Sarasota Commercial Realtor Shares Some of Her Listings

Sarasota Commercial Realtor Susan Goldstein

Susan Goldstein is a Sarasota commercial realtor with business experience.  She received her MBA from Columbia University and worked in marketing and advertising for such firms as American Express and Proctor and Gamble.  Today she uses those skills to market commercial property in the Sarasota-Bradenton area.  We recently saw her again at the Commercial Investment Division of the Sarasota Association of Realtors and she agreed to share some of her listings with us.

1. 1961 Floyd Street.  This is a Medical Office Condo.  It is just over the $300000.
2. 1487 2^nd Street.  This is an investment property.  The value is in the income and future development potential.

We hope these listings prove valuable for those of you who are thinking of starting or investing in a business in Sarasota.  For more information and listings, please contact:

Susan H. Goldstein, MBA

Commercial Specialist

Michael Saunders & Company

8325 Lakewood Ranch Blvd.

Lakewood Ranch, Florida  34202

941-907-9595 office

941-907-8802 fax

941-350-9747 cell

World Traveler Opens New Fine Food and Drink Store

Douglas Gourley has lived and traveled all over the world, trying the best food and drink it has to offer.

Now that he has closed that chapter of his life he lives in Sarasota and owns As Good As It Gets, a “Purveyor of Extraordinary Delicacies,” on Palm Ave.  As Good As It Gets celebrated its Grand Opening on Friday, September 7, with more than 300 people coming through the door over the course of the weekend.  We thought we’d catch up with Mr. Gourley after opening weekend and share his story with our readers.

An interior view of As Good As It Gets

With a Swiss mother, an American father, and born in Mexico, Mr. Gourley is definitely a World citizen.  What’s more, he worked for Pitney Bowes Inc. and 3M for 27 years on international assignments from South America to the Middle East.  His last assignment was as a managing director for one of 3M’s divisions in Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific.  After that he was slated to return to 3M headquarters in St. Paul, Minnesota but, with a little nudging by his wife, decided Florida would be nicer.  So he left “big box” retail and used his vast experience in fine international food and drink to open an exclusive retail store here in Sarasota.

An interior view of As Good As It Gets

Mr. Gourley provides only best in category food, wines, and spirits from around the world.  Visitors can taste the charcuterie, the carnivore’s favorite, with prosciutto and serrano hams, salmon, pate, foie gras, and more.  If meat isn’t your favorite, you can try the more than 35 types of European cheeses that Mr. Gourley keeps in his shop.  The dessert lovers will enjoy the exclusive Belgian and Swiss chocolates that can’t be found in any other area retailer.

An interior view of As Good As It Gets

Mr. Gourley and his staff strive to provide excellent service to match their exclusive culinary offerings.  As Good As It Gets attracts an educated and cultured crowd that knows how to appreciate the finer things in life.  We hope that many of our readers go out and enjoy!

As Good As It Gets is located at 49 Palm Ave, Sarasota, FL.  They can be reached via phone at (941) 373-1839.  They are open from 10-6 Mon-Sat with every first Friday of the month being an “open till they leave” first Friday.

Coming up!  Caviar tasting with paired champagne: October 27, 2012.

Sarasota Businesses Could Qualify for BP Spill Settlement Money

Fort Walton Beach, Florida. Shop advertises “Slick Sale” on fudge. Local businesses say the area is experiencing many fewer visitors than usual due to the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

DID YOU OWN A BUSINESS ON THE FLORIDA WEST COAST IN 2010?  IF YES, YOU COULD BE ELIGIBLE FOR NEW BP OIL SPILL SETTLEMENT MONEY.

Sarasota litigation attorney, William Robertson, from Kirk Pinkerton law firm, recently asked Jaensch Immigration Law Firm to notify its clients that owners of businesses in Florida during 2010 could be eligible for BP oil spill settlement money under a new class action law suit.  The settlement agreement that was just preliminarily approved uses a mathematical formula to determine if the business owner qualifies for damages based on gross monthly revenue before, during and after the oil spill.  The relevant monthly revenue numbers that need to be reviewed by an accountant for a claim would be January 2007-December 2011.

Based on the location of the principal business address (different percentages apply to different areas), if the business owner had a dip in income during any three consecutive months (when averaged) from May  2010 through December 2010 compared to the same months in prior years (the owner gets to choose the benchmark from the  2007-2009 avg, 2008-2009 avg, or 2009) and then an increase in income over those same months in 2011 then the owner may qualify for damages.  If the owner qualifies, then there are different criteria for damages.

Mr. Robertson advises that business owners who may be interested should have their monthly financial records reviewed by an accountant.  He has offered a free consultation to any business owner or individual who thinks they may have suffered a financial loss during that timeframe in order to determine whether they may have a claim.  Cases that are accepted, will be accepted on a “contingency fee” basis meaning that there will be no attorneys fees owed unless there is a settlement paid from the class action fund.

Our law firm plans to take advantage of his offer.  For more information, email Mr. Robertson at wrobertson@kirkpinkerton.com (and listen in to “Let’s talk law” with Bill Robertson every Friday from 4 to 5 on WSRQ Sarasota talk radio 106.9 FM 1220 AM).

Sarasota International Business Lunch

A few weeks ago, Jaensch Immigration Law Firm was invited to attend the annual International Business Lunch hosted by Jorge Chacon and the Gulf Coast Latin Chamber of Commerce. The International Business Lunch was started as a way to build connections between Florida’s Sun Coast and Latin America.

Michael Marquet, Marketing Coordinator at Jaensch Immigration Law Firm, attended the lunch along with representatives from several US-Latin American Chambers of Commerce, local business people and county commissioners.

The topic of discussion this year was Colombia. Jay Almeida, President and CEO of the International Business Council of Florida, spoke about the opportunities that this now largely peaceful country presents. Colombia has signed several new free trade agreements in recent years. Their free trade agreement with the United States was ratified this spring. Both sides stand to gain from the opening of Colombia’s economy to trade. Colombia’s proximity to the United States makes it an ideal gateway for goods coming into or out of South America. Moreover, Colombia’s lack of a large government debt and low inflation rate make for stable economic projections moving forward.

Jaensch Immigration Law Firm can enable any international entrepreneur or investor who wants to come to the Sun Coast to do so legally and for an extended period of time.

Michael enjoyed making new connections at the lunch. Some of the people he met were:

Hosts Jorge Chacon and Jose Mendez

Manatee County Commissioners Larry Bustle and John Chappie with Carlos Buqueras, Director of Port Manatee

Host Jose Mendez with business consultant Luis Soto.

From left to right: Jorge Chacon, Cesar G. Gomez, Jay Almeida, Hasmukh and Nina Ghandhi

Can I be admitted into the U.S. if I have either a misdemeanor or criminal record (for example a DUI)?

The U.S. does not deny entry to persons with a “Driving Under the Influence” (DUI) conviction, although if there are multiple convictions for this and or other misdemeanors, you could be denied entry.

Generally, any convictions for drug possession can result in denial of entry. If the conviction was long ago, you might contact the U.S. Embassy, Office of Consular Affairs in your country to obtain a waiver. Other misdemeanors may result in denial if they were recent.

A crime of moral turpide (CIMT) may be grounds to deny entry to the U.S.  For a list of crimes;  please click here.

How Does an Immigrant Get a Driver License?

Many foreigners have a difficult time getting a driver’s license here in the United States.  Unlike other countries, the US does not have a robust system of public transportation, one needs a car to get around.  I am attaching a link here that tells foreigners what documents they need to use the GatherGoGet website.

http://flhsmv.gov/ddl/aila/acceptabledocuments.pdf

GatherGoGet is Florida’s DMV site: http://www.gathergoget.com/

Many people ask us if they need a social security number.  The answer is no.  Unless a foreigner has work-authorized status in the United States they will not have a social security number and the DMV does not require it.  If a person has already been issued one, then they do need it.

We hope this helps.  Please post any questions or concerns in the comments section below.  They will be answered promptly.

Region in Top 10 for International Home Buyers

The “Sarasota Herald-Tribune” has reported that Sarasota county is No. 4 in the country for foreign home-buyers.   In fact, five of the top ten regions for foreign home buyers are in Florida.  They include, “Lakeland-Winter Haven, Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Orlando and Miami-Fort Lauderdale. Tampa-St. Petersburg came in at No. 9.”  In Sarasota County 6.5% of homes are bought by someone from overseas.

Here are some figures:

6.7 percent of buyers were foreign in Sarasota County from May 2011 to January 2012, while 6.1 percent were from another country in Manatee County.

13.1 percent of new homes sold in Sarasota were to foreign buyers while 12.3 percent of existing condominium sales in Manatee changed hands to international buyers.

Most intriguing is this:

The percentage of buyers who pay in cash is even higher than domestic buyers, who in 65 percent of transactions handled by Michael Saunders made their purchase without a loan in 2011, she said.

Most of these foreign buyers come from Canada, with the UK coming in second.  The county is seeing a small increase in the number of home buyers from Asia and Latin America.

Number of German-speaking visitors in Florida increased in 2011

We learned the following from Cristina Kieser, the director of sales and marketing at the “Florida Sun News,” Florida’s leading German-language magazine:

Florida continues to be one of the most popular destinations for German speaking travelers & investors!

In 2011, 341,000 visitors from Germany came to Florida. That’s an increase of 12% from 2010. With a total of 138,000, the number of visitors from Switzerland jumped by 24%. In the same year, 42,000 Austrians have come to Florida, a 3% increase from the year before.

Feel free to contact Cristina if you would like to advertise with her.

Cristina Kieser

Director of Sales & Marketing

West Florida

Florida Sun Magazine, Inc.

1521 Alton Road # 136

Miami Beach,FL33139

Tel.   305.538.4410

Fax   305.538.1138

Web  www.FloridaSunMagazine.com

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