We need advice about the process. Oracle, you've lived in your place since you were 3, right? What about you guys, K&K? I have some specific questions that we could deal with on board or off board.

Fire away...but would love to see you that way we can show you our new place and see you! Boards and sponsers....we have/had an interesting situation in our building/closing. You can even thumb through The Cooperative Ofering Plan.

What's frustrating us right now is the OFFER PROCESS! The agent is asking a $1,000 "good faith check" when we make the offer. Also, the apartment is a "fixer upper" and we want to know a lot of things about it before we make the offer - like lead paint issues - but everyone we talk to makes us sound like we have three heads for wanting to know that before we make the offer. They say we'll figure that all out after the offer but before closing. But wouldn't that affect our offer price? And I don't want to lose $1,000!

Also, some people tell us to work with a "buyer's broker" but we can't find any in Queens. So we've been seeing apartments just listed in the newspaper.

I just want to make sure the apartment doesn't have huge $$$$$ hidden costs that I can't build into the offer, but both the broker and our own lawyer are sounding hostile to us finding out. What did you do regarding the offer and pre-offer research?

We're going to look at the place again today at 11 ...

It's amazing how cryptic the whole process can be. Again many things were undisclosed to us such as things regarding the financial state of the building and the sponser. Perhaps the scafolding should of givn us a warning but the boards want you in. Esp in Sunnysie and Jackson Heights.You are looking in Jackson Heights? Ask what % of your building is renters opposed to owners? As you know Red the tides have shifted a bit even in the NY real estate market. It's not like properties are being snatched up right away. So ask the important questions and if theres hedging on their part well their probably hiding something. We found our apartment through a broker on Craigs list. Still worked with a broker. Not sure if the buyers broker would cater to you best interest....Kelly was much more involved in the process the I. Unfortunately she's in LA and gets back this evening but will respond first thing tomorrow.

Yeah, it's Jackson Heights. And it's a 100% owners, no renters, pre-war complex. Do you have my cell phone number, Kennedy? If you don't, you can find it by googling my full name and the usual cell phone area code for NYC ... it's in the second link Call me tomorrow.

KM here...we'll talk tomorrow. Good luck today.

Red - the only person who will watch out for your interests in the NYC real estate game is the lawyer you retain yourself. If you are going to lay out $1000 and make an offer, now is the time to get an attorney.

hi, it's Kelly.
Red, the lawyer we used was good. I liked him.
I pretty much dealt with the whole process more than KM did and would be happy to talk to you about it. I am in LA now (my first time here, visiting my sis who just moved here from NY, it is so different from NY, like NY better) but tomorrow evening we can talk maybe if KM gets your number. we had to put down the $1000 good faith money too.

Hi there - I have similar questions so was wondering how/if any of your questions were resolved. I'm currently considering a fixer-upper coop apartment in Queens (sponsor sale) and no one I have asked seems to think I will be able to get an indication that the board will approve my plans to renovate until AFTER closing. But my offer and willingness to buy the apartment is contingent on my being able to renovate it to make it liveable and (since I'm paying so much to have it reonovated) to have it exactly the way I want it. Even a lawyer I consulted with (who by the way gave me attitude, so I won't be using him) basically told me I'd have to buy it in hopes of getting board approval but no guarantees. The biggest issue is I want to knock down part of a wall and move the intercom.Any advice or thoughts on what my next steps should be? Also, I have not looked at the building financials, proprietary lease or bylaws yet but everyone tells me that happens during contract negotiations, not necessarily before the offer - is that right?

You can either ask people on a website who don't know anything about the building, or you might ask for the name of the Board President and ask someone who knows something. Guess which option I'd choose.

Hey. We made an offer on a co-op and got turned down; it ended up that the real estate agent was just jerking us around, encouraging us to make a lowball offer so they could use it to leverage the seller into accepting a simultaneous higher offer from someone else. (We weren't given a chance to counter-offer.) Basically, assume everyone in the process except your lawyer is lying to you all the time, and you'll be fine.

Financials/lease/bylaws does happen after the offer is accepted, but before the contract is signed. One thing that's different about NYC from the rest of the country, apparently, is that acceptance of a verbal offer is entirely non binding. In other words, until that contract is signed, you can back out at any time with no penalty. (Your seller can also spontaneously turn around and screw you, which is the flip side.) So feel free to sort of throw offers out there for properties you basically like, and be prepared to bolt during the next phase.

Talking to the board president may or may not work; we were able to talk to a board member in one building, but in another the guy we spoke to got all huffy and said it was against the rules for him to talk to potential buyers. We were told that what you have to do is go to the building's management office, which may be in, say, Howard Beach, and read the past two years' worth of the building's board minutes for hints as to what the major issues and problems are in the building.

Oh - also - you can put contingencies in offers and contracts, you know. So you might as well do so.

In summary, this is a nasty, noxious, evil process full of unpleasant people who are out to foil you, starting and most importantly the agent (who represents the seller and has no obligations to you). Move accordingly. We finally found a lawyer, at least, so we're ready for when we make our next offer.

wow, sorry Red. What a drag. better luck next time. our first offer went sour too, but we're happy where we are now.