Congratulations, February licensees!

Congratulations to the following Licenses, Etc. clients who were approved in February:

• Adam Johnson at Air Jam Cooling & Heating, LLC at Port of St Lucie, FL
• Thomas DiTommaso at BBT Construction, Inc. of North Miami Beach, FL
• Arnulf Albrecht at Arnulf Albrecht General Contracting, Inc. DBA Pelican Bay Remodeling of Naples, FL
• David Arent  at Build, LLC of Naples, FL
• James D. Martin at HLM Environmental Remediation, Inc. of Rockledge, FL
• Todd Woodall at Todd Woodall Enterprises, LLC of Vero Beach, FL
• Marc Lerdon, Florida Design and Remodel, Inc. of Port St Lucie, FL
• Jeremy Earl at Signature Bridge, Inc. of Willougby, OH
• Rigoberto Rangel at State Plumbing, Inc. of Miami, FL
• Lawrence Campbell at Best Electric and Air, Inc. DBA Best Home Services of Bonita Springs, FL
• Leland Redfern at Redfern Real Estate Services, LLC of Fort Myers, FL
• Alejandro Vidal at Right Now Air Solutions, LLC of Miami, FL
• Barry W. Ahern at Barry's Cooling and Heating Services, LLC of Naples, FL

Any questions? Call Lisa at 239.777.8321 for more information.

Registered Vs. Certified

With all this talk about grandfathering of registered licenses, we have gotten calls from many registered license holders. One of the state’s stipulations to this application is that the applicant must have a valid county competency card. Unfortunately some of the individuals that we have spoken to have let their county license lapse thinking that keeping the state registration current was all that they were required to do. This is not the case.

To fully understand a registered license, let’s start with the actual definition as given in the Florida Statutes:

“Any contractor who has registered with the department pursuant to fulfilling the competency requirements in the jurisdiction for which the registration is issued. Registered contractors may contract only in such jurisdictions.”

In laymen’s terms, first, you get a county license and then, second, you just tell the state that it exists by registering it. The license actually resides in the county. Letting the county competency card expire is letting the license technically expire.

So remember, keep the county competency card current and keep your state registration current. To be legally licensed both of these needs to be kept up to date. If you have any further questions, do not hesitate to call. We are always here to help you.

Get Yourself a Website

About half of the contractors we meet through our firm don’t have a website.  Most of these contractors are small one-man operations who don’t understand why a website is necessary.  If you’re in the same boat, we would like to share what a website can do for you:

• A website will act as an online calling card. This means that people can find information that will allow them to contact you for quotes and dates of availability

• A website will give you an online presence. This is particularly important as fewer and fewer people are hitting the phone books and newspapers to find contact information for contractors like you. Think about it: why would they bother flipping through the Yellow Pages when they can simply type “Plumber in Naples” into Google and get an immediate result?  

• A website can be your very best selling tool. You can tell people about yourself, what you offer, and show them examples of your previous jobs. Include customer testimonials, too!

Don't stay behind the times. Make sure you are a presence where your customers are searching. 

Congratulations, January licensees!

Congratulations to the following Licenses, Etc. clients who were approved in January:

• Andrew Waters at QJ, Inc. DBA Ace Air Conditioning of Lantana, FL
• Stephen Brillati at Brillati Carpentry, LLC of Macomb, MI
• John C. Gratton at Keys Contracting Services, Inc. of Marathon, FL
• Chester Forbes at Forbes Can Fix It, L.L.C. of Melbourne, FL
• Rollo C Page, II at Reel Construction Enterprises, L.L.C. of Santa Rosa Beach, FL
• Robert Hine at Morca Construction Services, Inc. of Marco Island, FL
• Jason Sain at Deangelis Diamond Healthcare Group, LLC of Naples, FL
• Nicolas Costabile at High Rock Builders, LLC of Boynton Beach, FL
• Shawn Beckman at Air Cool Inc of Naples, FL
• Adam Eckelbarge at Mader Southeast and EB Builders, Inc. of Edgewater, FL
• Kristopher Belligan at Sentry Metals, LLC of Nokomis, FL
• Dennis Kaiser at DK of Naples, Inc. of Naples, FL
• Garland Weis at Inlet Pools & Spas Corp. of Naples, FL
• Reid Kessel at Central Florida Site Development, Inc. of Orlando, FL
• Robert Bisbee at Advanced Technology Solutions Ocala, LLC of Ocala, FL
• Lance Jones at Clear View Security Group of Orange Park, FL
• Jorge Vaca-Ribera at JVR A/C Services, Inc. of Naples, FL
• James McCann at The Posh Plumber, Inc. of Naples, FL
• Richard Lowisz at Services 4 All Seasons, Inc. of Jacksonville, FL
• John El-Koury at All Tropical Construction, LLC of Islamorada, FL
• Kenneth Pence at Pence Plumbing, Inc. of Jupiter, FL

Any questions? Call Lisa at 239.777.8321 for more information.

Is Your Resolution to be Licensed?

We are already a month into 2013. This is the time when everyone starts to  realize that the resolutions made with all intention of following through, just aren’t getting accomplished. To achieve our goals, it takes action…

If your resolution was to be licensed, be in business for yourself or add a new level of service to your business, there are clear steps to take.

• Step one: Identify the license needed.

• Step two: If a test is necessary, sign up for an exam prep class and take the test. Resources can be found here.

• Step three:  Submit the application to the state.

Accomplishing your goals can be achieved. Don’t give up before you try. If you want to make it even easier, contact the team at Licenses, Etc. We can advise you on the license you are able to apply for, assist in starting the business and help the application portion go as smoothly as it possibly can. Don’t just wish, resolve and accomplish!

Self-Reporting of Criminal Offenses

As of October 1, 2009, the Florida Statutes require all license holders to self-report to the department. This must occur within 30 days of being convicted, found guilty of, or pleading nolo contendere or guilty to a crime of any kind, anywhere. 

The statute also requires the reporting of any convictions that occurred prior to October 1, 2009.  If you do not submit this information, you can be subject to fines, suspension or license revocation.  You must report any felony, misdemeanor or traffic offense that is not for parking, speeding, inspection, or traffic signal violations. This is true regardless of whether you were placed on probation, had adjudication withheld, were paroled, or pardoned.

It is important to ensure that you are not jeopardizing your license over something as small as a careless driving ticket or speeding in a manatee zone. To report this information, complete the criminal self-reporting document and mail it to the department. You can always call the Licenses, Etc. team as well for help!

Congratulations, December licensees!

Congratulations to the following Licenses, Etc. clients who were approved in December:

• Kevin Taras at Done-Rite Cooling & Heating, LLC of Naples, FL
• Scott Montgomery at Valley Tank Testing, L.L.C. of Apollo Beach, FL
• Scott Beck at Valley Tank Testing, L.L.C. of Apollo Beach, FL
• Robert Hine at Naples Building Group, LLC of Naples, FL
• Ruth Lofquist at Gator Construction Enterprises, Inc. of Auburndale, FL
• John Verhoff at The EcoPlumbers of Florida, LLC of Fort Myers, FL
• Jeffrey Eisenberger at Hayden Air, Inc. of Palm City, FL
• Francia Fernandez at Electro-Mechanic Industries, Inc. DBA Vermana of Orlando, FL
• Dale Kinsell at Barry Rutenberg & Associates, Inc. of Gainesville, FL
• Kevin Hart at KWH Construction, LLC of Fort Lauderdale, FL
• Lance Martin at Lance Martin Construction, LLC of Naples, FL
• Ricardo Lara Reza at Total Roofing Systems Specialist, Inc. of Martin, FL
• Carrera Padilla at Right Roofing, LLC of Oakland Park, FL
• Robert White at White Inspection Services, L.L.C. DBA White Construction of Winter Park, FL

Any questions? Call Lisa at 239.777.8321 for more information.