New Member Questions

[Courtney Roycroft]

HI!

My name is Courtney and I live in New Hampshire. I have decided that I want to pursue my passion of investing in properties. I have been looking through a lot of information and data and the one question I have regarding starting this type of business is how to name it? I have seen that a few states have "Series LLC's", where you have an "umbrella" LLC and you can then have multiple properties under that as their own separate LLC. Has anyone had any experience with this? Is this a good idea, or does everyone mostly just name each property its own individual LLC? It seems like the series LLC has some good financial benefits to it.

Any help or guidance with this would be greatly appreciated!

[E.J. McCaffrey]

Welcome to the group.

Not all states recognize the Series LLC structure. If you plan to operate or hold property in a state that does not support Series LLCs, the liability protections between individual series may not be honored in that jurisdiction. It's important to consider where the properties are located and where the Series LLC will be doing business.

The primary advantage of using a Series LLC is the ease and efficiency with which you can create individual "series" (or "cells") within the master LLC, each functioning as a separate entity without the need to file separate LLCs with the state. In most Series LLC-friendly states, these internal series do not require independent formation documents, state fees, or annual reports, which significantly reduces administrative and filing costs.

Each series is intended to be treated as a distinct legal unit, meaning it can own assets, enter into contracts, and incur liabilities independently of the other series. This structure helps ensure that if one series is sued or faces financial issues, the assets and operations of the other series remain protected. This is functionally similar to setting up multiple standalone LLCs (one for each property) but without the burden of registering and maintaining each one individually at the state level.

As for naming conventions, I typically recommend clients name each series after the address or street name of the property it holds. This makes it easy to identify which series owns which asset and keeps internal records clear and organized.

If you're managing multiple properties or investments under a single umbrella, a Series LLC can offer substantial flexibility, as long as it's structured properly and used in the right jurisdictions.

Disclaimer: This information is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. No attorney-client, fiduciary, or professional relationship is established through this communication.