I would venture to say that 80% or more of the disputes that arise in condos and coops come from decisions around how big the reserves are, how they are managed and who has insight into "what is best". The more pricey the units the more likely there are to be big differences of opinions...
If you wanna risk setting yourself for conflict before you even move in asking for the specifics on the reserves is going to trigger it!
Honestly, you don't have to be a hedge fund guru to know that having some funds in even a solid but somewhat volatile stock that pays good dividends or a mutual fund that gnerally out performs unmanaged indices can be a way to legitimately "park" money that is unlikely to be spent while having it grow. This is not a completely uncommon thing at all -- I would venture to say that once upon a time MOST private clubs and such used this as a strategy to discourage newer members from wanting "upgrades". Image the scene -- you are younger guy that has just been graciously "admitted" to the High and Might Royal Oaks Golf , Bathing and Tennis Club of Old Money. Your wife is complaining that the showers are cold, the towels thread bare and sun chairs rickety. You decide to attend one of the bi-annual "Finance Cmt. Meetings" where the senior members dutifully listen to your wishlist and then say "well sport, your $50,000 equity stake now is tied up in Amagalamated Consolidated shares along with about $6M of other club members holdings, since the market is down we would have to take a loss to get enough cash to remodel. That wouldn't be very smart, would it sport?"
If you don't feel comfortable with that sort of "rite of passage" maybe a coop is not for you...
Quote:
Originally Posted by looksrich
agreed, but this is a co-op..not a hedge fund or private equity firm..
2008 and 2009 show unrealized losses back to back.. i understand 2008 was a horrid year, but 2009 equities recovered...
..this would lead me to believe securities aren't tucked into simple broad-market index DOW funds with low fees..
..but may actually be COMPANY and INDUSTRY specific (or even BRIC countries or emerging markets)..
..i'd actually be okay with it if securities were limited to maybe 20% of liquid assets but this makes up a huge chunk...
how realistic would it be for me to ask mgmt for every ticker for every security/mutual fund they hold?
Financial Statements and footnotes don't go that deep. thanks
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No! You make a big assumption that "all equities have tanked"...
