Florida

Since this is in the Florida forum, rather than California, I’ll throw in my two-cents’ worth.

In Florida, you can register an LLC quickly and easily online at Sunbiz and it only costs $125.00 each year (with a couple of options that could add up to $35.00 more). Far less than the California numbers mentioned in the Forrager FAQ.

One of the things to consider is the name under which you will be doing business. Without the LLC, there would be two choices. First, you would have to do everything under your full, personal name. Aside from potential privacy issues, this could also be a little trickier when opening a business checking account (since business and personal funds are supposed to be handled separately and not mixed in the same account).

Your second option would be to register a DBA (Doing Business As…) name. To do so, however, you must first take out an ad in a newspaper in your county along the lines of “Intent to file fictitious name: Rebecca Q Smith will be conducting business under the name ‘Becky’s Bakery’.” Only after the ad has been published are you allowed to file your fictitious name registration with Sunbiz. They don’t ask for proof, but if you file without having published the ad, it’s a third-degree felony and would definitely be a problem if someone replies to the add saying that the name is already in use by someone else. A fictitious name registration is NOT required for forming an LLC, and you would be able to do a simple search for the name and, if is not already in use, you could put that right into your LLC application.

Regardless of what you do, you should still go to the IRS website to apply for an Employer Identification Number (EIN). Although you’ll hardly ever actually use the EIN, the one important use of it will be in opening your business checking account at the bank. By then using that account’s debit card for all of your business-related expenses and having Square (or the like) deposit payments to that account, you won’t have to have business transactions mixed into your personal account. This also makes it much easier to keep track of business income and expenses when tax time comes along.

Anyway, when it comes to the LLC, it certainly is NOT necessary, but it does have some advantages over having to do everything under your personal name, especially in Florida, where the LLC is not that costly.