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PODCAST

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos

Habitat Magazine

From building repairs and maintenance, energy upgrades, insurance, lobby redesigns, accounting and financing - the challenges facing co-op and condominium board directors are endless. In this series, Habitat Magazine editors interview New York City experts to learn how problems have been solved at their client co-op and condo buildings. We take a deep dive into the issues being confronted, the possibilities for solutions, the costs, the challenges, and the outcomes. Habitat Magazine, founded in

business how to

All Episodes

13:43

When Century-Old Gas Pipes Finally Fail

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2026/01/05

A 1912 building on the Upper East Side failed its gas inspection and faced a terrifying reality: repairs could exceed half a million dollars, with residents losing cooking gas for an indefinite period. Peter Varsalona, principal at RAND Engineering & Architecture, walked the board through a systematic approach that ultimately saved them over $300,000 and minimized apartment disruptions. Varsalona explains exactly how they isolated the problem areas and why his testing strategy worked, but...

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9:48

Why Your Governing Documents Are Sabotaging Your...

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/12/29

A newer Upper West Side condominium was facing a crisis: three water damage claims over four years had pushed their insurance premium from $50,000 to $130,000. Sophie Bird, Senior Vice President at IMA Financial Group, reveals how her team discovered the real culprit wasn't the building itself, but something hidden in the bylaws that was driving up claim costs. Bird explains the unconventional strategy her team used to help this condo escape the expensive non-admitted insurance market and sta...

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15:55

Laser Scans and Leaning Towers: How Technology Is...

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/12/22

What happens when a multi-million-dollar condo conversion hides serious structural problems in plain sight? Restoration architect Hannah Sebastian, co-founder of Mayta + Sebastian Architecture, walks board directors through a real-world case involving a landmarked former church near Washington Square, where leaks, failing marble, and a visibly — but not obviously — leaning spire sparked years of debate with shareholders. Board members will learn how advanced tools like laser scanning and BIM ...

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16:26

The Hidden Price of Delaying Your FISP Inspection

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/12/15

An 18-story Upper West Side condo thought they were being financially prudent by delaying their facade inspection. Instead, they ended up paying half a million dollars more than they should have. Gene Ferrara, president at JMA Consultants, walks through exactly what went wrong with this building and why the problems kept compounding. The terracotta repairs turned out to be far more complicated than anyone expected, involving structural steel issues and difficult conversations with residents a...

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12:42

Cutting Cornice Costs Without Sacrificing Historic...

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/12/08

When a 1927 Emery Roth building on the Upper West Side faced a crumbling cornice, the board could have spent a fortune on traditional terracotta and waited two years for installation. Instead, Oswald Bertolini and Eric Vonderhyde, partners at Bertolini Architectural Works, came up with an unconventional solution that cut both costs and timelines while satisfying Landmarks' strict requirements. This conversation reveals the collaboration between architects, manufacturers, and preservationists ...

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12:29

How to Prepare for the Number 4 Oil Phase-Out

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/11/24

New York City’s phase-out of No. 4 heating oil is accelerating, and Jeff Cohn, Director of Energy Programs at Approved Oil, lays out the practical steps every No. 4 oil-fueled building must take to stay compliant, control costs, and avoid mid-winter emergencies. Drawing on a real-world conversion at 95 Park Terrace, he explains how to evaluate your tank room, prepare for DOB inspections, adjust older boilers for lighter fuels, and tap into the savings and cleaner performance of biofuel blends...

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11:02

What Happens When Nobody's Watching Your Election

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/11/17

A 200-plus unit Manhattan condo thought they were holding a routine virtual election. Votes were cast through Zoom chat and the condo emergency intervention was required to certify the results. In this episode, Corinne Arnold and Will Kwan from EZ Election Solutions explain why they were brought in to salvage the situation. They walk through what went wrong, why the managing agent running the election created problems nobody anticipated, and how the chaos could have been avoided entirely. The...

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12:47

How Smart Building Controls Pay for Themselves

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/11/10

Warren House, a 330-unit post-war condo in Murray Hill, was staring down rising utility bills and Local Law 97 fines. What happened next offers a blueprint for other buildings facing similar pressures. Robert Post, vice president of co-op and condo at Parity, walks through the challenges Warren House encountered with their fan coil heating and cooling system, the technology solution they implemented, and why their first-year results blew past initial projections. He explains their approach of...

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16:11

The Condo that Stopped Replacing “A with A”

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/11/03

Residents of 1 Grand Army Plaza — a sleek, all-glass condo in Brooklyn — struggled with sweltering corridors and soaring repair bills, and set out to find why. Unfortunately, the “why” turned out to be a fundamental design flaw in the building’s ventilation system. The fix, shared by Amalia Cuadra, senior director of engineering at En-Power Group, was a phased capital project that not only restored comfort but also cut energy use, improved the building’s letter grade, and reduced carbon emiss...

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15:22

Why Your Insurance Premium Just Tripled — and What To Do

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/10/27

Insurance carriers are abandoning New York buildings at an alarming rate, and your co-op or condo could be next. Jason Schiciano, co-president of Levitt-Fuirst Insurance and Bonding, reveals how a 108-unit cooperative saw their premium nearly triple after being non-renewed by their carrier. Learn why insurance companies are walking away from New York buildings and discover the red flags that could put your building at risk. Schiciano shares practical strategies to protect your building's insu...

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9:38

The Co-op That Lost Its Tax Break — and How It Got It...

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/10/20

When a small Manhattan co-op suddenly saw its budget spike, rising costs weren’t the culprit — it was an administrative filing error. Turns out the co-op had lost its co-op tax abatement worth $60,000 because its management company had missed the rule regarding prevailing wage requirements. Avi Zanjirian, partner at Czarnowski & Beer walks us through how the board discovered the oversight, fixed the problem, and ultimately got the abatement reinstated. Habitat’s Emily Myers conducts the i...

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12:19

Garage Ramps: The Canary in the Coal Mine

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/10/17

When a routine facade inspection uncovered a catastrophic structural failure, the garage at an Upper East Side co-op became a ticking time bomb. In this episode, Michael Monteiro, senior project engineer at Cowley Engineering, explains why ramps are the canary in the coal mine for structural issues, what warning signs residents can spot themselves, and how ignoring deterioration can lead to hundreds of thousands of dollars in repairs. With 1,600 NYC properties still non-compliant with new ins...

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23:29

The Simple System That Caught Over 3,000 Leaks

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/10/06

Water damage is insidious: it will eat into your building's budget and drive up insurance costs. John Rusk, president and co-founder of ProSentry, reveals how an affordable leak detection system can transform your building's risk profile through the story of a condominium that saved $300,000 on insurance after installing sensors throughout the building. You'll learn about the surprisingly simple installation process and how you may even end up with a discount on your insurance. If you're faci...

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11:06

Turn $100K Fines Into Smart Building Investments

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/09/22

Time is running out for New York co-op and condo boards facing Local Law 97's 2030 compliance deadline, but there's a smart path forward. Punit Shah, Vice President of Existing Buildings at Bright Power, shares the surprising reality facing one Upper East Side condo that was looking at massive penalties. Shah reveals the three-phase approach that's transforming buildings across the city, from quick-payback retrofits to electrification readiness measures. Whether your building can achieve full...

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14:20

When Building Electrification Uncovers Decades of...

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/09/15

When a post-war Upper West Side co-op decided to electrify to meet Local Law 97 requirements, they thought they had a clear roadmap. But what started as a $2 million project quickly spiraled into something much bigger and much more complex. Tina Larsson, CEO of The Folson Group, reveals why even well thought out projects can double in cost and scope. If you're planning any major infrastructure work, her insights could save your building from similar surprises. Habitat's Emily Myers conducts t...

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7:15

When the Gas Goes Out: A Bronx Co-op’s Laundry Saga

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/09/01

Gas shutdowns are every building's nightmare, and depending on which service is affected residents could be without heat, cooking or laundry service for who knows how long. Getting service restored can open a can of worms though, particularly in a laundry room. Ashley Erichsen, an account executive at Automatic Industries, explains why and details the journey of a large Bronx co-op to get its laundry room back up and running after a gas shutdown. Habitat’s Emily Myers conducts the interview. ...

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14:47

Why Your Sponsor May Still Owe Your Building Money

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/08/25

Board members taking control of new condominiums need to engage an independent accountant to perform a proper financial true-up — before it's too late. Amy Jennings, a manager at WilkinGuttenplan, reveals how one Manhattan condo board discovered their sponsor owed them six figures only after the waiver period (when the sponsor markets the building by waiving common charges) ended. The building had secretly been running at a loss for at least a year. Worse, this isn't an isolated incident. Jen...

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11:13

How a Harlem Condo Uncovered Hidden Water Waste

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/08/18

Water waste is often a silent drain on your building’s finances, and it takes a bit of sleuthing to find the source. Alan Rothschild, president of the Vantage Group, a water cost management consultancy, reveals how one Harlem condominium discovered their commercial tenant was secretly using water-cooled refrigeration equipment that bypassed their sub-meter, costing the building thousands annually. He shares practical strategies for identifying waste, the real cost of sub-metering commer...

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9:21

The Hidden Alteration Risk That Could Bankrupt Your...

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/08/11

When an Upper East Side co-op’s gas pipes failed Local Law 152 inspection and service was immediately shut off, what happened next could have cost over half a million dollars. Instead, smart planning kept repairs under $200,000, and engineering expert Peter Varsalona, principal at Rand Engineering and Architecture, reveals the step-by-step strategy that saved this building from disaster. Learn why testing gas systems in sections was crucial and how individual apartment meters created unexpect...

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17:08

Why Your Building Could Lose Insurance Coverage Tomorrow

Problem Solved! For Co-ops and Condos ·

2025/08/04

Your building's insurance renewal just became a high-stakes game, and many boards don't even know they're playing. In this episode, risk control specialist Brice Reynolds of Mackoul Risk Solutions reveals how insurance companies are now aggressively using "loss recs" to cancel policies within 30 days, leaving buildings scrambling for coverage. You'll discover what these are, why simple sidewalk cracks and damaged curbs have become threats to your building's insurability and why old strategies...

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