Can You Clean Your Carpet and Be Courteous at the Same Time? (Yes)

Sept. 9, 2015 — Usually, when the subject of carpets at co-ops comes up, it's regarding a noise complaint and the 80 percent carpet rule. But in this week's Ask Real Estate column in The New York Times, Ronda Kaysen fielded a different type of carpet-related question. Someone in Washington Heights asks, "Does New York City have any rules or regulations about shaking rugs out a window, or beating them in a courtyard? Could a co-op board object to the behavior?" Kaysen gets imput from Dov Treiman, a Manhattan real estate lawyer, who explains that the city has no laws about cleaning rugs. "But," he cautions, "if your co-op board decides that shareholders should not be slinging carpets out their windows, it might be able to adopt a rule banning the practice. It would depend on whether the building’s governing documents allow the board to change building rules. Check your proprietary lease and house rules to see if a restriction already exists." Kaysen does add some good neighborly advice, however. "You might irk neighbors living below you (or mingling in the courtyard) who would not appreciate a shower of dust raining down from above. So perhaps you should consider a less dusty alternative for your carpets, like steam cleaning," she writes. Remember, courtesy costs nothing and goes a long way to keeping the entire co-op community happy.