The Story of Gemstone Property Solutions, LLC
Susan grew up in Sacramento, California, one member of a fourth generation California family. Her father, a long-time contractor in Sacramento, and her mother, a partner in a lumber business, provided their children the atmosphere of the building process through living with it while growing up. Susan began her work life in the apparel industry, first in Sacramento as a buyer and then the San Francisco Bay area as a buyer and sales manager. A transition to the wholesale side of the industry led her to a high level executive position as VP of Sales for a women’s accessories company start-up in New York city. Two years later she took a position as the only woman on a 60 man sales team in a Fortune 500 men’s apparel company, with a team ranking of #3 (in a male dominated industry). After meeting Phil and marrying, Susan retired from the fashion industry a year later to become the family CEO. Her construction and sales background coupled with her management experience give Susan skill sets necessary for the management of GEMSTONE PROPERTY SOLUTIONS, LLC.
Phil, a San Francisco Bay Area transplant from Los Angeles, graduated from UC Berkeley and UC Berkeley’s Boalt Hall School of Law. He has been a licensed, practicing and highly respected California attorney for over 40 years. Phil’s practice has focused on civil litigation, with a large part of that practice involving a wide variety of real estate matters. He is also an experienced, skilled and highly regarded mediator. The knowledge, experience and skill sets he brings to Gemstone are invaluable. Through his years of practice, he has seen nearly everything that could go wrong with a property, with property management, or with a real estate deal, uniquely positioning him to anticipate and avoid costly mistakes that others might not foresee. Having founded two successful San Francisco Financial District law firms, Phil also brings an entrepreneurial business background to Gemstone. In addition, Phil holds a California Real Estate Broker’s License, which is invaluable for purchasing and selling properties for Gemstone.
Susan and Phil met in 1983 in Phil’s law office, and were married the following year. Having invested in multi-unit apartments, and having developed, designed, built and sold two high-end custom homes in Tiburon, California, and renovated and sold a single family property in Mill Valley, California, they have long shared a passion for real estate. They have brought that passion and their unique backgrounds and skill sets to GEMSTONE PROPERTY SOLUTIONS, LLC.