LLC Creation and Usage

[Mark Graziano]

I have been running a DM campaign now for about 6 months and I want to be ready for the houses that I can use owner/creative financing to purchase, but not in my own name. My question is WHEN do I form that LLC. Is the time now, seeing that it does take some time to complete the LLC process? Or should I wait and buy it in my own name, and then transfer it into an LLC since I do not have one established currently?

Second, once you have a primary LLC set up, do you use that one to purchase the homes and then transfer them into a different LLC so you do not hold them in your primary LLC. The primary LLC in this example would be the one that you use for business marketing and direct mail, basically your branded LLC.

Last, for a first LLC do you suggest using an attorney or is it just as easy to do it using an internet based services? Also, is a registered agent necessary or useful in this type of business?

Thank You,

Mark

(Yes, I have used the search feature)

[Jerry W.]

@Mark GrazianoI guess my advice is that you need to make money before you figure out how to set up for a major business. Often when I put in an offer on a house I list my name /or assigns. I then decide if I want to put it in my Sub S corporation. It is very easy and fast to set up an LLC. In most states it is pretty cheap. That is completely different from knowing how to operate one so you do not set yourself up having it pierced for improper activities. Some attorneys only charge a few hundred to help set some up and some charge thousands. It would be a wonderful world if everyone could afford every safety device and had time to research them, but the truth is that sometimes you have to wait until time and money permit you to set up things for a large company. If you can afford it now and have the time to research it great.