Simple Steps to Form your Company Rick Bernier

Simple Steps to Form your Company Rick Bernier CEO Hilltop Acquisitions

q Establish a Fictitious Business Name (FBN) q Open your browser to the San Diego County Clerk’s Office as well as Gmail q Find an available name online with the County Clerk and match that to a Gmail account q Save the Gmail account (only a concern if you want you FBN and email to match) q SD County Clerk FBN checker: https: //arcc. sdcounty. ca. gov/Pages/fictitious. aspx q Fill out and print a copy of the FBN in person with ID form q FBN form: https: //arcc. sdcounty. ca. gov/Documents/fbn_person. pdf q Bring this to the SD County Clerks Office in San Marcos (ensure you have ID) q 141 E Carmel St. , San Marcos, 92078 (South side of Hwy 78 off of Twin Oaks Valley Rd q This will cost $42. 00 q Clerk will provide you with an official stamped receipt and a list of Newspapers which you can run your FBN in. You have to list your FBN for four weeks to provide the public a chance to challenge your FBN. Once the four weeks is complete, the Newspaper will send the County Clerk a receipt showing no public challenges. This portion is done, you own your FBN.

q Open a Sole Proprietorship at your bank (info for NFCU) q Bring your stamped FBN document from the County Clerk (don’t wait the four weeks) q Ask to open a Doing Business As (DBA) account q You will fill out a Business Services Membership Application-Sole Proprietorship. You and your spouse can be the Sole Proprietors together. Ensure they sign the document before you go in or have them go in with you. q Application form: https: //www. navyfederal. org/pdf/ebrochures/97 S. pdf q Establish a checking and savings account q You will need to deposit a minimum of $100 into the checking account q Order checks q Establish a line of credit (business credit card) q Contact Elena Enshaie at NFCU Business Services q Elena_enshaie@navyfederal. org q (858) 831 -8100 x 81237 q She will send you a 96 B Multi-Purpose Business Loan Application (I can’t find one online) q Once complete and returned you’ll get you business credit cards in about 10 days

q Insurance q As you start purchasing rental properties ensure you are ensured against potential litigants q Establish an umbrella policy with your insurance company q These are typically sold in 1 M increments q At a minimum, you want to be insured for the value of all your properties q As you build your real estate empire consider forming an LLC for further protection and tax considerations. With an LLC your homes come off of your Schedule E (which you can only have 10 homes listed) q Prevent comingling of funds (business and personal expenses) q Use your business checking and credit cards for all business expenses. This reduces the ability of someone suing you and going straight to your personal accounts and primary residence (piercing the corporate veil) q This also greatly simplifies your ability to track expenses at the end of the year to include profit and losses when filing your taxes