Subscribe for Daily Updates!
I agree with Mark and Ned, however there are some additional things that can be done if the Board is in agreement.
1). A Board letter to the Holder of Unsold Shares (Sponsor) letting them know their tenant is in breach of the House Rules, or Bylaws, or Proprietary Lease - whatever are involved;
2). The same letter from your Management Company to the H-of-US;
3). followed by a letter (when nothing improves) from the Board's/Coops Lawyer with a demand to correct the situation.
4). Then the Board authorizes the attorney to issue what is known as a 'Notice To Cure' document. This establishes a set of demands, based on legal criteria, and a reasonable deadline (relative to the nature of the issue) for the 'Cure' to occur by, if it doesn't, the Board can then move to force the divestiture of the apartment legally from the shareholder.
Because, the Sponsor is still a shareholder, and while they have some special exclusions as to sales etc. they are still a shareholder and you have a relationship with them, and not the tenant. That is your point of attack. It can work. Don't let his Management Company who handles property for him screen or buffer the shareholder from you, they don't actually have those rights due to the fact that they are not the shareholder, the Sponsor is. However, be prepared for verbal promises, assurances, all stall tactics. start a paper trail, and insist that all communication be in writing. It's not fast, but whether they admit it or not, they can actually lose ownership of the shares. None of the above applies to Condo's, only to Coop's.
By the way, if it is a Proprietary Lease breach, and they have really angered a very large portion of the Shareholders, you can do super-majority vote of Shareholders to force the sale. and that (Prop. Lease Votes, not Bylaws- that has to be at a specially called meeting) can be done by a mail vote based on a carefully and legally written motion.
You don't actually have a legal relationship with the tenant, you, as a Coop/Board have a relationship with the shareholder of the shares related to that apartment. You therefore have to direct your efforts to dealing with the shareholder, who is answerable for and responsible for, ultimately, the behavior of their tenant(s). They are in a bad position given the rights of Rent Stabilized Tenants under the law, and the Court being very, and appropriately, protective of the disabled and seniors with possible dementia issues. Is there any family with responsibility here? A guardian? You might need to contact social welfare services etc. in the process. IF there is anything that is occurring that is a potential endangerment of that person to themselves or the other shareholders then you need to call the Police, or Fire Department, especially to get it on record. Do not enter the apartment at all, if there is an emergency and the Board has rights under those conditions, there must be at least one Board member to accompany the Super, and it is better if a Police Rep or Fire Dept Rep is with you, as they have legal protection that you do not. IF you enter without them and there is a problem, or question as to the 'realness' of the emergency, you can be in a lot of trouble.
The most important thing is to start a paper trail.EVERYTHING in writing, return receipt, and consistent, do not let time lapse as the Court will view it as not current or just occasional. Your best shot is to leverage the holder of unsold shares who has no protection from you writing and filing for breach of Prop Lease, Bylaws, House Rules, whatever is affected. You must keep an accurate log of times, dates, incidents and who reported to. Be proactive, issues do not usually go away by themselves, they tend to progress and deteriorate over time. Be kind, but be firm. You have an entire Coop to protect. It is best to involve your Coop attorney early in the process if you feel it is not going to be a simple matter.
Introduce yourself to other members of Board Talk! Log in below or register here.
Board Talk members who registered prior to March 9th, 2016 will need to reset their password.
Writing to the tenant is problematic because he has diminished mental capacity, possibly early dementia, and has an executor handling his affairs.
The issue is the tenant being unable to care for himself and being in an unsafe situation.
Thank you for rating!
You have already rated this page, you can only rate it once!
Your rating has been changed, thanks for rating!
Board Talk members who registered prior to March 9th, 2016 will need to reset their password.