However rare it may be, it is important to protect your property and assets from frivolous and serious claims against your personal assets. In order to do so, we always recommend separating your business (STR Asset) from your personal assets by filing a registered business. The following steps will help you along with your process, and we ALWAYS recommend reaching out to your attorney and tax advisor for specific information.
*For the following information, we will use the State of Colorado as our example.
- Registering with Secretary of State
- File your new business (typically address of the asset) with the Secretary of State. We recommend a Limited Liability Company (LLC), but any Entity will help protect your personal assets.
- Complete the form and be sure to store the document, as you will need this information for your banking.
- Register with the IRS
- You will need to register your new business with an FEIN (Federal Employer Identification Number). This is a fairly straightforward form and shouldn't take more than a few minutes to complete.
- Be sure to store this document and the bank will also need to review this information.
- Setup Banking Information
- Go to your local bank and ask to speak with the business division. Tell them about your new venture, and provide them with the two documents you have listed above. They may ask for an operating agreement, but you can state in the bank definition that you are the sole owner/member of the business (unless otherwise defined).
- File a Quitclaim Dee
- It is important to transfer the asset out of your personal name and into the protected entity. You will need to file a transfer property quitclaim deed with the state. For our example, we recommend using this simple form and completing the nested steps to record the deed transfer. This is a bit more complex, but a bit of coffee and attention to detail will get you through the hoops.
If you should need help with any of this documentation, feel free to
reach out to one of our agents to help complete the paperwork. There is typically a professional services fee to help file these documents.