Teri Karush Rogers

Q. I rent in a great downtown building.  Construction recently started on something (not sure what it will be) a few floors below me, and now it has reached my window.  It will surely block my window, and even if I open it, I'll be about two feet away from the wall they are erecting.  As I live in a studio + home office, I will live in a dark room

Is there anything I can do?  Does my landlord or the other building have to compensate me?  I am starting to crave sunlight.

NYC rents are skyrocketing despite a shaky economy, reported the NY Times this weekend, and the situation for renters is only going to get worse, in part because stricter lending standards mean fewer renters can opt out and buy an apartment instead.

• More renters stayed put this summer, which is maybe why you couldn't find a decent apartment (Prudential Douglas Elliman 3Q Market Report)
• Rents up 5% from last summer, while fewer than 1 in 10 renters score concessions, compared to 45% a year ago (

 Q.  I'm on the board of a 75-unit co-op trying to come up with ways to raise money without raising maintenance fees.

We currently charge for storage cages, bike storage and use of our small gym.  What are some other potential things for which we can charge residents? It would also be helpful if you could provide a sense of how much other buildings charge.

Today marks the final column by Openthedoor-man, who has been filing biweekly on BrickUnderground for nearly two years. We are sad to see him go and wish him luck with his literary endeavors.  We also urge any other NYC doormen with a knack for writing, an eye for detail and a yen to document life on the front lines to step forward and drop us a note.