co op (subletting, apartment, lease)

[jeanfc54]

what exactly is a co op how does one go about renting buying one and is it yours for all time??

[Viralmd]

In a co-operative you own shares in the corporation that owns the building. You will have a proprietary lease to your apartment, but don't really 'own' the apartment. Nevertheless, when you sell your shares, you sell the rights to the proprietary lease to your apartment.

Like most corporations, co-ops have a board. They review your application to join the co-op, including your financial history, references, employment history, etc. They often (usually, actually) ask for personal interviews. In Manhattan, many boards also ask you to bring along your dogs to the interview.

Renting a co-op can be easy or difficult, depending on the board. In Manhattan, it's usually difficult to get a co-op to agree to this, since many people actually WANT a co-op because the other shareholders are vetted and that might be required for anyone subletting a co-op, as well.

In a condominium you own your actual dwelling, from the walls in. You have no say about who else lives there. And subletting is not regulated by a board. Thus, when a subletter causes a problem, there's less that can be done about it. This happened to a good friend: a subletter above him kept letting the tub overflow, causing damage to the bathroom below, and wouldn't let people in to fix the problem. It's harder than most people believe to evict someone!