Starting a Business Overview
Best sites on the net: Small Business Administration: http://www.sba.gov SCORE (Service Core of Retired Executives) - http://www.score.org/ Florida Department of State - http://www.sunbiz.org Entrepreneur magazine - http://entrepreneur.com/
Types of Business Entities: Sole Proprietorship – single owner, tied to Social Security Number, DBA/Fictitious Name, file a Schedule C with 1040, tied to your personal assets Partnership – multiple owner, tied to Social Security Numbers of owners, division of profit/loss and assets upon dissolution, responsible for other partners’ actions, owners take draws LLC – Limited Liability Corporation – one or multiple owners (depends on state), Tax ID (EIN – Employer Identification Number), limited liability protection, owners take draws Corporation - S or C Corp. – Entity is completely separate from owners, owners are shareholders, can pay owners with paychecks, limited liability protection Options Start-up from scratch Purchase an existing business Purchase a franchise o Top 10 questions to ask before buying a franchise: o http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/0,4621,322596,00.html Assemble Your Team: Lawyer Accountant Insurance Agent Financing Personal finances and loans SBA loans – micro loans up to $25,000 Franchises – some help with financing (still based on personal assets usually) Venture/Angel capital For retail leases
Triple Net – NNN – Base rent + taxes/insurance + common area maintenance (CAM) 5 year lease with options to renew Percentage increase each year GET A LAWYER TO REVIEW BEFORE YOU SIGN!!!!
Steps for starting a business 1. Write you business plan 2. Choose a name 3. Check to see if name is taken 4. File for your fictitious name or have your lawyer draw up incorporation papers 5. Once you have your Tax ID, you can get your Occupational License from the county and city (yes, you may need both!) 6. Open a bank account for your business – make sure to keep all your $$$$ separate!! 7. If you plan to have employees, consider a payroll service (easier!!!) 8. Taxes – Federal, State and Local (depending on where you open your business) 9. Get a small business accounting software package – Quickbooks is great!!