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“Congratulations on registering your new business with the state of California. Our records show you have yet to file for your companies certificate of status….”

Recently, customers have been calling in asking about letters they are receiving. These letters claim the recipient must purchase a certificate of status in order to properly conduct business. They are receiving these letters from private companies attempting to appear as if they are a government agency. The letters state you must order a “certificate of status” to prove your corporation is in good standing and will be necessary in order to open a bank account. They then ask the potential customer to pay $49.50 to $299.00 for their certificate of status. Most of this is not true and is one of the newest fastest growing scams!

While it is true you may in certain rare situations need a certificate of status. It is not needed by the average new business owner. The only situations that you will need this certificate is if you are trying to register your corporation in another state. Or, maybe you are attempting a merger with another company and the other entity needs proof that you are in good standing with the Secretary of State. Also, the Secretary of State will never waste a stamp to let you know anything that is not absolutely necessary.

Furthermore, only the Secretary of State can issue a valid certificate of status. The price of which can range from free, to about $80.00. Quite a huge price difference from what these private companies are charging. Even if you wanted to have a reputable company file your certificate, it wouldn’t cost nearly what they charge. AAAFiling.com can file your certificate depending upon your state anywhere from $25.00 to $105.00.

So, if you ever open up a letter that looks official requesting payment for a certificate of status. Pat yourself on the back for reading this blog post and throw it in the trash!

 

Okay, so you’ve started your own business! Great! You have also probably heard a lot of people telling you that you should probably protect yourself by forming a corporation. Why is this important? Check out the following five great reasons to incorporate your business!

1. Asset Protection

The number one reason to incorporate your business is to protect your own personal assets. This works because a corporation can buy things, sell things, own property (ie: houses, work truck, equipment, etc.) it can sue and can even be sued!
If your company were to be sued and you were not incorporated, you could lose all of your personal property, cars, savings etc. If you ran your business as a corporation they can only get what the corporation owns.

2. Building Corporate Credit

Once you incorporate your business you can go after corporate credit. Corporate credit is great because it builds so fast. Personal credit may take years to build to a respectable level. Corporate credit takes about a third of the time to build. Since it builds as its own credit profile, it keeps your personal credit separate.

3. Anonymity

A lot of business owners want to fly under the radar. They want to run their business and not have their personal information plastered all over the web for all to see. When you incorporate your business in certain states such as Delaware this can be possible as they do not record officer information.

4. Legitimize Your Business

Most people view a corporation as a more legitimate company and therefore more stable. It may help when setting up vendor accounts or securing bank loans for equipment and supplies. When you incorporate your business, it may give you that extra image boost you need to obtain that loan or trade account.

5. Raising Capital

A corporation by definition must be able to issue stock. This makes it possible to raise capital by the sale of stock. Many start up businesses need to raise large amounts of working capital to make their dream a reality. Often times the business will do this by pitching it’s plan investors.

Should You Incorporate Your Business?

Every business is different and there is no “one size fits all” business structure. A corporation is a great business entity with a lot of great benefits. While a corporation can be the best fit for most business’s out there. You may want to consult an attorney prior to attempting to incorporate your business. Once you know exactly what you want your new entity to be let us know. We will be happy to help!

 

If you’ve ever done any research or general looking into how to start a business, especially in Nevada, you may have noticed that a lot of businesses have made the decision to operate as limited liability companies (LLC’s). There are a number of good reasons to form Nevada LLC if you are thinking of starting a company or business; even if you don’t live in Nevada you can still form a company in the LLC fashion. Many business owners find that they can take advantage of a number of benefits that come with the formation of LLC’s.
[Read more…] about Form Nevada LLC

When you decide to form Nevada LLC, you should be aware of the costs that will be involved so that you will be prepared to pay them and not delay the formation of your company. There are several fixed fees that are required by the Secretary of State of Nevada for filing the paperwork necessary to start your new limited liability company. These are one time fees due when you submit the forms to the proper office. The price to file your company’s articles of organization, which is the necessary first step, will be $70. If you have the state perform a name check for you, it will cost $10 and it’ll be $20 to reserve a business name.

[Read more…] about Cost to Form Nevada LLC