40-50 E. 10TH STREET

Water can sneak into a building from anywhere. At 40-50 East 10th Street in Manhattan's Greenwich Village, it was joints in the front sidewalk allowing water to flow in and cause problems."We were worried about flooding damage and erosion, and water-main problems that caused flooding in our building,’ says co-op board president Larry Hohlt. So how did the 114-unit building handle it?

“The building is solid,” says Larry Hohlt, the retired lawyer who also heads up the nine-member board at what he calls a “classic prewar” — this 107-unit East Village co-op.

For proof, he points to a worker who tried to drill through a wall – only to break his drill bit on the brick that lay beneath the surface. “They built these buildings very, very well,” he says of the Depression-era property. “The building aged gracefully.”

When a prospective buyer wants to view the minutes of a condo or co-op board before purchasing an apartment, it's important to take the request the seriously. "If the board declines," says David L. Berkey, a partner at Gallet Dreyer & Berkey, "I think that can detract from the saleability of the apartment or may affect the pricing,"

Most boards release an edited version of minutes, or a summary, that leaves out specific details on a variety of topics, such as financial issues, potential litigation, and debates over purchases and contracts before they are made. Very few boards go to the other extremes: detailing and releasing everything from the meeting in their minutes or releasing nothing at all.

My wife and I lived in a house in Brooklyn Heights for almost 30 years before moving to 40-50 E. 10th Street nearly 12 years ago. It's a great building, with a wide range of residents, a healthy assortment of children. Old-world charm and new-world amenities: two private gardens and a cardiovascular exercise room. It is also walking distance to both the East and West Village. To keep the property sound and attractive, two years ago the co-op board created a 10-year capital plan.