A fire breaks out in an apartment building; A broken water pipe floods several floors; A resident collapses with a heart attack on the tennis court; An intruder roams the premises with criminal intent; A huge alligator settles in for a nap…

Whether you live in an urban high-rise in the heart of a large city, or in a more spread-out suburban HOA development, security—for both property and physical safety—is an important issue in any condo community. Who can come in, at what ti…

When we step through our front doors and turn the lock behind us, we expect to feel content in the knowledge that we are safe and sound in our home, and the community in which we live. The boards and managers who oversee these communities …

One only needs to watch the news regularly to get a sense of the devastation wrought by fire on a home or community. According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) in 2012 (the most recent year on record) some 97,000 fires br…

When it comes to ensuring the safety of each resident in a homeowner’s association before, during, and immediately after natural disasters like tropical storms and hurricanes, South Floridians know that it’s critical to have an updated eme…

Q Several years ago the board president of our condo association was removed from his position after he was caught manipulating votes and actually coercing senior citizens in the building to sign blank papers and say they were proxies. He…

Q Several years ago the board president of our condo association was removed from his position after he was caught manipulating votes and actually coercing senior citizens in the building to sign blank papers and say they were proxies. He…

It's a nightmare scenario; you're at home—maybe even sound asleep in your bed—or perhaps just walking down the street, and all of a sudden, the ground beneath you literally opens up, swallowing homes, cars, trees and even people into a mud…

Of all the modern conveniences we take for granted, perhaps none is as profoundly basic —and indispensable—as indoor plumbing. Carrying fresh water into our homes and taking waste water away, the pipes in our condo or co-op buildings are t…

Running the day-to-day business of a condo development or an HOA of any size—be it a sprawling, multi-building community, or a single self-contained building—requires not just a functional board but a team of competent outside professional…