Being an entrepreneur is not just simple. You need to have an "eye" and an "ear" to all corners of the business industry. If you are just starting your business, you need to decide what products or services are the hottest in the market. You should also consider the business structure of your company, whether you will go on sole proprietorship, partnership, or a corporation. It will help you a lot in terms of efficient business operation and good profit.

The aforementioned three business structures are the most typical in business formation. But don't you know that there is another alternative structure you can make use of? If you are a keen observer, maybe you already notice some business firms with their names being followed by the letter "LLC" instead of the commonly used "Co." or "Inc." What is this LLC? Keep an eye on the preceding sections of this article and learn the basic concepts of this LLC.

LLC: Combining Best Aspects of Business Partnership and Corporation

LLC is the acronym of limited liability company, which is said to have combined the best aspects of both partnership and corporation structure. The corporation has an attribute of protecting its assets from personal liability on business debts. Partnership has an attribute of a pass-through tax structure. These two aspects can be found when you set-up an LLC.

Here are some of the key features of an LLC.

1. Limited Personal Liability- if you are an LLC owner, you are protected from personal liability for your LLC's business debts and claims, just like if you are a shareholder of a corporation. In other words, your creditor can not legally come after your real property, car, or other personal assets. The debts acquired by your business will be paid through the LLC's assets. This means that you will only lose money you have invested in the LLC and not your personal assets.

However, just like corporations, the protection you can obtain from limited personal liability is not absolute. As an LLC owner, you can personally be held liable if:

* You personally and directly injured someone.
* You personally guaranteed a business loan which your LLC failed to complied with the terms and conditions.
* You failed to remit the taxes you have withheld from your employee's salaries.
* You intentionally do something illegal that causes harm to the LLC itself or to someone else.

2. LLC Business Insurance Policy- it can give protection to your personal assets on circumstances where your limited personal liability status is not applicable. For instance, if you are a home improvement serviceman and you accidentally injured your client, your LLC business insurance policy will cover you. In addition, it can also protect your corporate assets from lawsuits and other legal claims.

3. LLC Taxes- LLC is not considered separate from you and other LLC owners for tax purposes. It employs the so-called pass-through entity where your income will eventually pass through the business to you and other LLC owners. You will be filing share of profits and losses on your individual income tax returns.

4. LLC Management- the owners of LLC are given equal rights in terms of managing the LLC. This system is often called member-management. There is also an alternative management structure which is called the manager management. You will be designating one or more co-owners to take charge of the management of the LLC. You, being as non-managing owners, will simply do nothing but you will get a share on the LLC profits.

These are the major features of an LLC. Remember that LLC is not just a plain alternative. It is now a major choice in deciding for your business' structure.