Donated Down Payment

[Lindsey Smith]

Hi! I'm new to Bigger Pockets and happy to be here. I am gearing up to buy my first rental property within the next six months. My husband owns his own small business, and I am forming a LLC in my name to keep the rental completely separate from, and add an extra layer of protection for his business. We would like to be able to use money from his business to help fund the down payment, and are not sure about the best way to do that. Do we need to pass it through payroll (where it will be taxed accordingly), to our joint account, and then route it to my business account? Or, is there a way for his business to gift/donate the money to my business (no repayment planned, as it would not be a loan)? That option seems similar to partnering with an investor, with no expectation of repayment. Also, I'm wondering if partnering with a private investor (private citizen) is any different from a private investor (company).