LLC- Foreign Partners

[Jonathan Bouren]

Hello Everyone, 

 First I would like to apologize if this post is in the wrong area, it seemed the closest relevant area. 

Here is the situation. 

    I am an American citizen, I work overseas with two colleagues and we would like to invest together in real estate. One is from the UK, the other is from Ireland. Between the 3 of us we have around 250,000 to invest. We feel like we could use this as a downpayment on a medium sized multi unit or to simply pay cash for a smaller one. They are concerned about the taxes the IRS charges foreigners on income. My questions are this. 

1. What is the best type of entity to form? I have read about the formation of a trust and transfer of ownership to the LLC. Or is it better to just form an LLC and purchase the properties directly through that?

2. What is the best way to protect them from the IRS and keep our investments from getting hammered with IRS taxes due to them being foreign nationals?

3. I had also read that a single member LLC ( with foreign nationals) is disregarded in the US and subject only to personal income tax. If each member formed their own LLC, can we still partner together to invest in one property?

Any information on this subject is appreciated. We would like to work together, and I believe the size and variety in the US market is our best option. So how can I get us in there without destroying their profits through tax? I am also open to communication and consultation with CPAs or REI attorneys that are familiar with this topic.

Thank you !

Jonathan