Does anyone live in a coop that is self managed or have experience with it?
Thanks everyone!!!!
theklahy
in General Discussion 7 years and 7 months ago
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5 replies
theklahy | 7 years and 8 months ago
Our coop is thinking of going to self-management as all the management companies are expensive and very difficult to work with. Any thoughts you can provide would be appreciated.
greenworks | 7 years and 8 months ago
I lived in/was briefly on the board of of an 11-unit self managed co-op years ago and it has its issues but I considered it a good thing overall. Though memory has faded, I liked how much control and accountability we had over what was happening to our building. There’s no management company to go AWOL on you. However, you need enough people who would be active and willing to WORK, which is harder than it seems. Often, the brunt of the work fell on one or two people.
Also it can be awkward when your BFF in the unit next to you does some unpermitted/unapproved by Board work.
angelique.m.west | 7 years and 8 months ago
I have lived in a self-managed building and the biggest issue we have faced is handling the finances. Luckily, we had someone with an accounting background to do this. But even then it was no small task. She was responsible for paying all the bills — and there are more bills than you would think — and keeping the checking and savings accounts in good order. There were also times when she’d have to sort through billing errors made by the NYC real estate and water depts, and that took many hours and phone calls. Ultimately, she found it too much of a burden so we hired a management company just to handle accounting matters — billing the residents, collecting the money, paying bills, etc. They charged us a small fee each month — something like $400 — and it was more than worthwhile. That helped a lot.
deanbh | 7 years and 8 months ago
We have a self managed 6 apt coop…..its fine.
We rotate President/Treasurer roles every 2nd year, piece of cake.
ggman | 7 years and 8 months ago
I was president of a self managed co-op for 11 years. It’s too expensive for a coop with less than 15 units to take on a management company; and the costs of the management company will drive up monthly maintenance.
However, it’s extremely important for a small self managed co-op to maintain a real board, have documented annual meetings with minutes and maintain finances in an organized and transparent manner; with good books and annual accounting statements. Otherwise, you run the risks of banks not wanting to issue mortgages into the building, which means owners can’t sell, and you will have disaster on your hands.
After that, learning what is involved in building maintenance has a learning curve, but becomes easier after a while.
If your current group of owners can self manage effectively, however, your monthly average maintenance will become lower, which will actually make the building more attractive to potential buyers, and even increase the value of units. We never had a potential buyer reject us for being self managed, and we never had a bank refuse to issue a mortgage into our building.
Good luck.