We are quickly approaching the end of the year.  Many will wonder whether its best to file a new Corporation now or wait till 2011.  The answer to your question may not be very clear.  It may come down to taxes and the best person to ask about when to file could be your accountant. 

Filing now may be beneficial if your business will benefit from tax related deductions.  However, many may opt to file at the start of the new year just to make things easier and a more symbolic gesture as to when the company starts.

There are many advantages and disadvantages to go into on whether it is best to start a corporation now or wait till 2011.  It really comes down to a personal choice on the matter.  There may not be a compelling reason to file now vs. later. 

Consult some professionals on when the best time for you to file and then you can contact us at 866-999-8200.

Times are tough and many businesses out there are struggling to survive.  Many unfortunately are going out of business simply because there isn't enough customers to keep their business going.  In this case, if you're running a corporation or a LLC, it is important that you file for a dissolution with the state.  A dissolution, is the opposite of forming your corporation by submitting articles of incorporation or oganization.  Articles of dissolution must be submitted to the state to terminate the existence of your business.

With the filing of the Articles of Dissolution, fees may be involved to submit these forms to the state.  Failure to submit these forms to the state may result in you paying fees for having a company that is still active.  In most state, failure to pay these fees may result in an automatic dissolution with the state.  In California, failure to submit the articles of dissolution, may require you to pay the minimum franchise tax of $800.  Therefore it is important that you file these documents.

Once business gets better,  most states may reactivate dissolved companies however you will most likely need to refile articles of incorporation to reinstate the company.  One thing to note about this is that some states require a corporate name to be dissolved for a certain period of time, usually a year to five years for the same name to be used again.  So you may need to change the name of the corporation if this happens.

We can help you with your dissolution filing. Please contact us today.

For every corporation that is formed in this country, each corporation must have a certain amount of shares outstanding.  The number of share must be one or greater.  Rarely will a corporation have only one share.  The implication of having just one share is that only one person can own the company since the corporation is owned by its shareholders.  Typically we default to 1500 shares when we form new corporations. 

There is one thing to note for those corporations that would like to issue millions of shares.  Most states will allow for your corporation to have that many shares but in some circumstances, the fees to incorporate with this many shares can be substantial.  Fees can range to hundreds or thousands of dollars depending on the amount of shares you authorize.  In most cases, having more than 1500 shares is not necessary.  Most companies don't go public and therefore wouldn't need that many shares. 

The only time where you would really need to worry about the number of shares is when the company is to go public or if they need to sell partial ownership of the company to raise capital.  In this case, many companies choose to add additional shares and to get advisement from lawyers. 

If you wish to form a corporation, please contact us.

Some of our customers ask "how long will it take to file?".  The answer to this question depends on where you wish to file.  All the states don't have the same filing time and they vary greatly.  Some states can take a matter of hours to approve the filing and other states take months. 

The expedited time frames usually come with additional charges.  Most of the additional charges are simply for the state to earn additional revenue with not much more additional work for the state.  It is almost pure profit for these states but people are in a hurry and they need the fast service.  There isn't much getting around that.  However some states are still relatively fast without any expedite services.  States such as Florida, Texas, and New Jersey provides some of the fastest times.  They can have a filing done in about a day.

States that are the slowest are California, Arizona and Maryland.  These states typically take about 8 weeks or so to complete their filing.  Much of the delay is that there simply isn't enough staff to handle the workload.  California has been hard hit due to budget cutbacks and furloughs.  They have seen their filings take from 6-8 weeks to about 3 months. 

Most states take about 2-3 weeks to complete their filings on average.

Small business is not the only reason why someone would file for a corporation or LLC. Another big reason for filing is to protect personal assets as a property owner. Many individuals own real property which they rent out. If there happens to be an accident at your rental property, which is in your name, you are personally liable for the property and any accidents at the property. If you form an LLC or a corporation and place your property under that entity, the entity is only responsible for the claims filed against it. If an entity is in place and being run correctly, you are not at risk for being responsible for the property personally. If you're interested in filing for an LLC or corporation please give us a call at 866-999-8200.

When you decide to start a small business you've taken a big leap towards independence. Many times small business owners have great ideas when it comes to their service and products but fail to put more effort into the business side of things. Whether you want to form a corporation or an LLC the first step is to speak with an accountant, preferably one familiar with business taxes or your personal taxes. An accountant can tell you which type of filing is best for you and the type of business you're engaging in. For example, if you form an LLC, by default you will be taxed together with your personal taxes, for lots of small business owners this is the easier option but it's not always the best option. For a successful business to stay successful you should save money everywhere you can without compromising the quality of your service or product. If you don't have an accountant we suggest you speak with friends or acquaintances that may have their own businesses as you'll become more familiar with the differences in the structure between an LLC and a corporation.

The Epoch Times is reporting that according to the National Federation of Independent Business this is the second month of rising optimistim for US small businesses. With small businesses making up a majority of our nations business community, it's important that we're showing optimisim in these coming times. If there was ever a time to start a business the time is now. Small businesses supporting small businesses support our economy and make it stronger, something that is needed in a time like this.

If you're looking to start a small business, we can assist in that, whether you want to start an LLC or a corporation, and remember only one person is needed in order to open up either of these business types.

It appears that the job optimism is growing according to a recent poll that was released today by Manpower Inc.  Manpower is a global employment agency that looks to place talented employees with prospective jobs with business that the agency works with.  The survey of 18,000 employers asked about their plans on hiring or firing decisions in the third quarter.  The poll showed that 18% of those employers polled plan to add staff.  It is just another sign that the job market may be finally getting a leg up. This survey is in line the the Labor Departments findings on job growth.

The survey showed that the best prospects for job growth was the Northeast.  Employers expected a moderate increase in staff.  The same can't be said for the West which showed the weakest prospects.  Nevada was the only state that showed a negative job outlook.  There is still a sense of caution though.  Many employers are still on the fence about hiring.  Many companies are struggling and they want to see revenues increase more before adding any new staff. 

Manpower is a corporation based in Wisconsin.  For more information on forming a corporation, click on the link.

When you start a business you'll have a lot of people telling you what to do and what not to do, it's important to realize where this advise is coming from, if the person telling you not to start the business, because most small businesses fail, has never tried to start a business, who are they to tell you what you should or shouldn't do? The main thing is to focus on what you set out to do and try not to steer far from that goal. A lot of people will also tell you not to worry about anything and everything will work out, while you shouldn't kill yourself by overworking, part of owning your own business is worrying about things, that's what makes it yours, and when you're focusing on the right areas of the business your business should succeed.

If you're looking to start a new business, whether that be a corporation, limited liability company or file for a DBA, we can help.

Farmers markets have become a new breeding ground for new business.  A recent LA Times articles points out that more consumers are hungry for fresh fruits and produce.  For new business that are starting up and testing their new products, it may be a good idea to protect your business and assets by forming a LLC or forming a Corporation.  Many business that start up, do so by a sole proprietorship.  In doing so, much of the liability falls square on the owners themselves.  Therefore, if somebody were to be injured or hurt from one of your products, your personal assets such as your home and car are vulnerable to a lawsuit.  To protect your personal assets, it is imperative that you form a LLC or corporation so that you are protected. 

Once you have formed your LLC or Corporation, then you can operate your business knowing that you are protected in the event of a lawsuit.  The article points out that it may be difficult to join these Farmers markets since the demand is so great.  Therefore getting in may mean offering products that are different.  Therefore getting your company off the ground will require some good business strategy and protection.  Therefore protect yourself with a LLC or Corporation.