All Forum Posts by: Jonathan Roveto

Hi all,

I'm looking to transfer my rental properties into my LLC, and I have been advised that I should do a Limited Warranty Deed vs. a General Warranty Deed. When looking at forms I find online for each, it feels like the only difference between Limited vs. General is that the titles say "Limited". I haven't been able to discern any actual difference in wording between the two contracts. I'm in GA, and the county provides templates for Warranty Deeds. It's standard language, and it seems like the recorder simply transfers the language from the form to other forms that get recorded in public records. Can someone explain how this process works? The only conclusion I can draw is that literally the only difference is that the title says "Limited Warranty Deed". Thanks!

@Jenifer Levini No, GA does not have laws on the books for SLLCs. One option is to incorporate into Delaware or Nevada, who do have SLLC case law. However, my understanding is that SLLCs are so untested at the moment that one runs the risk of a GA judge not recognizing the SLLC structure.

@Kenneth Cook People start LLCs and often move their properties into land trusts because if something were to happen at a rental property that you owned and you were sued and the property was not in a separate legal entity, your personal assets are at risk. The asset protection afforded by having your rental properties in separate entities means that, assuming you play by the rules and are actually separate from your LLC, if you were to be sued and lose, they can't go after your personal assets. Of course, this doesn't apply to gross negligence or anything criminal on your part.

@Alan G. Two are about $100k, two are about $150k.

Hi all,

I have been getting ready to establish and LLC for my properties. I am curious about 2 options. Do I get 1 LLC and put all 4 properties under it and pull out a 3M umbrella policy or do I do 1 LLC per property and put out maybe a 1M policy each? My concerns are that 1 LLC per property plus an extra policy on each seems like an expensive ordeal. On the other hand, 1 LLC per property shields each property from the others and provides high security.

Obviously, I take everything as risk vs. reward, so I am looking for opinions on this. The latter option provides high amounts of protection, whereas the former might be less expensive and at the least simpler. The former does give me higher exposure, but how likely am I to realize this exposure (getting sued for >$3M or multiple times in a policy period)?

@Jeff B. I'm not terribly convinced based on those notes. Are there any cases where an SM LLC had its owner held personally liable based on corporate formalities not being followed (i.e., a judge actually saying that an owner was not separate from his business because he didn't take meeting notes for himself)? I would be more convinced if I saw that. Things like committing fraud or being improperly capitalized make total sense (the former being the obvious result of commingling assets), but if you are properly capitalized, have a separate bank for your real estate business, etc. and the actions that cause litigation aren't from personal gross negligence, why would a judge allow your personal property to be up for grabs?

For that matter, if what you say is true, why do SM LLCs exist in the first place? I'm not being facetious because if what your saying is true, I don't actually understand why anyone would form an LLC if it were just them or even a small number of people.

Other than to avoid SE tax if you do work that gets hit with that tax ;).

This is not true from my understanding if the conduct your business in a manner that doesn't mix business and personal and the litigation does not arise from something from your personal negligence while working on behalf of the LLC. You receive the same protections as a multi-member LLC.

Hi all,

I'm preparing to file Articles of Incorporation for an LLC in GA for my rental properties. I plan on putting the properties under the LLC via quit claim (I've talked to my lenders, who have OKed this). I also plan on doing other investments (equity/debt securities and currency investments) with the LLC's money, so there is that consideration. Are there any specific articles that I should consider putting in the LLC's Articles of Incorporation if I am going to be the only person in the LLC? I assume it's more complicated if multiple people are in it, but does anyone have any suggestions for single-person LLCs? Or should I just incorporate stating that the LLC is meant for the management of real estate and supplemental investment activities?

Excited to attend my first meeting! Can't wait!

Great to see that there is a BP-based meetup around here! It's unfortunate that the meeting is today, and I barely found out about this thread 10 minutes ago or I'd attend. Excited to attend next month though!

Yeah, I am considerate of the fact that the signs of a bust aren't as strong as they were in the past and may not actually lead to one, but at the same time, I would like to maximize my returns if such a thing were to happen.