Offering Plans online?

Who did you hear this from?

A lawyer (not the old/bad one).

But this lawyer couldn't get it for you?

We were just speaking in general.

Check www.offeringplanet.com. A lawyer started it as a public service, and brokers will send in offering plans they come across.

Midboro has some of its buildings' offering plans online at www.midboro.com. There may be other managing agents doing that, but I haven't found them. Others have them online, but password-protected.

A few co-ops have theirs online, the most transparent being 350 Bleecker.

The NYS Attorney General has something in the works to make delivery online or maybe just easier, with CDs. You can now query to get the offering-plan #, and fill in a form to get copies sent you. They're pretty slow, as I've had my first request open for several weeks now.

The AG's search is at http://offeringplan.datasearch.ag.ny.gov/REF/welcome.jsp

The request form is at http://www.ag.ny.gov/freedom-information-request-form-coop-condominium-hoa-and-time-share-plans

Thank you for the great info, NWT!
Unfortunately, the building I'm interested in didnt appear on OfferingPlanet or MidBoro.

A follow-up question:

Assuming that an offering plan is not available online, Is there usually only 1 copy of an offering plan? Or are there copies that a lawyer can take? Or will the company send out their only copy?

I guess each management company has its own procedure. E.g., they might keep one copy and then photocopy as needed, or keep a scanned PDF copy and print as needed. I don't how they recoup their copying/printing costs, but they must do, as no paper leaves the office without being charged for.

Keep in mind that the offering plan isn't static. E.g., in a co-op where the sponsor or a Holder of Unsold Shares still owns x% of the shares, there's an amendment every year that'll include financials, who's on the board, list of unsold apartments with the total rent and maintenance, any amendments to proprietary lease and bylaws, etc. It's hundreds of pages.

Yes, I am aware that the offering plan is updated, but usually, quite old originally.

So from your first paragraph, it seems unlikely that, should an offering plan be sent out to an attorney, that would be the only copy, correct?

Correct, the managing agent will not send out their only copy.

It generally costs about $200 to get an offering plan from a managing agent, to recoup the cost of printing if nothing else. Lawyers generally don't like to read them as pdfs, and remember, these can be big (1,000+ pages) documents. I think the offering plan I have scanned for a Chelsea post-war is in 14 separate files for the plan and its several dozen amendments.

ali r.
DG Neary Realty