Bad Idea: Buying a Co-op for Investment Purposes

Nov. 28, 2014 — What happens when you want to sublet your co-op to short-term renters for a month or two at a time? In the latest "Ask Real Estate" column in The New York Times, Ronda Kaysen sets a shareholder who wants to do just that straight. While the law may "allow you to turn your apartment into an extended-stay hotel," she explains, the co-op board might feel quite differently. Renting an apartment for fewer than 30 days violates state law, but few co-ops allow shareholders to sublet their apartments for short periods. You have to read the fine print on that proprietary lease carefully — it may include provisions against short-term leases. Even if it doesn't, you still have to get through the approval process. Since boards typically meet once a month, it may be weeks before a prospective tenant is approved and by then they will have probably found another place to crash without all the red tape.