, tenancy status, regulation, and condition before deciding to keep or sell.
Landlord GuidesLandlord Insurance in NYC: What You Need & Costs
Understand landlord insurance in NYC, including dwelling, liability, loss-of-rent, flood, and umbrella coverage, common exclusions, costs, and policy questions.
Landlord GuidesTax Deductions Every NYC Landlord Should Know
Review NYC landlord tax deductions, including depreciation, mortgage interest, repairs, insurance, management fees, utilities, and professional expenses.
Landlord GuidesNew Construction Lease-Up in Brooklyn
Leasing up a new Brooklyn building is a distinct project — absorption pacing, pricing the first leases, tax-benefit obligations, and standing up operations.
Landlord GuidesYour First Year on the Board
What a new NYC director needs to read, ask and understand in the first ninety days — the documents, the duties, the protections, and the questions nobody tells you to ask.
Landlord GuidesWhy Insurance Premiums Rose
Reinsurance, weather, inflation and New York's litigation environment — the four drivers behind a hard habitational market, and the handful of things an owner can control.
Landlord GuidesOwning Brooklyn Property From Out of State
What actually breaks for remote Brooklyn landlords — unmonitored notices, slow showings, unchecked vendor pricing — and the systems that prevent each one.
Landlord GuidesManaging Property During Divorce or Estate Administration
When ownership is contested or in administration, a building still needs running. How neutral management protects the asset and the parties' positions.
Landlord GuidesReading Your Building's Financials
A director's guide to the co-op or condo financial statement: what the balance sheet and income statement actually tell you, and the four numbers worth reading first.
Landlord GuidesRenting Out Your Brooklyn Condo
What it actually takes to lease your Brooklyn condo — bylaws, board approval, pricing, screening, and the carrying costs that decide whether it clears.
Landlord GuidesResale & Refinance Questionnaires
The lender questionnaire is the transactional work that most directly affects whether a shareholder's deal closes — and the one boards delegate without ever setting a standard.
Landlord GuidesReserve Studies
New York does not require a reserve study for an existing building. Here is what one contains, when it earns its fee, and why boards that have one stop arguing in percentages.
Landlord GuidesThe RPIE Filing
Income-producing NYC property over $40,000 assessed value must file an RPIE by 1 June. Miss it and you face a penalty — and lose the right to challenge your assessment.
Landlord GuidesSpecial Assessments
When an assessment is the right instrument and when it is a way of avoiding a maintenance increase — plus how to structure, authorize and communicate one properly.
Landlord GuidesSponsor Units & Unsold Shares
Holders of unsold shares sublet without board approval and were long exempt from sublet fees. Pastena changed that, then Bellstell narrowed it. What a board needs to check.
Landlord GuidesRenting a Two-Family House in Brooklyn
Two-family houses are Brooklyn's most common rental property. Owner-occupied rules, screening a neighbor, legal use, and what changes when you move out.
Landlord GuidesThe Ultimate Guide to Property Management in Brooklyn
How property management works across Brooklyn and NYC, what managers do, what it costs, the rent stabilization and HPD rules that matter, and how to choose one.
Landlord Guides7 Signs It's Time to Hire a Property Manager
Seven signs it may be time to hire a manager for your NYC rental, including compliance pressure, repair delays, tenant issues, vacancy, and limited time.
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