Supers sometimes earn extra money by independently providing services for residents. David Baron, a principal of Metro Management, in Long Island City, reports that "more and more buildings now are discussing whether or not they want to permit private work to continue in the apartments, because it's a very hard thing to regulate. A number of buildings have said, ‘No private work.'" Even if the job is done on the super's personal time, "it becomes a problem when the private work goes bad and [owners] look to the condo or co-op as the ultimate guarantor of the work."

Some properties have adopted a charge-back system. "We manage a 750-unit garden development in Queens," Baron says. "They have a system in place where they will [have the super] do work in your apartment – small plumbing, electrical, plaster work, tile, floor work. They charge a certain amount per hour for labor, with a guaranteed minimum first half-hour, and then they bill in 15-minute intervals. You're probably talking under $30 for the hour, so it's very reasonable. Parts are at cost. And since this is part of the [super's] normal work responsibilities, the work is done on the building's time."

In some cases, buildings have introduced restrictions on private work because "the system was being abused or something happened in an apartment that created a flood or damage," notes Baron. If supers are depending on the work as a way to earn additional money, there are other ways of providing this. "For example, rather than call in a painter for a hallway that needs painting, ask the superintendent if he wishes to paint it on his day off and negotiate a price with him. That's very commonly done."

Adapted from Habitat January 2008. For the complete article and more, join our Archive >>