All Forum Posts by: Megan Templeton

I would recommend Royal Legal Solutions. They are a one stop shop in all 50 states with lots of experience with entity structuring for investors, estate planning, tax planning, etc. They have many clients in CO and are familiar with how to set up your business entity to connect to your estate plan to ensure it all works and flows together.

This will depend largely on the state you are in - in most states, the estate has the ability (and im some cases responsibility) to finish any transactions started prior to death. I would just make sureyour PSA contains a clause in it dictating that the contract survives death and in the event of death, the estate will be required to finalize the transaction.

Property can be owned remotely without the need for a foreign LLC filing in a new state so you should be good to go unless you plan on doing boots on the ground work in Kansas such as marketing, opening a brick and mortar, etc. Purely owning a property from another state doesn't require registration.

@Brent T Galbreath Happy to help! Do let me know if there is anything else I can help with. 

Hi there! I would move the properties into separate LLCs for liability protection. Transferring now will still be impactful because moving forward, if one property is litigated against, the others are no longer at risk. The risk of using the old LLC for one of the proeprties moving forward is low so I wouldnt worry about dissolving the original and starting all new - I would just make sure you move all but one of out the original LLC and put the other properties into their own LLCs. For multiple properties, a series LLC is a good option as well because its scalable. The series LLC will allow you to create unlimited child series underneath the parent entity so they will scale with you as you grow your business and eliminate the need for multiple traditional LLCs which would require multiple filings, fees, etc so would be costly and time consuming. Series LLCs benefit from one state filing and one fee so they are cost efficient and streamlined. They also help with operations as you can run them with one bank account and one set of books (if you manage the books properly by designating funds to each property).

I would recommend the properties be in separate LLCs flowing through a hub as you have referenced or separate childs series of a series LLC (or DST) to minimize liability. Compartmenalization is key to avoid comingling liability with multiple assets. A series LLC or DSt will be a better fit in the long run because it will simplify operations and save on filings and compliance. Both the series LLC and DST will allow you to create unlimited child series underneath the parent entity so they will scale with you as you grow your business and eliminate the need for multiple traditional LLCs which would require multiple filings, fees, etc so would be costly and time consuming. Series LLCs and DSTS benefit from one state filing and one fee so they are cost efficient and streamlined. They also help with operations as you can run them with one bank account and one set of books (if you manage the books properly by designating funds to each property). Happy to answer any specific questions you have on the set up process.

Hi there! I do recommend holding the STR in an LLC - an LLC with anonymity if possible. Tthe important pieces to consider when setting up an LLC is the cost to form the LLC, the state requirements for compliance, the charging order protections in the state, and lastly where the property is located (although this is not definitive). The LLC formation process involves completing paperwork and filing with the secretary of state, paying a formation fee, and creating an operating agreement. The cost varies by state. The process can take between 1-6 weeks depending on the state, attorney you are working with, and complexity of the operating agreement. For attorneys, The benefits of using an LLC are that it removes liability from your personally and provides protection in the event of a lawsuit because the only asset(s) at risk would be those held by the LLC. There are also tax benefits and lending benefits as an LLC provides new opportunies for write offs, financing, etc. Ideally you will only have one property per LLC to ensure liability between properties is not comingled. If you are going to have multiple properties, a series LLC is a good option as its scalable. The series LLC will allow you to create unlimited child series underneath the parent entity so they will scale with you as you grow your business and eliminate the need for multiple traditional LLCs which would require multiple filings, fees, etc so would be costly and time consuming. Series LLCs benefit from one state filing and one fee so they are cost efficient and streamlined. They also help with operations as you can run them with one bank account and one set of books (if you manage the books properly by designating funds to each property).

Hi there - there are a few components to this. The first is that if you are going to use an LLC account for properties that are not titled to the LLC, you need to have contracts in place to use the LLC accounts for the properties - these would be akin to a property management agreement. I would also recommend putting the 2 other properties in LLCs for liability protection and tax benefits. I dont recommend grouping properties together in one LLC because it comingles liabilities between the properties putting them all at risk. I would recommend one LLC per property or using something like a series LLC where you can place the properties into individual child cells to minimie liability. . A strong alternative (although a slightly more complex set up) is to have an LLC for each property or a series LLC (a holding LLC) and one LLC to manage the property (the would be a shell LLC that never holds assets and is only used for public facing activities like interacting with tenants. The dual LLC set up is useful because if a tenant or third party were to sue, they would sue the operations LLC that doesn't own anything so there would be nothing to recover.

Hi there! I would recommend using an LLC for your propery to add an additional layer of liability protection. It can be useful if the LLC is also an anonymous LLC to add another layer of insulation for you. The LLC can also provide some tax benefits. You will then set up a biz account for the LLC and collect rents through such. A stronger alternative (although a slightly more complex set up) is to have one LLC that owns the property (a holding LLC) and one LLC to manage the property (the would be a shell LLC that never holds assets and is only used for public facing activities like interacting with tenants. The dual LLC set up is useful because if a tenant or third party were to sue, they would sue the operations LLC that doesn't own anything so there would be nothing to recover. I would look into softwares like Stessa as well which can be useful for accounting when managing. For resources to review, Royal Legal Solutions has a ton of videos/articles/books geared towards new investors and best practices for entity structuring and operations.

Hi there! A real estate attorney and CPAc an help with many parts of your real estate business - setting up your real estate entities, advising on the best paths for your business operationally and in some cases tax wise, assist with document prep for closings, contracts, etc, and assisting in the event of a lawsuit. Many real estate attorneys have one or two niches the specialize in (ex: closing attorney vs evication attorney) so its important to identify what your needs are and ask the right questions of the attorney. A few questions I would recommend are: 1. How long have you been practicing law? 2.What are your specialties within real estate law? 3. Do you work with a team - who will be my point of contact? 4.How many clients have you helped that were similar to mine? 4. Do you have references? 5. What is your fee structure and billing process? 6. What is your communication style and timeline 7. Are there any areas in my business you anticipate you cant help with? 8. Do you have referral partners like CPAs you trust and consult with? 9. Are you an investor yourself? 10. What do you see as the most important piece of my business right now? Deal breakers would be things like they dont specialize in the type of deals you will be working with, the structures they have used have been challened frequently and not held up (i.e. their track history is mixed), or they arent properly licensed. I would recommend similar questions for a CPA.