Co-Ops all over the city have been forced to raise their maintenance fees recently, largely due to skyrocketing property taxes. Last night, the Seward Park Co-Op Board decided on a different approach: raising sublet fees shareholders must pay from 100 percent of their maintenance payment to 150 percent. It's a controversial move, to say the least. 

By the time they cover the sublet fees, maintenance fees and mortgage payment, shareholders who choose to sublet wouldn't even come close to recouping their costs. At the same time, some shareholders are dismayed that the board has chosen not to raise the maintenance to cover a significant budget shortfall. In the past, Seward Park was able to rely on flip tax revenues but that source is evaporating faster than you can say "recession."

Posted by: Ed Litvak