charlie bucket's Profile
Author's Posts
May 12, 2008
Sash + Brickmold Replacement in Landmarked Coop
My coop had aluminum framed windows installed in the early 80's before the LPC could do anything about it. They've bugged us to change them out for quite some time now and have agreed to let us leave the frames but replace the sashes and brickmold. Can anyone recommend a good contractor for the job? Was thinking of calling Bay Ridge, but last time I called them about a door they weren't very helpful and a search of the forum didn't turn up much.
Also, any benefit to replacing the frames as well. I'm guessing it's going to cost more, but roughly how much per window? I'm looking at roughly 8 + a bay window. Going to take care of the ones in back at a later date.
thanks all.
May 5, 2008
Petro's Fuel Watchman
I'm looking into all possible ways to save on my heating bill and just received a note in the mail from Petro advertising their Fuel Watchman Digital Heating Controller. If you've had this installed could you take a moment to share your experience. Big money saver or glorified thermostat? I'm currently living in a 5 unit brownstone in p slope. Our major issue is insulation, so I'm not sure how much changing up the thermostat is going to help.
thanks all.
Author's Comments
joe the bkny handyman is great... 646.348.0582
Posted by: charlie bucket at May 12, 2008 10:35 AM in response to Basement garbage removal - recommendations
Responses to Author's Forum Comments
list of junk removal guys in NYC:
http://www.cityhammer.com/catalog/companyList/?category_id=35
your handyman might also n=know who to call
LD
Posted by: guest at May 12, 2008 4:57 PM in response to Basement garbage removal - recommendations
Charlie and Anon,
Thanks for the words of advice, I did not take to heart the people who said run without much info, I did however get the info I was finally looking for, and turns out the reserve was $200 , so another lie again, we lowered our bid to what we thought was fair for such a mismanaged place, they rejected, so we are looking some more.
This co-op thing is tough being a home and a business at the same time.
anyway i took all the questions people gave and got the answers I wanted(well didn't actually want to find out what i did).
will be back next time should I have more questions.
thanks again for everyones advice, even the trolls(whatever that means).
Posted by: steve37 at May 13, 2008 12:58 PM in response to Advise Needed - Co-Op
Steve,
Sorry to hear that one fell through. If it helps you feel any better, I can tell you that we had numerous false starts and probably looked at over 100 apts before buying a co-op. Each failed attempt led to a greater understanding of the process, so that once the stars really did align and we saw the perfect deal, we knew what we were doing and could move on it very quickly.
The co-op thing is tough, especially small co-ops. Much more complex IMO than buying a brownstone (I should know because we bought a bstone a few years after the co-op). Which should tell you that living in a co-op can also be complex, especially the politics of getting along with others and getting things done. Some people like it, some don't. Either way, its a way to started with owning something in NYC. If we'd never bought our PS co-op, it would have been much harder to subsequently afford our PS bstone.
Good luck with your search.
- anon @8:35
P.S. A troll is a malicious poster who posts for the sole purpose of either getting a rise out others, starting controversy, and/or deliberately spreading misinformation.
Posted by: guest at May 13, 2008 3:10 PM in response to Advise Needed - Co-Op
i agree with the poster above. the financial situation doesn't sound all that bad. if you really love the place you should ask to be treasurer and turn that ship around. most coops offer up the job because no one wants to handle the responsibility. i had a similar situation when i bought into a 5 unit brownstone in ps a couple years. we had a little more in the reserve, but had been losing between 6 and 9K over the past three years. they also weren't keeping good records. i don't think minutes have been kept since the late 80's and we still don't keep them. it's family style i guess. when a building operates like this just check to see what capital improvements they've made over the past 10+ years and be careful of the units with a high turnover rate. those folks usually aren't too keen on raising maintenance or spending money on improvements. any way, since i moved in i've become treasurer and raised maintenance so that we're just about breaking even now. in the next year or so i'll raise it a bit more so that we actually start saving. i set aside a certain amount for repairs for the year and if we go above and beyond there's an assessment. keep in mind that these buildings are old and there is always going to be something in need of repair. be prepared to go above and beyond your regular maintenance from time to time until you get comfortable. a good place to start would be with the boiler, which will run you roughly 10K. that's only 2k split up between the 5 units. not bad if you ask me. good luck!
Posted by: charlie bucket at May 12, 2008 11:50 AM in response to Advise Needed - Co-Op