Business bank account to buy a home in Florida using an LLC?

Realize that the whole purpose of forming an LLC is to have an entity with a separate legal existence, with adequate capitalization, separation of your personal money from its LLC money, etc.. etc., that will shield your personal assets from liability. You obviously have money to buy homes for investments. Invest in a good business lawyer and a CPA to make sure you do this right, since your question indicates that you don't know how to do this right and will incur tax and liability trouble.

I am licensed to practice law in Florida and New York and the areas of concentration of my practice include, among others, limited liability company and banking law. If the holder of record title to the home is to be a Florida llc, either the llc will purchase the home with assets that you contribute to the llc or the llc borrows from a bank under a loan secured by a mortgage granted to the bank by the llc, or you will purchase the home with your assets and contribute the home to the llc as a capital contribution after the closing of that purchase. In either case, as a practical matter, in order for the llc to make payments under the mortgage loan and payments of other expenses (e.g., utilities, waste collection, water and other governmental fees and charges), a bank or brokerage account must be opened in the name of the llc. Commingling your assets with those of the llc by your making these payments from your personal or another company account and your receiving rents and other income from the home directly in your personal or another company account (rather than by payments to the llc's account followed by distributions by the llc to you from the llc's net income, while leaving adequate capital in the llc) subjects you to personal liability under a legal doctrine known as "piercing the corporate veil," which applies to Florida llcs. Disclaimer: Karen J. Orlin P.L., Karen J. Orlin and its and her affiliates and suppliers make available the information and materials on this web site for general informational purposes only. That information and those materials are not intended to constitute, and do not constitute, legal advice and are not intended to constitute, and do not constitute, a solicitation for the formation of an attorney-client relationship; no attorney-client relationship is created through your use of this web site or your receipt of that information or those materials. Anyone accessing that information or those materials should not act upon them without first seeking legal counsel. Further, that information and those materials are general in nature, and may not apply to particular factual or legal circumstances. The attorney-client relationship can only be formed by the execution of an engagement letter countersigned by Karen J. Orlin P.L. In addition, unsolicited e-mails and information sent to Karen J. Orlin P.L. or Karen J. Orlin do not create an attorney-client relationship with Karen J. Orlin P.L. or Karen J. Orlin, will not be considered confidential, and may be disclosed to others pursuant to this law firm's Privacy Policy. Karen J. Orlin P.L. and Karen J. Orlin accept clients only in accordance with certain formal procedures, and render legal advice only after completion of those procedures. Karen J. Orlin P.L. and Karen J. Orlin do not seek to represent anyone desiring representation based upon accessing this web site in a jurisdiction where this web site fails to comply with applicable laws and ethical rules. In addition, no attorney of this law firm seeks to practice law in any jurisdiction in which that attorney is not properly authorized to do so. Ms. Orlin is admitted to practice law only in New York and Florida. Attorney at Law and Managing Member Karen J. Orlin P.L. P.O. Box 430620 Miami, FL 33243-0620 Telephone: (305) 794-6387 (cellular) Facsimile: (305) 668-7072 Email: [email protected] or [email protected] Web Page: www.orlinlaw.com CIRCULAR 230: To ensure compliance with U.S. Treasury Department Regulations, we are now required to advise you that, unless otherwise expressly indicated, any federal tax advice contained in this communication, including any attachments, is not intended or written by us to be used, and cannot be used, by anyone for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed by the federal government or for promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any tax-related matters addressed herein