NEW YORK CITY

A READER ASKS: Our co-op is usually well maintained. A few weeks ago, however, one of the shareholders called the super to complain about cockroaches. A few days after that I found and killed a couple in my apartment. We've never had bugs before. I suspect the source of the infestation is a possible hoarder on the floor above me. How can we prove this without violating anyone's privacy, and if it does turn out to be a hoarder, what should we do next? 

Old joke: Marriage is an institution. And so who wants to live in an institution? Bah-dump-dump. 

Here's the point: When you live in a co-op or condo, you live in a corporate institution run by a board of directors — who happen to be volunteers who can leave the board if they burn out, move away, or find they need to spend more time with the kids. Once two or three of them of do, your institution starts to lose something that more traditional institutions do not: institutional memory of decisions, policies, and rules made eight, nine years ago that no one remembers anymore.

The first week of December has come and gone and pretty soon it will be holiday party time. Brickunderground.com compiled a list of do's and don'ts for hosts to ensure they don't tick off building staff and neighbors. Advice includes letting the doorman and immediate neighbors know ahead of time that you're having a party; covering floors with cheap carpet, so dancing shoes don't drive downstairs neighbors batty; quieting down by 10 or 11 p.m.; and making sure party guests don't spill out of the apartment into common areas. If you're the one throwing the party, you may think these rules are an 11 on a Scrooge scale of 1-10. Not so much if you're the poor soul on 6C being serenaded by cackling merry people clomping up the stairs, past his door, to smoke on the roof. 6C probably didn't sign up for three or more hours' worth of foot traffic and noise. So even if party rules are already covered in your bylaws, the time is ripe for boards to distribute gentle reminders to residents who plan to host parties, to make sure guests have a good time without disturbing the rest of the building residents.

A READER ASKS: Some of the tenants in our co-op have dogs. When they go away for the weekend or on vacation, they hire professional dog-walkers. This causes friction among tenants who don't have pets because strangers are coming in and out of the building, usually with packs of rowdy dogs. And what if someone masquerading as a dog-walker robs an apartment in our building? It hasn't happened to us yet, we want to safeguard our building against all these issues. What can we do?

When we think of co-op or condo amenities, we tend to think of fitness centers, bike rooms, storage facilities, and garages. But one amenity that nobody should overlook is the playroom. Here we review why, as well as the protections your building will need to have in place.

Take a look at the numbers. How many children live in the building? If your building has experienced a baby boom, the number could have jumped from 3 to 25. Even if you have only a few kids, a playroom is a solid investment. It's the perfect space to host classes for toddlers and stage other activities. Parents can also rent out the playroom for birthday parties and play dates or use it on rainy days.

A basement storage facility can be a double-win for building owners. It provides co-ops and condos with a new source of income at relatively little cost, while offering building residents a desirable additional service. However, it can also be a source of problems, if you don't plan carefully.

Not long ago, the rat situation at an Upper West Side condominium got so bad residents who would return home late at night would walk in the middle of the street. According to one of the condo's board members, rats would be scurrying back and forth from the tree wells and running around people's ankles.

The board member, who asked to remain anonymous because of the stigma associated with rats, was involved in several local community groups. Therefore, she knew about the city's Rodent Academy program — or Rat Academy, as it is often called. Started in 2009, the program offers a half-day course on how to identify rat infestations and what to do about them.

A READER ASKS: A shareholder in our co-op has moved out and now has a subtenant living in his unit. This subtenant went through all the proper co-op application channels, including signing an appropriate sublease. Now this subtenant wants to bring in an unrelated roommate. Can the board require the roommate to go through the same application process as the original subtenant, or is the original subtenant covered under the New York Real Property Law (RPL) Section 235f allowing her to bring in her own roommate? I know the law applies to tenants. Does it also apply to subtenants?

The client’s tale: A managing agent for a New York co-op neglected to pay water and sewer bills for one of three water meters for several years. While performing an audit, the holder of the property’s mortgage discovered the problems and shortly thereafter received an in rem notice from the New York City Department of Finance. As a protective measure, the mortgage-holder advanced payment of the water bills with accrued interest and penalties. It then sent several letters to the managing agent requesting reimbursement. The agent ignored the letters.

You're on the board of a 74-unit co-op with 600 windows, which, the shareholders say, need to be replaced. What happens if, when you are finally ready to tackle the project, you discover it's going to cost an estimated half a million dollars? How do you proceed? Here we review the pros and cons of five standard options so the task doesn't feel as daunting.