Pests are a part of life—wherever there are people, vermin of one kind or another are sure to follow. This is particularly true in a subtropical environment like that of Western and Central Florida. These insect pests are not merely gross.…
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…
From the outside, the structure of a condo or co-op building may appear to be monolithic; just one big piece of brick and steel, punctuated with some glass here and there. That's an oversimplification, however. A multifamily building is pe…
Florida is trashy. Literally. Every day, the people living in the Sunshine State produce hundreds of tons of trash—paper, plastic, organic, metal, glass...you name it. Once all that garbage is carted away from their driveways and cur…
It’s a beautiful Friday night and you’re out to dinner with four of your best buddies. The restaurant's ambiance is exquisite and the food is divine. You’re on a budget, so you stick to ordering a delicious appetizer and some tasty soup, w…
There’s probably not a condo, HOA or co-op board that doesn’t worry about money at some point or another, which is why staying on top of the latest money-saving opportunities is vital for any building or community to be successful. One of …
Say you’re in bed, and you hear what sounds like the shower going. It's late, and you're tired, so you pay it no mind. You wake up at 4 a.m. to get a glass of water and find half the rooms in your apartment flooded— you forgot to turn the …
You can’t underestimate the value of insurance. In a simple analogy, operating a business—or the day-to-day business of a co-op or condo—without adequate insurance coverage is a lot like skydiving without a parachute. Needless to say, it’s…
When is a flood not a flood? That’s a serious question for Central and Western Florida’s residential communities. Even if they have flood insurance and aren’t located directly on the water, damage caused by heavy rains and backed-up sewers…