My Business Logic

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A blogger is giving expert tips on overseas property investment.

Real Insights is written by Chris Mansfield, a director at Davenport Wealth Management, based in Church Road, Hove.

He said: “If people are looking for a ‘get rich quick’ guaranteed real estate system, they should not read this blog. The majority of things I see on the market are unsubstantiated claims. The blog is a way to help people who are considering purchasing investment property.”

A bunch of Winter Texans think it would be a good idea for WestJet, a low-cost air carrier based in Calgary, Alberta, to begin offering nonstop flights between Winnipeg and the Rio Grande Valley, at least during the winter.

Behind the push is HotWinters.ca, a Winnipeg-based travel medical insurance firm, which sent a petition containing nearly 1,000 signatures to WestJet’s CEO. The drive to collect more signatures continues via a downloadable PDF form. HotWinters says seasonal nonstop flights are important not just because of the potential convenience for the tens of thousands of Winter Texans from Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Ontario, but also for medical emergencies.

Monique Blahitka, a Canadian citizen who winters in Weslaco with her husband, Dan, has contacted various media outlets in hopes of drawing attention to the cause. She said the only thing that keeps their Canadian friends from coming down to the Valley to visit during the winter is that it’s such a time-consuming ordeal getting here without a direct flight.

“They say, “See you guys in the spring. We’re g

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Real estate markets are unbalanced in most parts of the country: vacancy is too high, but construction is too low. That sounds contradictory, because construction should be low when vacancy is high. Looking forward, however, we’ll find insufficient supply when the economy improves.

The current pace of construction is well below net absorption in most parts of the country, pulling the vacancy rate down. Net absorption should pick up in 2012, but the pace of construction won’t keep pace. Most construction planning is going on in cocktail hour chatter, not formal discussions with architects and bankers. Money is still tighter than average, though not quite so hard to come by as a year ago. Many developers lack the equity that their bankers want, especially with so much doom and gloom pervading the country. The key fact to remember, however, is that demand for space can grow much faster than space can be built. Thi

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A note on sending out business Christmas cards:

“Don’t forget your suppliers,” says Diane Craig, a corporate etiquette expert and president of Toronto-based Corporate Class Inc. “They’re the ones who make it possible through the year to deliver projects on time. These are very, very essential people and it’s important to acknowledge them” (What to give clients: Maple syrup, or a goat?, The Globe and Mail).

Besides making sure your Christmas card list is complete, you also want to make sure that you’re doing it right. No one’s impressed by getting a sloppily scrawled or misaddressed card.

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The Argus today announces the nine local businesses, including a video production company, a chauffeur and a café, that have made the shortlist in the Local Business Accelerators competition. The nationwide campaign, which was launched in October by regional and local newspapers across the country and backed by Prime Minister David Cameron and Dragons’ Den star Deborah Meaden, will see 1,500 firms receive £15 million of free advertising to help boost their businesses in 2012.

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To a certain segment of Brownsville’s population, the H-E-B grocery store at 2155 Paredes Line Road is the “Gucci B,” a nickname that reflects the higher end fare and amenities available there.

Now comes “Gucci B Plus!” — or as the company prefers it — H-E-B Plus!.

Crews have finished construction on a new parking lot and are proceeding with work on a 36,000-square-foot expansion encompassing the building’s north and south ends.

When complete, the store will cover roughly 110,000 square feet, according to Bob Tellez, H-E-B director of retail operations for the Lower Rio Grande Valley.

Tellez, relatively new to Brownsville, confessed to being unaware of the store’s nickname, but found it flattering.

Beyond the obvious fact that the H-E-B Plus! will be larger than the existing facility, which was erected 14 years ago, the offerings will differ from traditional H-E-Bs, he said.

“You’ll have an entertainment department and you’ll see an expanded selection of general merchandise, as well as expanded offerings on the food side,” he said. “This store h

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