Like a python that has swallowed a deer and now needs to rest while digesting it, the Illinois General Assembly emerged from a 2014 session full of important common-interest community association legislation, and paused in 2015 to digest w…
Change is a part of life; and that’s especially true if you’re talking about living in an urban condo community, where no building ever stays the same for too long. Renovations are done, capital improvements are required and even upgrades …
When you lived alone, designing your space was easy. You went to the paint store, selected your favorite colors, came home and did the deed. But then you got married, and decorating got a little trickier. Every design decision had to get a…
The best association boards in the Windy City—those that accomplish the business of their communities effectively—often seem to have members with similar habits. By the same token, poor boards frequently make similar mistakes. But even goo…
Dealing with service vendors is a daily necessity for any condo development or HOA community; there are always things that need to be repaired, replaced, replenished, serviced, cleaned or renovated. Among the laundry list of vendors that C…
Social media impacts just about everyone…few escape its presence in personal life or the business world. Whereas Facebook was once a leading platform for millennials, the portal has increasing appeal to the aging demographic, especially in…
Chicago, the third largest city in the United States, is a multicultural hub that thrives on the diversity of its nearly 3 million residents and 77 distinct neighborhoods. Nestled on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Chicago is trav…
The building blocks of all homeowner’s associations are the community's respective bylaws, administrative documents and house rules. Equally important are legal documents that define critical information and other action items, such as ter…
Condos and homeowner associations have made headlines over the years for passing all kinds of overreaching and downright silly rules and regulations—everything from forbidding the flying of the American flag to having prohibitions about ha…
The “Dream Team” label is often used to describe a perfect combination of highly-skilled people drawn together for a particular purpose. The 1992 U.S. mens' Olympic basketball team is probably the most famous example, but 'dream teams' hav…