September 20, 2022 E-mail sent to Board Members

 

Dear Board Members,

We are sitting with about $2,000,000 in the bank not earning interest.

We are paying 2.85% on the $2,000,000.

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Currently we are paying 2.85% on $2,000,000 which is $57,000 per year or $4,750 per month.

On $1,500,000 it cost the shareholders $42,750 or $3,562.50 per month.

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I think we should invest about $1,500,000 in Treasuries with yields at least 2.85%.

Tomorrow the Federal Reserve will probably raise rates again increasing the returns on the Treasuries.

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We need to have a strategic investment strategy going forward for the money sitting dormant 

in the bank account.

If we invest the money conservatively and prudently we can absorb some of these costs and even profit.

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See attached rates provided by JP Morgan.

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Approximate Treasury yields are as follows:

 

1 month  2.35%

3 month  2.93%

6month   3.6%

1 year     3.75%

2 year     3.85%

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Sent by and posted by Lennard Charles - Board President

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August 25, 2022

The Board appointed one new member who they felt was qualified and a long term shareholder to fill one of two vacancies on the Board from two Directors resigning.

On Wednesday, August 24th,  two meetings were scheduled at 6 pm and 6:20 pm in the Hudson Terrace office to interview two potential candidates to fill particularly the Treasurer position and to have a seat on the executive Committee.

Both were qualified.  This position is extremely important as 2339 Hudson Terrace Corp. lost $63,467 in 2021.

Fortunately the timing prior to the maturation of the existing 10 year loan was consummated at 2.85% interest rate making the cash flow manageable.

Also, there is $2,000,000 in reserves which should be invested rather than sit in an account not earning interest while the coop is paying 2.85% interest.   

Neither applicant could meet the requirements to fill the seat.

It was decided to wait until the annual meeting and vote to fill the vacant seat.

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Finally, one Board member is working with management to remove the 3 oil tanks still in the ground.  Bids were taken and the tanks should be removed shortly.  This is an obligation under the existing mortgage.

Lennard Charles, Board President

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June 27, 2022

Last night at 6:30pm the Board of Directors had a work session and then opened

the meeting to the shareholders at 7:15. 

The primary focus from my perspective was to provide greater transparency to the shareholders - the purpose of this website,

In addition the Board was encouraged to be more engaged and to provide responsible oversight of management and expenditures.

This is critical in order to keep maintenance stable and secure which in effect will allow values to be maintained.

Lennard Charles - Board President

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MEETING AGENDA 6/27/2022                                        

Board Work Session 6:30 Shareholders 7:15 via zoom

1. PSE&G Gas line installation

2. Approval of 2021 Audited Financial Statements

3. Cash Flow Analysis

4. Environmental - Oil tank removal

5. Application and Approvals

6. Communication and transparency

7. Committees creation

8. Review Resumes

9. Appoint Treasurer

10. Engineering Firm - Reserve study

11. Annual Meeting Date

12. 7th Street Ingress and Egress

13. New Business

14. Adjournment

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Posted by:  Lennard Charles - Board President

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REFINANCE

On May 5, 2022 the 2339 Hudson Terrace Corporation refinanced the underlying mortgage at 2.85%.

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The mortgage is interest only; principal amount $6,500,000 with a monthly payment of $15,437 per month.

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The refinanced loan was $6,000,000 at a rate of 3.78% and a monthly payment of $27,719 but was an amortized loan, meaning it consisted of interest and principal.

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The Board took into consideration we functioned at a negative cash flow for many years.

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By refinancing interest only we are now able to keep the maintenance more or less the same without an increase considering we are saving about $12,000 per month in cash flow.

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Our reserves are robust:

We have about $2,000,000 in reserves after the refinance.

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Also included is a $500,000 line of credit at prime + 1% (floor-4%).

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There is also a provision for prepayment without penalty up to 10% of the balance per year.

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Two other provisions were not included in the refinance:

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1: Granting a partial release for a portion of the parking lot.

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2. Providing approval for egress from the parking lot out of 7th street which is a paper street.

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I expect the Board will pursue the means of egress sometime in the near future as making the left turn onto Hudson Terrace is dangerous.

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We already had a meeting with Mayor Sokolich, the Police Chief and two traffic officers.

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Posted by:  Lennard Charles - Board President

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PAPER STREET - 7th Street

February 17, 2022

In the past during several occasions turning left onto Hudson Terrace was discussed due to the inability to view oncoming traffic at times, especially when the west side of the street between the driveways has vehicles parked.

It was discovered by David Carmel, Esq. that 7th Street, or the street separating the Hudson Terrace parking lot and the park is a paper street.

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Currently there are two - 2-family homes after the paper portion of seventh street.

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I reached out to Mayor Sokolich to request a meeting to discuss opening 7th Street for egress out of the rear parking lot.

The request was made as a safety and convenience measure.

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On February 17th at 1:30 the meeting was held.

Mayor Sokolich, Chief Hintze, two Fort Lee traffic officers, Richard Bendix, David Carmel, Esq. and myself attended the meeting which took place in the Municipal Building, second floor.

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The two traffic officers were going to sit by Hudson Terrace to observe the traffic pattern and get back with a report.

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We still have not received a report or feedback.

Posted by:  Lennard Charles, Board President

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DEVELOPERS PROPOSAL

As discussed with the Board, Lennard Charles Board President and Richard Bendix Property Manager have reached out to several builders regarding developing the rear parking lot at Hudson Terrace.  The concept is to have a developer build on the back parking lot with a structured deal resulting in a payoff of our underlying mortgage.

 

The underlying mortgage was originally $6,000,000, term of 30 years, due and payable or maturing in 10 years.  At such time of the "balloon" period the balance of the loan becomes due and payable.   

 

Balance of loan which was $6,000,000 10 years ago or in 2013 will be about $5,000,000 when it is due- 10 years later or in 2023.  

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The purchase price the developer pays will be equal to the amount of about $5,000,000.

Such amount would be paid off after Municipal approvals and upon commencement of construction. 

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If the cooperative does not come to terms with the developer, then in about 2.5 years the remaining balance of the loan will have to be paid off or the loan will have to be refinanced. 

 

If the coop comes to terms with the developer then the deal will be structured to avoid or eliminate prepayment penalties.

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The savings to the cooperative would be about $30,000 per month resulting in a savings of $135p/m apx per unit which does not include any soft costs (bookkeeping, accounting, refinance costs and fees, etc.).  The estimated total savings to each shareholder is about $150 p/m all costs considered.  

 

Meetings, discussions and negotiations with James Demetrakis, a well known local developer have been taking place for about 6 months.  He has developed properties such as The Centre and Carlyle Towers- Cliffside Park, Crown Village, Panorama, Grand Cove, The Metropolitan – Edgewater, Hudson Mews and Metro Place – North Bergen to name a few.  

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His concept is to deck the rear lot creating covered parking for the shareholders of Hudson Terrace creating a foundation for a new building which will not exceed 90’ in height or about 3-4 stories above the existing 3 buildings.  Parking for the new building will be on the second level of the deck. 

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Amenities will be on the deck, the pool either on the deck or rooftop.

The new building will have about 100-125 units.  It will have amenities including a pool, health club, fitness center, lounge and business center.  The use of amenities by shareholders will be optional and voluntary and at the same cost the developer charges the residents of the new structure. 

The current cost for use of the amenities are estimated at $50 p/m.

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During the due diligence we discovered 7th Street is a “paper street” and will be the main ingress and egress for the new building.  Shareholders of Hudson Terrace who park in the rear can also use 7th Street.  Residents of the new building will be allowed ingress and egress off Hudson Terrace.

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The parking space layout will not change as the developer will build around the existing parking configuration.  The beneficiary of any extra parking fees for covered spaces has also been discussed.  Parking during construction must accommodate the relocating of cars temporarily.  Several ideas have been tossed around.

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Assuming the Board and shareholders agree with the plan proposed by the developer, then the Agreement will depend on plans submitted and approvals obtained by the Municipality. 

All costs related to the above will be the responsibility of the developer.

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Once the underlying mortgage is paid off, the Board and shareholders can discuss converting the cooperative to a condominium.  There are several advantages to either converting or keeping the current structure.  These advantages are subject for discussion at a later date.

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Posted by:  Lennard Charles, Board President

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JULY 2021

Interest rates are very low about 2.5% quoted from our existing lender and significantly less than the current rate of interest rate of 3.78%.

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I believe the Association should consider refinancing despite our existing loan would not mature for another year and we would have to pay a prepayment penalty.

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The risk of rates escalating to an amount higher than the current rate would be detrimental to values since Hudson Terrace is currently running at a negative cash flow and a maintenance increase would have to be implemented.

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The only way to have a healthy cash flow is to get a lower rate, possibly an interest only loan as opposed to a loan which amortizes.

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We will need to take out enough cash for reserves as well as a line of credit.

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The loan must not have any prepayment penalty which will allow us to pay down principal if we can keep within our budget.

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Posted by:  Lennard Charles - Board President