A Home Improvement Contractor registration is required for everything else --- when  you are working on somebody else's property for money.Quite honestly, in my view anything beyond secretarial/administrative oversight of a property tends to require some sort of licensure/registration. 

Before you select names check with your Secretary of State to see if the name is available too.

Then use the states (CA) Secretary of State website to find who formed the LLC or company that ownes them.  

When I call anyone I'm doing business with, I usually get them, a message or a secretary.

You must love those~$800 annual fees CA imposes...LOL - you got that right $800 bucks a year to be able to look my LLC up on the Secretary of State website....just love it....you are right, I've used DBAs in the past.  

Find the form from the NC Secretary of State.

Dear Chantel:  One more place to do a name search is in your Secretary of State's website directory of businesses organized in your State.  

@Ewan Tong: In MA when filing an LLC with the Secretary of State, there is a section for naming the persons who are authorized to execute, file and record documents as it pertains to the LLC and to any real property associated with the LLC.

B of the article states:"...any plan described in Section 4975(e)(1) of the Code, including individual retirement accounts and Keogh plans; and"Here is what 4975(e)(1) states:(e)Definitions(1)PlanFor purposes of this section, the term “plan” means—(A)a trust described in section 401(a) which forms a part of a plan, or a plan described in section 403(a), which trust or plan is exempt from tax under section 501(a),(B)an individual retirement account described in section 408(a),(C)an individual retirement annuity described in section 408(b),(D)an Archer MSA described in section 220(d),(E)a health savings account described in section 223(d),(F)a Coverdell education savings account described in section 530, or(G)a trust, plan, account, or annuity which, at any time, has been determined by the Secretary to be described in any preceding subparagraph of this paragraph.I am sure there is far more to it than my trivial analysis, but it would be good for everyone to learn if someone could connect the legal dots here.  

Raymond, the filing fee for an LLC is $150 if you mail it with a check or $156 if you do it online; see Articles of Organization available at http://www.sos.ri.gov/doc_lib/search/rilimitedliab...HOWEVER, besides just forming the LLC there are other documents that should be involved beyond the Secretary of State articles of organization, such as an operating agreement (critical in the case of a multi-member LLC but still important even for a single member), some kind of LLC resolution(s) regarding the formation activities, additional docs if you reside out of state, etc.There are also ongoing filing requirements (which believe it or not, a lot of people forget) and entity formalities (such as annual meetings, special meetings for major LLC activities/decisions, etc.), special ways you should be signing documents when transacting business in the name of the LLC, etc.This is why I'd strongly recommend involving an attorney in the process, especially one with experience in tax matters.I'd estimate that an attorney might charge you $1000 (could be less, could be a little more) but if this is your first entity, I think it would be well worth it for someone to guide you through the process and make sure you don't do things to endanger the entity protection right from the get-go.Also in terms of other costs you should estimate at least $500 yearly for the tax return for the entity, there's a $450/year minimum corporate tax (which I believe applies to all corps, S- or C-) and an annual report filing fee with Secretary of State which might be $50 (check their website).In terms of other states, I would strongly recommend setting up an entity in the state you're actually going to be doing the business activities in, though again that's a conversation to have with an attorney (which I am not).