One of the most important decisions you have to make regards the legal structuring of your real estate business — or what is more commonly known as a LLC.
LLC is short for limited liability company. This a newer form of business entity that offers benefits that partnerships and corporations do not guarantee. At its heart, it is meant to protect real estate investors from themselves and the malicious intentions of others.
A Business Entity LLC can seem like an intimidating topic when you’re entering the real estate scene.
In truth, there isn’t much to it, really.
Related: 7 Productive Actions to Take While Searching For Your Next Property
Understanding Business Entity (LLC)
A limited liability company is an entity that you can either own solely or partially.
The main objective of forming a real estate LLC is to draw a line between your personal and business assets. This way, in the event that you run into any legal or financial trouble, no one can seize your personal assets to pay off the debts you owe.
Likewise, it is not easy to use the assets listed under the LLC for your own personal use or gain.
A good LLC setup is one that proves your business is not simply used as a vehicle to hold your personal assets, but rather, to conduct business.
To prove you are using your LLC for business purposes, there are certain things that need to occur to establish this such as, for instance, filing tax returns.
Why you need LLC as a Real Estate Investor
There are several compelling reasons why every real estate investor should consider setting up a limited liability company:
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Limit your Personal Liability
Real estate investment can be a rather lucrative endeavor. With this in mind, it is extremely important, as an investor, to make sure your personal finances are protected. If not, a lawsuit could wipe your accounts and personal assets clean.
The good thing about LLC, and what has got to be its most interesting aspect, is that it limits personal vulnerability to potential lawsuits related to any respective property.
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Enjoy the Perks of Pass-through Taxation
When it comes to tax, many corporation owners usually pay a double tax.
This is not the case with a real estate LLC, which excludes you from paying taxes at the business level. This is thanks to pass-through taxation, which traces back to a 1988 revenue ruling which allowed real estate investors to avoid double taxation by holding property through LLC.
This pass-through taxation allows any real estate LLC member to report business profits or losses at a lower rate through individual tax returns. Not only that, as an owner of a single-member LLC, you enjoy more deductions because you can use, say, your mortgage interest as a deduction come tax time.
Relate: 5 Reasons I Do NOT Invest in Real Estate Using An LLC
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Ease of Establishment
Establishing an LLC is easy. The process itself is simple and straightforward. Just about anyone can do it.
According to SBA.gov, all you need to do is choose a business name, file the articles of organization to validate your LLC, create an LLC operating agreement (if your company will have multiple members), and lastly, obtain licenses and permits.
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More Freedom
When it comes to management responsibilities, a real estate business structured as a limited liability company doesn’t have too many restrictions.
It is not mandatory for a real estate LLC to hold regular meetings or even maintain in-depth business records. As regards the distribution of cash flow, this is a prerogative of the LLC member(s).
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Builds Credit for your Business
Building credit for your business is very important. When you make up your mind that this is the right corporate structure for your real estate business. You then have to obtain what an employer identification number (EIN). What this does is allow your business to build credit without affecting or using your personal credit. Assuming your personal credit profile is in good standing as well, this essentially means you have double the borrowing power.
