As a San Diego North County business attorney, I am frequently asked: “What does it take to start a business?” Generally, there are six steps to take into account when starting a business:
1. DECIDE ON A LOCATION FOR YOUR BUSINESS
When deciding on a location for your business, certain factors need to be taken into consideration such as liabilities, taxes, incorporation costs and fees; where you want to do business; foreign entity doing business; raising capital; and reporting requirements. The decision to incorporate the entity in another state should only be made after weighing the advantages against the disadvantages. These factors should be discussed with your business attorney before you decide on a location for your business.
2. DETERMINE THE APPROPRIATE BUSINESS STRUCTURE
There are several business structures that are used in setting up a business. Here are some of the most common entities used, their requirements and liability issues:
Sole Proprietorship is a business owned and operated by an individual. Sole proprietorships are the basic forms of business organizations, which require no formal type of government filings to form the business and are not required to follow any type of operating formalities. The benefit of a sole proprietorship is the taxability of business income and the deductibility of business losses on the business owner’s individual tax returns. The liability of a sole proprietorship is that the business owner is personally liable for all liabilities and obligations of the business, which liability extends, not only to liabilities in excess of the amounts invested in the business including any insurance coverage, but also to the business owner’s personal assets.
General Partnership is an association of two or more persons to carry on a business. A general partnership is another type of business entity which is easy to form but requires a written partnership agreement to govern the operations of the partnership and the relationship among the partners. Compliance requirements for a partnership are minimal and require that a Statement of Information be filed with the State of incorporation and the partnership maintains records to provide to the partners. The liability of a general partnership is that a partner’s liability not only extends to that partner’s percentage interest in the business but also to the partner’s personal assets as well.