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Written by : Kandis Depippo |
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Thanks for your comment Maragaret Jeffreys, have a nice day.
- Kandis Depippo, Staff Member
when running a business if you haven't taken the steps to create a formal business structure you'll be an informal business type like a sole proprietorship by default after your business reaches a certain point it may be beneficial to create a formal business structure such as an llc in this video we will go over benefits of a formal business structure over an informal business structure when you should become an llc and the steps to transitioning into an llc part one business structures there are two types of business structures informal and formal by default if you start doing business without filing any formation documents you will be an informal business if you are running the business on your own you'll be classified as a sole proprietorship if you are doing business with one or more partners then you will be classified as a partnership informal business structures can be a good way to start out if you are doing business on a small scale or want to try out a low-risk business venture to see how successful it will be as far as formal business structures there are corporations and llcs a corporation is beneficial if you want venture capital or stock options but these add responsibilities and burdens that may not be worth taking on when you're starting out llcs tend to be simpler than corporations llcs have passed through taxation which means that the money you make through the business is only taxed once for most people llcs are the better business structure to start off with the advantages to formal business structures first informal business structures is that they help bring credibility to your business provide personal asset protection and also help build business credit so you can take out loans in the name of the business when you operate as an informal business you don't have any personal asset protection personal asset protection is important because it separates your personal assets from your business assets this means that if your business gets sued or defaults in a loan they can't take your house your car or your personal savings formal business structures also add credibility to your business with banks investors partners and customers next let's take a look at when you want to transition from an informal to a formal business structure part two when should you form an llc as your business grows asset protection and credibility become more important there is a point in your business timeline when you will want to consider becoming a formal business structure with llcs being the simpler of the two llcs are generally a better choice of a formal business structure to start you'll want to become an llc if you have started acquiring new customers have started expanding your business or are starting to bring in a significant amount of money into your business part three how to transition to becoming an llc when changing from an informal business structure to an llc there are three steps you need to take the first is formation the second is to stop operating as an informal entity and the third is to start operating as an llc let's break down these three steps step 1 formation of an llc for the formation of an llc you'll need to pick the state to form your llc in this is typically the state in which you operate your business after you've picked your state then you'll need to pick a name for your llc you may already have a name or you may have to come up with a name for your business either way you will have to check to see if the name is available as an llc in the state in which you want to form your llc after confirming it is available do a quick search on the web to see if the name is available as a url even if you don't plan on making a website today it's a good idea to secure the name so no one else takes it it's also important that you apply for a new ein for your llc you can't reuse any pre-existing tax id for your llc you also need to create a new business bank account using your llc's new ein for the full detailed guide on the formation of an llc check out our other video or our guides on our website linked below step 2 ceasing operations once your llc is actually formed you'll want to stop operating as your current informal business structure this means you'll want to transfer all banking activities to your llc's newly opened bank account and stop using your old bank account associated with your informal business structure you'll also want to pay any old employee taxes on your previous ein and issue any statements of profits or losses if you are a partnership if you have taken out any financial loans as a partnership or sole proprietorship you cannot transfer your personal liability for the loans to the llc informal business loans have to be taken out in your name and credit rating and thus cannot be transferred you can pay it off using the llc but the liability will ultimately remain in your name finally you'll want to transfer any business insurance or permits to your llc if you can't transfer these you may have to close down the accounts and reapply for them as the llc step 3 start operating as an llc once you have stopped doing business as an informal structure you'll want to start doing business as your llc this means using your new ein to do business using your llc's bank account for all finances and keeping your personal and business finances separate if you have any employees you'll need to make sure that any employee contracts are transferred to the llc and that your llc registers for employee taxes such as payroll state withholding etc make sure that you're operating under your llc's new business licenses permits and insurance whether those were transferred from your old business structure or are new to your llc you should also create an operating agreement to establish ownership terms and member roles this is an internal document for reference and does not need to be filed with the state this foundational document is the core of your llc and will help you maintain your organization as well as further establish your llc as a separate legal entity you may also want to list out the assets your llc owns bear in mind that doing so makes these assets owned by the company but it formalizes what the company is and helps separate your personal assets from the llc's assets the last part of operating as an llc is yearly maintenance this includes things like registered agent fees taxes and any yearly fees to the secretary of state failure to maintain your llc could result in returning to operate as an informal business structure informal business structures are a useful way to start a business if the business is low risk with familiar clients and only doing small amounts of business as your business grows you want to become a formal business structure for more credibility personal asset protection and building business credit for a more detailed guide on forming an llc check out our other video linked below or visit howtostartinllc.com give the video a like if you found it useful and subscribe if you'd like to see more and if you have questions or encounter any roadblocks leave a comment below good luck in starting you
Thanks sokratski5 your participation is very much appreciated
- Kandis Depippo
About the author
I've studied libertarianism at Hamline University in Saint Paul and I am an expert in telecommunications engineering. I usually feel ecstatic. My previous job was brattice builder I held this position for 22 years, I love talking about bus riding and acting. Huge fan of Jimi Hendrix I practice weight lifting and collect first editions.
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