There's also the option of renting garage at a storage unit place.
I'd like to see what he says as far as actual gross, expenses, net.
There's also the option of renting garage at a storage unit place.
I'd like to see what he says as far as actual gross, expenses, net.
If you are waiting for actual numbers from me you will be waiting a while lol..I am not a receipts or numbers person I'm mote of a fly by the seat of my pants with an oncoming train wreck kinda guy.
This thread has done exactly what I had hoped it would do which is make me think about all that is involved in operating a small business and telling me if I have it or not. I DO NOT HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO RUN A SMALL BUSINESS LEGALLY OR EFFICIENTLY.
I am just going to continue selling parts to people out of my garage and call it good. I appreciate everyone's advice and replies
I'll suggest two things before we go for your hypothetical business. 1 - keep receipts somewhere, even if that's just cramming them in a folder or box every year. If for whatever reason they would come for you, you would at least have proof of those expenses. 2 - claim some income annually, with proof (receipts), and pay the tax. Again that's just in case they want to come for you, that way you would have been doing your "civic duty" and paying some income tax.
Anyone here see that as bad advice?
I’ve owned my business 15 years, now have a 2nd as well. LLC protects you and is extremely cheap insurance so you personally can’t be sued or collected on as a person. They can only come after businesses. If you don’t have employees everything else is pretty easy. Set up a business bank account and keep you personal. Don’t mix money, it’ll make taxes easier. You can get basic quick books for $150ish if you watch for sales. Even as a side hustle I’d set all this up. Get your systems in place before thinking about expanding
That sounds like the right plan. I've had a small business for 20+ years. Its been good but also a PITA. Exponentially harder if you have employees as opposed to just working for yourself. I'm considering employment for the final years of my career. Finally, I've known several people who have made their hobby into a small business and found that it took all the fun out of it.
From my understanding when I had a rental property, the LLC would not protect me (myself) If i was the one doing the actual work. Example, I fix the front steps myself and they break causing injury. I could still be sued personally. I was advised to have legit contractors do all the work to avoid this. The same could be said for P-man pulling all the parts and sending them out...he could possibly get sued personally. Maybe rules have changed but I doubt it. If an employee did it then the llc owner would have some level of protection.
My uncle would agree with that. He ran a masonry business, mostly commercial, until around '09 when the market collapsed. After struggling for a few years he got in with a large regional commercial construction company and has loved being able to come home after work and just cut it off. No more employees, no books to keep up, no bids to calculate and place, no equipment to worry about.
I'm a sole proprietor without any employees, but I still have to run my books, find work and other general business, and everything else that comes with that, which right now includes taxes. I hate getting my tax stuff together. I've spent 2 fulls days getting things together this year, and I'm decently organized. This time of year, I really envy people working for a company who handles all of that. Once my taxes are done, I'll feel different and really get back to enjoying the freedom of self-employment, but those damn taxes...
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Real estate will abide by different laws, and that might be a state-by-state kind of thing. I don't think a parts seller could be sued here, well, nothing above small claims with someone claiming misrepresented parts or something like that.
That reminds me, over the last couple of years people here have been isolating rental properties into individual LLCs so that in the event of being sued, only that specific property is in jeopardy. I see lots of rental property owners being listed as "123 Rental St, LLC", property address 123 Rental St, City.
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For you guys with LLCs and other corps/entities, have you seen this? I'm still reading about it, but it's not looking good. Contact your reps.
Significant Regulatory Punch in a Small Package
"When Congress passed the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, it included a bill called the Corporate Transparency Act ('CTA'). Although the CTA made up just over 21 pages of the NDAA's nearly 1,500-page total, the law packs a significant regulatory punch, requiring most entities incorporated under State law to disclose personal stakeholder information to the Treasury Department's criminal enforcement arm," Judge Liles C. Burke of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama's Northeastern Division handily summarized in this month's ruling."
Large businesses are exempt; the law applies to companies with 20 or fewer employees.
"Justifications for the law laid out in early versions of the legislation invoked a laundry list of alleged financial horribles including money laundering and tax evasion. The word terrorism appears, too, of course, because that has been the lazy, default justification for legislation for 20-plus years. Basically, the law is targeted at anything that might involve a modicum of financial privacy.
To that end, the U.S. Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) set up an online reporting system through which business owners "are required to report information to FinCEN about the individuals who ultimately own or control them." FinCEN started compiling reports for such "beneficial ownership information" (BOI) on January 1, 2024 with a deadline for compliance of January 1, 2025, or 30 days after creation for companies registered following that date...."
A Regulation With a Nasty Sting
"Is there a penalty for noncompliance? Of course there is. According to FinCEN, "a person who willfully violates the BOI reporting requirements may be subject to civil penalties of up to $500 for each day that the violation continues. That person may also be subject to criminal penalties of up to two years imprisonment and a fine of up to $10,000."
This might be a problem for those many Americans who have established corporations or limited liability companies for making a living, but don't keep track of the federal government's diligent efforts to stamp out the scourge of terroristic money launderers among retail storefronts and Etsy vendors. I received a heads-up from reader Rick Wakefield, who forwarded a memo from his accountant. I dug through my email and found a similar note from my own accountant, dated two days before Christmas. Another accountant with whom I work told me she'd been waiting on the outcome of litigation against the law......"
That means the unconstitutional law is still being enforced against everybody who wasn't party to the lawsuit....."
https://reason.com/2024/03/11/feds-enforcing-unconstitutional-reporting-law-against-most-businesses/
Feds Enforcing Unconstitutional Reporting Law Against Most Businesses
Are you in compliance with the Corporate Transparency Act? Have you even heard of it?
"Early this month, a federal judge in Alabama held the Corporate Transparency Act unconstitutional and granted plaintiffs in a lawsuit summary judgment against enforcement of the wide-reaching law, which went into effect this year. For many Americans this raises the questions: "What in hell is the Corporate Transparency Act? Does it affect me?" The quick answer is that it's a big deal, and if you own an incorporated business, you'll probably still suffer its intrusive requirements even after the ruling."Significant Regulatory Punch in a Small Package
"When Congress passed the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, it included a bill called the Corporate Transparency Act ('CTA'). Although the CTA made up just over 21 pages of the NDAA's nearly 1,500-page total, the law packs a significant regulatory punch, requiring most entities incorporated under State law to disclose personal stakeholder information to the Treasury Department's criminal enforcement arm," Judge Liles C. Burke of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama's Northeastern Division handily summarized in this month's ruling."
Large businesses are exempt; the law applies to companies with 20 or fewer employees.
"Justifications for the law laid out in early versions of the legislation invoked a laundry list of alleged financial horribles including money laundering and tax evasion. The word terrorism appears, too, of course, because that has been the lazy, default justification for legislation for 20-plus years. Basically, the law is targeted at anything that might involve a modicum of financial privacy.
To that end, the U.S. Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) set up an online reporting system through which business owners "are required to report information to FinCEN about the individuals who ultimately own or control them." FinCEN started compiling reports for such "beneficial ownership information" (BOI) on January 1, 2024 with a deadline for compliance of January 1, 2025, or 30 days after creation for companies registered following that date...."
A Regulation With a Nasty Sting
"Is there a penalty for noncompliance? Of course there is. According to FinCEN, "a person who willfully violates the BOI reporting requirements may be subject to civil penalties of up to $500 for each day that the violation continues. That person may also be subject to criminal penalties of up to two years imprisonment and a fine of up to $10,000."
This might be a problem for those many Americans who have established corporations or limited liability companies for making a living, but don't keep track of the federal government's diligent efforts to stamp out the scourge of terroristic money launderers among retail storefronts and Etsy vendors. I received a heads-up from reader Rick Wakefield, who forwarded a memo from his accountant. I dug through my email and found a similar note from my own accountant, dated two days before Christmas. Another accountant with whom I work told me she'd been waiting on the outcome of litigation against the law......"
Unconstitutional, But Still Enforced
"The government is not currently enforcing the Corporate Transparency Act against the plaintiffs in that action: Isaac Winkles, reporting companies for which Isaac Winkles is the beneficial owner or applicant, the National Small Business Association, and members of the National Small Business Association (as of March 1, 2024)," concedes FinCEN. "Those individuals and entities are not required to report beneficial ownership information to FinCEN at this time."That means the unconstitutional law is still being enforced against everybody who wasn't party to the lawsuit....."
https://reason.com/2024/03/11/feds-enforcing-unconstitutional-reporting-law-against-most-businesses/
Suppose it depends on the level of negligence. I'm not a contractor so if I fixed a step maybe liability would be different? Liability insurance is also still a necessary thing as well. Suppose I gave an over simplified answer but thats what the LLC does, "Limited liability". Limits your personal exposure from lawsuits and credit claims
One of biggest things that has helped my SEO is being part of Better Business Bureau. The more places you have back links to your website (other websites linking/posting your website) the more important Google thinks you are. If a bigger website like BBB has a link to your page it raises your SEO. I also registered my website anywhere I could that was free for same reasons. Apple is 100% based off of Yelp reviews so “best coffee near me” will pull from Yelp. Google business you can bump up SEO by being active on your Google Business Page. Make sure it’s up to date, post pics occasionally. When posting photos put as many hashtag/words as you can in the file before uploading. Example for me, when I upload photos the name of file would be (Denver, Denver tattoo, tattoo artist, ect…)
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