Steps to SBR with Trust?

[exkc135driver]

Corps and LLCs are a different story. They and certain information about them are filed with the state corporation commission and the records are publicly accessible, usually online. That sometimes includes your name, addresses, etc., so more caution may be warranted in naming one of those entities.

With regard to the naming of a corporation/LLC -- as I have said in other posts, if Mr. A forms "Machine Gunz R Me, Inc." for the purpose of owning an NFA item, and Mr. B forms "Sunny Breezes, Inc." for the same purpose: (1) who is more likely to get burgled?; (2) even though some info about Sunny Breezes is a matter of public record, who cares? What assets it holds is not a matter of public record.

It's time to set this "public record" thing straight. In most states, what is on public record is innocuous info such as the name of the corporation/LLC, its principal office address, the name and address of its registered agent, when it was formed, etc. The corporation's other office addresses need not be disclosed. So, even if Mr. A is stupid enough to form a corporation with a name as stated above, the corporation could keep its sensitive assets in another location.

[dbrowne1]

With regard to the naming of a corporation/LLC -- as I have said in other posts, if Mr. A forms "Machine Gunz R Me, Inc." for the purpose of owning an NFA item, and Mr. B forms "Sunny Breezes, Inc." for the same purpose: (1) who is more likely to get burgled?; (2) even though some info about Sunny Breezes is a matter of public record, who cares? What assets it holds is not a matter of public record.

Right - I don't think we disagree. My point was that it makes sense to think about what you name a LLC or Corp, but it probably doesn't matter for a trust.

It's time to set this "public record" thing straight. In most states, what is on public record is innocuous info such as the name of the corporation/LLC, its principal office address, the name and address of its registered agent, when it was formed, etc. The corporation's other office addresses need not be disclosed. So, even if Mr. A is stupid enough to form a corporation with a name as stated above, the corporation could keep its sensitive assets in another location.

Unless you want to lease an office space to put down as your principal place of business, and pay someone else an annual fee to be your registered agent, what names and addresses are you going to put on there? Are you going to have multiple locations for a company that you form just to own NFA items? Seems more than a little ridiculous.

Bottom line is that if you're going the LLC/Corp route, name it something generic that doesn't hint at guns.

[exkc135driver]

Right - I don't think we disagree. My point was that it makes sense to think about what you name a LLC or Corp, but it probably doesn't matter for a trust.

I don't think we do either, but -- if the entity is going to hold sensitive assets of any type, then I think a vanilla name is better, even if the entity is a trust. But that’s just me.

Unless you want to lease an office space to put down as your principal place of business, and pay someone else an annual fee to be your registered agent, what names and addresses are you going to put on there? Are you going to have multiple locations for a company that you form just to own NFA items? Seems more than a little ridiculous.

That’s one way to do it. But in most states, it’s OK for the principal office address to be a P.O. box or a PMB (private mail box, which you get at places like The UPS Store). As you know, the registered agent’s address has to be an actual place where the RA can be found (no P.O. boxes or PMBs), but it can be a friend … a relative … anybody you trust to promptly turn over anything that the corporation might receive or be served with. That is normally* just going to be either (a) a postcard from your state’s SecState telling you that your annual fees are due or (b) junk mail.

Or, for those with a slightly Byzantine mindset ... form your corps/LLCs using POBs/PMBs for the principal office address. Then form another corp, using a different POB/PMB as its principal office address, and have that corp be the RA for the other corps/LLCs using your home address. Of course that corp will also need an RA, which can be you or your wife/significant other at your home address. Or if you have your own business, use that business as the RA. Or just have the business own the items. More than one plumbing company owns some pipes that have rifling in them ...

Some people advise against a corporation or LLC because the annual fees are high. That is state-specific. They are high in some states, low in others. Your mileage will vary.




*”normally” is another way of saying “probably.” In another post on this subforum I railed against counting on bad things to “probably” not happen. So who was it that said that consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds?