The clerk's office has only a couple of basic functions.....receive documents to be recorded, and maintain those records for access (along with the documents/filing for law suits).  

The LLC is there to protect your personal assets from lawsuits, but that can only happen if you maintain a 'corporate veil'.

@Kim Handelman an alternative to the duplex "house hack" is the house with a mother-in-law suite/efficiency apartment house hack. 

correctley it limits the impact of a potential law suit to the asset the LLC owns.

I definitely agree with the part about Attorneys being conservative but I guess it is because they have seen involved, directly and indirectly, in many lawsuits on both sides during their career.

That investors business has been shut down since then because of numerous lawsuits.

I have a client who has a very large lawsuit who has been levied, and the judgement has gone against him.

If you can produce these things in the event of a lawsuit, great, otherwise stick with something simpler like an LLC or an SCORP.

While LLC's were intended to be treated like corporations, you'd have to find out how judges in your area have ruled to determine whether to go with an LLC or a corporation.But sole proprietorship exposes you to lawsuit city.

(in fact you'll soon, likely see distributors in your neck of the woods)The municipality would have to file a lawsuit in a completely different state...Do you know how hard it would be tosub poena phone records..About a year ago..Locally... a detective kept calling our front office... and asking about customers... of course we said we don't know... and the truth is... we don't have a database that correlates number on the bandit sign with person...