"Secondary Residence Not Allowed." That line appears in the general policies on Horizon House's building page. Horizon House is the 30-acre co-op complex on Horizon Road in Fort Lee, built in the 1970s. On The Plaza's page for 1500 Palisade Avenue, the same field reads "Secondary Residence Allowed." Both pages carry a September 30, 2026 stamp.
For a long-time Bergen County homeowner who plans to downsize and spend winters in Florida, that one line decides whether the purchase can work. In a Fort Lee co-op, the building's written policies set the limits on how you can use your unit, who can buy it, and how much of the price you can borrow. Those limits differ a lot from one building to the next. The kitchen, the view, and the monthly maintenance come after that.
One Snowbird Plan, Tested Against Two Buildings
Take a common plan. A couple sells the family house, buys a co-op near the George Washington Bridge, and spends several months a year in South Florida. Depending on the year, they may want to keep the apartment empty while they are away or rent it out.
At Horizon House, the policy page lists secondary residence and pied-a-terre use as not allowed. It also says subletting is allowed with board approval, up to a maximum of eight years in total. Short-term rentals and Airbnb are not allowed. So the part of the plan that involves renting the unit to a board-approved subtenant for a period has a path. Treating the apartment as a second home does not.
At The Plaza, secondary residence is allowed. Pied-Ã -terre use, subletting, short-term rentals and Airbnb are all listed as not allowed. That is close to the reverse. The apartment can be one of two homes, but it cannot be rented to anyone while the owners are in Florida.
Mediterranean Towers West at 555 North Avenue lists subletting, short-term rentals and Airbnb as not allowed. Its posted policy list does not address secondary residence or pied-Ã -terre status either way. A rule the page doesn't mention is a question for management before an offer. You can't read the silence as a yes.
Same town, same type of ownership, and three different answers to whether the couple's plan works. Price per square foot cannot show this, and neither can the listing photos.
The Financing Cap Decides Who Can Bid
Use rules filter how a buyer plans to live. Financing rules filter who can buy at all.
The Plaza's page sets maximum financing at 49% of the purchase price. A buyer there brings more than half the price in cash. Linwood Park is the 1,170-unit co-op of 26 five-story buildings. Its purchase instructions cap financing at 80% of the purchase price, and its sale worksheet sets a minimum qualifying income-to-expense ratio of 3:1.
The Plaza's page also restricts how a purchase can be structured. Co-purchasing is listed as not allowed. So are parents buying for employed or student children, corporate purchases, and diplomat purchases. Guarantors are not allowed either. For extended families thinking about pooling resources or putting a unit in one relative's name for another, those lines settle the question before anyone tours the apartment.
These rules go both ways. A downsizer with a lot of home equity may find a 49% financing cap irrelevant to their own purchase. The same cap matters again on the day they sell, because it limits their future buyers to people who can meet it.
Four Buildings, Side by Side
The table below shows what each building posted when this research was done. The Plaza, Mediterranean Towers West and Horizon House pages are dated September 30, 2026. Linwood Park's purchase application carries a "REV. 12/21" revision mark, so treat its terms as something to confirm.
| Policy | Horizon House | The Plaza | Mediterranean Towers West | Linwood Park |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Secondary residence | Not allowed | Allowed | Not stated on page | Not stated on form |
| Subletting | Up to 8 years total, board approval | Not allowed | Not allowed | One-year lease, board approval |
| Pets | 1 pet under 30 lbs, upon approval | Not allowed | Not allowed | Not permitted |
| In-unit washer/dryer | Not allowed | Allowed | Not allowed | Not stated on form |
| Max financing | Not stated on page | 49% of price | Not stated on page | 80% of price |
| Buyer application fees | $300 building, $300 management, $50 per applicant credit check | $650 application, $350 processing | $500 application, $500 move-in fee | $350 processing, $75 fast-track |
One more building helps fill in the picture. The Colony at 1530 Palisade Avenue is a co-op, and its official site says owners may install their own in-unit washer/dryer. Its public page does not list the other rules in the table.
Why the Fall Market Makes These Rules Matter More
In August 2026, Bergen County's townhouse-condo category had 656 listings in inventory, up 27.1% from 516 in August 2025, according to NJ Realtors. Months' supply rose from 2.9 to 3.7. Sellers received 99.6% of list price, down from 101.7% a year earlier. Days on market rose from 42 to 45. Those are countywide figures. NJ Realtors did not publish a Fort Lee town report for the period.
That gives buyers more room than they had a year ago, and more choices. It also means every building restriction carries more weight. When inventory is tight, a buyer may accept a rule that doesn't fit their plans because nothing else is for sale. With 3.7 months of supply, that buyer can pick a building whose rules fit. Each restriction narrows the group of people who can buy a given unit. That narrower group is what a seller faces when it's time to sell, so a buyer who reads the rules now is also reading their own future resale.
The countywide median for this category was $530,000 in August 2026, down 0.9% from a year earlier. That figure combines all of Bergen County's attached housing. It says nothing about which Fort Lee building suits a particular buyer.
Costs Due Before and At Closing
The application fees in the table are only part of what changes hands.
- Mediterranean Towers West lists a shareholder transfer fee of $1.50 per share, due at closing. The selling shareholder pays it. Its $500 move-in fee includes $250 that is refunded if there is no damage.
- Linwood Park requires $500 deposits from both buyer and seller. It also collects a non-refundable closing contribution equal to three months' maintenance for working capital.
- The Plaza requires homeowner's insurance with at least $500,000 in personal liability coverage. Its garage spaces rent for $125 a month, added to the maintenance invoice.
- Domecile, the platform where three of these buildings post their packages, charges its own fees on top of the building's. These include a $145 initiation fee for an applicant starting a sale, an $85 digital submission fee for a purchase, and a 5% admin fee on building fees.
The Plaza's page also lists virtual board interviews. That's a practical detail for a buyer who may already be in Florida when the board schedules its review.
The Document Order Before an Offer
Most of these documents can be ordered before you sign anything. Horizon House, for example, sells its offering plan, bylaws, proprietary lease and building financials at $50 each. A sensible order:
- The building policy page. Check secondary residence, subletting, pets, laundry, financing, and purchase-structure rules against your actual plans for the next several years.
- The proprietary lease. Horizon House's posted lease is labeled 2021 and was uploaded June 12, 2026.
- The bylaws. Horizon House's version was posted June 12, 2026.
- The financial statements. Horizon House's most recent posted statement covers 2023 and was uploaded March 20, 2026. Ask whether a newer one exists. Monthly maintenance can include property taxes and payments on the building's underlying mortgage, and major repairs can be funded through special assessments.
- Any separate sublet resolution. Linwood Park's rental application refers to a "Sublet Policy-Resolution No. 1" whose terms are not printed on the form.
Board approval and lender approval are separate steps. One New Jersey co-op lender says a typical board package includes financial statements, tax returns, employment verification and personal references. A lender that will finance a purchase still has to accept the specific building.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I keep a Fort Lee co-op as a second home while I live in Florida?
It depends on the building. The Plaza lists secondary residence as allowed and Horizon House lists it as not allowed. Mediterranean Towers West's page doesn't address it, so ask management in writing.
Can I rent my unit while I'm away?
Horizon House allows subletting up to eight years in total with board approval. The Plaza and Mediterranean Towers West list subletting as not allowed. All three prohibit short-term rentals and Airbnb.
Is there a flip tax?
None of the sale-fee tables reviewed here lists a flip tax. Mediterranean Towers West charges a per-share transfer fee at closing. A missing line on a fee table doesn't prove there is no fee, so confirm it with the building and your attorney.
Are these rules permanent?
No. Boards can amend policies, and some posted forms carry older revision dates. Everything above reflects what was posted as of late September 2026.
If a Fort Lee co-op is part of your downsizing or Florida plan, Scott Selleck and The Selleck Group can check each building's posted policies and documents against your plans before you make an offer. Schedule a consultation to start with the buildings that fit your plan.
