Business Setup Strategies

Most people start investing in real estate and figure out the business side later. That order costs them money — in taxes they didn’t need to pay, financing they couldn’t get, and liability they didn’t know they were carrying.

This course is the setup work, done first and done right. It’s the same structure I’ve used across 300+ transactions since 2007, explained in under an hour so you can actually go do it this week.

What’s covered:

• Choosing an entity: sole proprietor, LLC, or corporation — and why the answer depends on your stage, not on what sounds impressive
• How to actually form the entity, step by step
• EIN, operating agreement, and the paperwork that makes the entity real rather than decorative
• Opening business bank accounts, and why separating your money is non-negotiable
• Setting up bookkeeping from day one instead of reconstructing it in April
• Building business credit as a separate track from personal credit
• When one entity is enough, and when it isn’t

The honest version: an LLC is not a tax strategy. A single-member LLC files exactly the same way personal ownership does. Entities exist for liability separation and credibility — and knowing the difference will save you from advice that sounds sophisticated and isn’t.

This is the foundation the rest of the Academy builds on. Get it right once and you never think about it again.

Note: This is educational, not legal or tax advice. Entity and formation rules vary by state. Work with an attorney and CPA for your specific situation.