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Fuel Storage Tanks: Are You Protected?

In recent months, both you and I have heard the experts on every side report on the increasing instability of our economy. With fluctuating energy costs and a tough housing market, many of us would like nothing better than to bury our collective head in the sand and wait until the trials and tribulations finally pass us by. However, we recognize that this option will neither better the situation nor protect our assets from further downfall and ultimate devastation. For owners of both residential and commercial properties who utilize oil heat as an energy source, one important financial and environmental safeguard is storage tank insurance.

Consider Condo Conversion to Make the Most of Your Property

As new member of the  POA, we read with interest the February 2008 issue which featured an article relative to condominium conversions and wanted to present the other side of the issue.  This article is written from the perspective of a property owner of a multiple dwelling unit or a cooperative complex considering conversion.

In our last conversion, the aggregate value of the community that converted to condominiums rose from approximately $21,000,000.00 pre conversion to over $45,000,000.00 after conversion.  While that increase also reflected a general increase in the housing market, the fact is that the process of conversion to a more marketable condominium product resulted in a tremendous increase in equity for the owners of that complex.  We could not understand the focus in the article on the potential for increased taxes on the condominium owners as a reason not to proceed with what amounts to a legal “name change.”  This type of logic is tantamount to refusing to invest in stocks that could appreciate because the profit may be taxable.  Applied to a conversion, the logic makes less sense given the fact that the property owner often sells the condominium units and the tax burden is paid by the new owners.  The conversion is designed simply to make the same property more valuable for the property owner.  Sophisticated investors understand that they can utilize the increased equity for refinance purposes or draw upon it for other investments.

Whatever Happened To The Good Ole Cockroach

By Scott Linde of PestPlus

Over the last few years the big commotion has been about the uprising of bed bugs.  And while bed bugs are a major concern, the good ole cockroach seems to be thriving and doing quite well. The most common cockroach we come across in multi-family housing is the German cockroach.

The German cockroach is light brown with two dark longitudinal stripes on the thorax. Adults are about 5/8-inch long and both sexes have fully developed wings. The number of eggs in the ootheca varies from 18 to 50 with a mean of 32, and the female carries the eggs until shortly before hatching. Female German cockroaches may occasionally help the nymphs emerge from the egg capsule.

Insurance & Risk Management for Property Owners-"Manage the Moving Parts"

By: Albert L. Sica, Managing Principal, ALS-UIC Insurance and Risk Management Consulting

When an insurance issue comes up, most people will call their broker with simple instructions, “Handle it”. While this is not uncommon, it is becoming increasingly dangerous to “abdicate” rather than delegate.  Insurance and Risk Management programs need to be understood by operators of residential real estate for what it is – a means of transferring the “financial impact” of  risk from the balance sheet of the property to a third party.  Managing the “moving parts” effectively will allow the organization to use insurance and non-insurance risk transfer to insulate the assets of the organization rather than having possibly significant uninsured exposure. Seems simple, right? Well in theory it is, in application, however it is a complicated process that needs to be well choreographed and executed. With the recent catastrophic weather related claims, estimated over $5.5 billion since April 1st, there is increased pressure to preserve underwriting profit. This is where the insurer takes your premium and doesn’t pay a claim.  It’s time to pay attention.