Why is it so hard to think of a business name?

[Shaun R.]

I talked to a portfolio lender today that seems to have good terms, but said that they prefer to make the loan to an LLC. The only reason my partner and I haven't formed the LLC is because we can't think of a business name. I'm stuck... I can't think of anything.

[Bettina F.]

We initially thought we were going to buy an apartment building on Elm Street -- so Elmwood Properties LLC was born. A quick check on our Secretary of State's website showed that name was available, we paid out $100 bucks (single owner LLCs are very easy to set up in my state). A quick click to the IRS website and we had our EIN. I was able to download a public domain drawing of an elm tree -- viola! -- we had our logo.

We ended up buying a building on 3rd Avenue, but kept the LLC and the logo!