What entity is best for Buy&Hold with siblings as partners

[Christopher Hand]

My two brothers and I will be inheriting close to 1m and and with them being younger (27 and 22) they want to invest this money since they don't have many uses for such a large sum of money now. We are looking at investing a large portion (750-800K) of this in buy and hold properties focusing on cash flow. Currently my middle brother and I own a SFR in Las Vegas jointly and I personally own a duplex and my primary residence with my wife.

I am getting a little overwhelmed as to which type of entity we should setup for this partnership. Should this be a LLC, LP, or FLP? We also might be looking at putting part of the investment into some performing notes as well. Any feedback or questions to pose to a CPA would be of great help.

Also any recommendations for a cpa in the east bay area would be good.

Thanks in advance

[Tom Spaeth]

An insane asylum should work rather well for that.  

Just kiddin couldn’t resist

An llc with a very good operating agreement   Think of everything that could go wrong. And put a solution in the agreement. Easier now than later when money is involved. 

[Matt M.]

It's attorney time. If you have that kind of coin, then meet with a few and have them set it up.

[Christopher Hand]

Originally posted by @Tom Spaeth:

An insane asylum should work rather well for that.  

Just kiddin couldn’t resist

An llc with a very good operating agreement   Think of everything that could go wrong. And put a solution in the agreement. Easier now than later when money is involved. 

Normally I would agree with you and I wouldn't even consider it with different family members.  I do co-own other property with one brother and all three of us have a really good relationship, as of now ;-)

[Gary Baker]

Lawyer and CPA time. I have seen what money does within a family and it was not 1/20th of that amount. 

I have no clue on entity structure, but would a LLC within a trust not be the best?

[Jeff Ronningen]

Definitely work with an attorney and an accountant before going any further. The odds say this has a high chance of going badly. The operating agreement is critical to keep all parties out of trouble and provide clarity should any disagreements, misinterpretations, or other adverse events occur. You have an opportunity to set you and your brothers up for a bright financial future, but you also have a risk of creating conflict and disputes which are damaging to your family. Seek the counsel of competent, wise, trustworthy people and proceed with caution.

[Thomas S.]

Divide the money as outlined in the will and let each take their own separate path in life. For the younger brothers, assuming they are not experienced in managing money, a financial advisor would be advised.

I would work together if that is the choice but not intermingle the money. Three separate investments based on possibly joint decision making process with each individual brother having the final say in their individual investment. I would absolutely not form any sort of partnership.

There is no risk in jeopardising the family relationship by not patterning where as the risks of partnering could produce a negative outcome.

[Colleen F.]

Whatever you decide consider it wont always just be the three of you. Consider marriages and divorces and kids. I really would get the issues out there that could happen and see if you are aligned then talk to the lawyer. for me I would not include anyone other then the 3 of you in an entity but you would need to make sure that stands up to future challenges.

[NICK SHELL]

@Christopher Hand

Thanks for posing this question as my brother and I may be soon coming into a similar situation. What did you all settle on?