Cooperative and Condominium Archives

Jun 11, 2021

Good News for Cooperatives from the NY Legislature Regarding the Removal of Restrictions on Cooperatives Imposed in 2019

We are pleased to report that legislation (Senate Bill S5105) has passed both houses of the NY State Legislature relieving cooperatives of a number of restrictions that were applied to them along with conventional rental landlords when the Legislature enacted new tenant protection provisions as part of the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019. In particular, the current bill, which is now pending signature by the Governor, would remove or substantially modify the restrictions that had been imposed on cooperatives regarding (i) late charges, (ii) the ability to require security deposits as a condition of the approval of… Read more

Jan 14, 2021

Issues for Cooperatives in the Paycheck Protection Program

Authored by: Sean Altschul, Eric Balber, Michael Manzi, Stephen O’Connell, Todd Pickard, Robin Silberzweig, Lisa Smith, John Van Der Tuin, Eliot Zuckerman, Amanda Attenasio, Edward Heppt, and Dexterrie C. Ramirez When the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) was enacted as part of the CARES Act in March 2020 there was considerable uncertainty as to whether residential cooperatives were eligible to participate. Eventually, the Small Business Administration advised lenders that neither cooperatives nor condominiums were eligible. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, signed into law on December 27, 2020, appropriated additional funding for the PPP and specifically added “housing cooperatives” to eligible… Read more

Apr 13, 2020

Paid Sick and Family CARE Leave – Employer Obligations Expanded and Refundable Tax Credits Granted

This is just a quick note to call to your attention another program of the federal government’s response to the corona virus that may affect all cooperative and condominium buildings, and their management companies, in their capacity as employers. The “Families First Corona Response Act” (“FFCRA”) signed into law on March 18, 2020, requires employers with 500 or fewer workers to provide up to two weeks of sick leave at full pay up to a $511-per-day cap if they’re directly affected by COVID-19, and at partial pay up to $200 a day to care for affected family members. FFCRA also… Read more

Apr 1, 2020

The Application and Guidance for Paycheck Protection Loans and Grants Is Available

To follow up on our prior message to you yesterday, this is to inform you that the U.S. Treasury Department has now issued the application form and guidance for Paycheck Protection Program loans and grants. The program allows loans of up to 2.5X the monthly payroll, which may then be forgiven if the loan proceeds are used for qualifying purposes. There is nothing in the guidance or application form that would change our advice that cooperative and condominium buildings should be eligible to participate. For those buildings that have staff, this may be a source of needed funding during this… Read more

Mar 31, 2020

COVID-19 Related Assistance for Cooperatives and Condominiums Under the Federal CARES Act

Significant benefits may be afforded cooperatives and condominiums through the Paycheck Protection Program contained in the CARES Act passed by Congress and signed into law on March 27th. The Program is intended to ameliorate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on employers of fewer than 500 persons. Details as to the benefits available under the Program cannot be confirmed until the Small Business Administration publishes implementing regulations, which the Act requires in 15 days, or the government issues other guidance, but cooperatives and condominiums, and their managing agents and accountants should be aware of the possibility in assessing the impact… Read more

Mar 26, 2020

Annual Meetings and COVID-19

We have received a number of COVID-19 related inquiries from cooperative and condominium boards asking about how to deal with annual shareholder and unit owner meetings that their bylaws state should be held in the next few months. There are a number of options: The simplest, most straightforward option is to postpone holding the meeting until conditions improve and “social distancing” is no longer an issue. The NY Business Corporation Law contemplates that a corporation may fail to hold an annual meeting when required under its bylaws, and provides that, except in very special circumstances, doing so is without consequence…. Read more

Mar 24, 2020

Employment Law Updates and Best Practices for Your Building

In response to the novel coronavirus epidemic, the federal government and the State of New York have issued a number of new laws and executive orders that impact employment decisions and working conditions for employees in residential buildings. Below is a short overview of these recently passed laws and guidelines for dealing with building employees during this unique time. Because the governmental guidances and requirements are evolving and specific circumstances may vary, these are general guidelines only; consult with counsel or your HR advisor with respect to specific questions. New York’s Work-From-Home Executive Order: Employees of Businesses Providing Non-Essential Services… Read more

Mar 11, 2020

To Be or Not To Be an Additional Insured?

Additional-Insured-Coop-Condo-Blog-1.24.2020-

It is the question many in the industry have asked in light of the 2018 New York Court of Appeals decision in the Gilbane case. (Gilbane Bldg. Co./TDX Constr. Corp., et al. v. St. Paul Fire & Marine Ins. Co., et al., 31 N.Y. 3d 131 (2018)). In Gilbane the court held that a party was not entitled to coverage as an additional insured when such party did not have a written contract with the policy holder requiring such status. Additional insured status may be very important in that, in addition to affording an additional insured a legal defense, it… Read more

Jan 31, 2020

Local Law 11 – Update

In 1980, Grace Gold, a Barnard College freshman, was killed when a piece of terra cotta masonry fell on the Upper West Side. Her death resulted in the adoption of Local Law 10, the first New York City law that required periodic inspections of street-side façades of all buildings in New York City that are taller than six stories. Then, in 1998, the partial collapse of a building on Madison Avenue resulted in an expansion of the requirements of Local Law 10 – and its recodification as Local Law 11 – to encompass all building façades (other than those within… Read more

Nov 21, 2019

Buyer Beware: More Disclosure Requirements for LLCs

It has become increasingly difficult for homebuyers to play hide-and-seek in New York. For decades, the wealthy, celebrities, and other people concerned about their privacy have enjoyed the privilege of anonymity by buying and selling real estate through limited liability companies (“LLCs”). Not only have LLCs, when properly structured, offered privacy, but, as their names imply, they have had the advantage of shielding their owners from a variety of personal claims. The use of LLCs for anonymity was curtailed by the New York State Legislature on September 13, 2019, with the enactment of expanded disclosure requirements for LLCs buying or… Read more