Leni Cummins, a member of Cozen O’Connor’s Real Estate Practice, discusses the allocation of co-op expenses to pay for common costs in The New York Times. In the Q&A piece, a co-op shareholder asks if another shareholder, who has a roof garden and waters it with co-op water, should be paying more of the building’s water bill. While it may seem unfair to some that one shareholder is not charged by usage, co-op boards are required by New York state law to treat all shareholders equally and charge based upon the shares allocated to each apartment, not how much a utility is used.

“The law is set up to make sure that co-ops’ expenses are allocated based on the number of shares,” said Leni. “That’s the core premise of being in a co-op.”

To read the full article, click here.