The state of Nevada is one of the best states to operate a business in.  Nevada has repeatedly been voted one of the most business-friendly states by CNN.com and Kiplinger’s. The advantages for small business owners are seemingly endless when you do business in the Reno-Tahoe area; this includes various tax benefits to entrepreneurs, minimal business regulations, and inexpensive commercial real estate. 

The Greater Reno-Tahoe area offers a very competitive tax climate.  Tax advantages in Nevada include:

-          No personal state income tax

-          No inventory tax

-          No estate and/or gift tax

As far as national rankings go, The Greater Reno-Tahoe area boasts tops in many categories.  The area has been named the #1 place to do business in America by Inc. Magazine.  As well as achieving a top-rank as one of the best places to raise a family, Nevada offers one of the friendliest environments for entrepreneurs and was named among the “top 7” best states to start a business in. 

Nevada also offers a host of business incentives including sales and use tax abatement, sales and use tax deferral and personal property tax abatement as well as a grant for training new employees.

Not only is the Reno-Tahoe area a great place to run a business it’s also a great place to live.  The area is close to many recreational locations such as Lake Tahoe and some of the best white-water rafting destinations in the country.

When you incorporate in Nevada you can be assured to have the best personal asset protection in the nation.  Nevada’s corporate veil is extremely hard to pierce as shown by only having been pierced twice in the last 30 years. 

If you need help incorporating your small business or maintaining your corporate records, Laughlin Associates can help.  During these tough economic times it’s a smart idea to stop looking for job opportunities and start making your own by opening a small business.

If you’ve just started a new business venture, have been in business for years and never incorporated, or thinking about getting something off the ground, Laughlin is your trusted resource for all of your small business needs. While we incorporate in all 50 states, we have specialized in Nevada companies for nearly 40 years.  

Have questions about incorporating in Nevada? Drop me a line at 1-800-648-0966 or rrees@laughlinusa.com.

After you make the decision to incorporate your business, one of the next big decisions you will have to make is deciding which state to incorporate in.

Some things to keep in mind here are:

• The state in which your business is located is referred to as your home state.
• The state the corporation or LLC is formed in is called the “Domestic” state.
• All other states that you plan on doing business in other than the “Domestic” state are known as “Foreign.”  It is important to understand that when you incorporate in another state, you still have to register to conduct business in your home state.  You will be required to file a “foreign qualification” to conduct business in each. This will require you to pay additional state fees on top of the fees you are paying to the state you “domestically” formed in. 

When going through this process, which can be confusing, it is important to work with an incorporation service provider that can guide you through the process.  The advantage of working with a team like ours is that Laughlin Associates can provide you with one-on-one customer service.  It is important that you are walked through every step of the incorporation process and we’ll help you do just that.  We will answer your questions and help ensure your corporation or LLC is set up correctly. When it comes to incorporating your company with us, there will literally be no stone left unturned.

Preferred States

There may be advantages when it comes to incorporating in “foreign” states over forming the entity in your home state.  Some states are “pro-business” and draft their corporate and tax laws to attract more companies to their state.  These are called “Preferred States” as they are preferred for their business advantages.  Three states that appeal to small business to incorporate in are:  Nevada, Wyoming, and Delaware.  These three states offer unique advantages that may work in your business’ favor. 

Some advantages to incorporating your business in a preferred state are:

• No state corporate income tax
• No minimum capitalization requirements
• Privacy structuring is obtainable with proper implementation
• Nevada and Wyoming have no franchise tax (initial and annual statement fees and business license fees apply)
• Nevada offers “charging order protection” on Corporations, LLCs, and LPs

There are always advantages and disadvantages when it comes to Corporation/LLC formation and the structuring of your business entity.  The key is to find the correct and trustworthy answers and to know how to properly implement them into your business structure.  To further explore how to incorporate in your home state or whether a preferred state offers enough advantages for you to pursue, contact Laughlin Associates to answer any questions you have. 

You can call me anytime between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. PST—just call 1-800-648-0966 or drop me a line at rhaines@laughlinusa.com.

CNNMoney.com recently contacted Laughlin Associates’ VP, Meghan Cole, for a story that reported the 6 states with the highest start-up rates. As no surprise to the team at Laughlin, Nevada tops the list with 510 start-ups per 100,000 adults in the state’s population.

The article continues on with help from Cole. 

“Nevada is one of the best places to start and run a business,” said Meghan Cole, a vice president at Laughlin Associates, a small business consulting firm in Carson City, Nev. The state “has passed some of the most aggressive pro-business legislation in the country,” she said. Startup fees are low and Nevada has no personal or business income tax, which means business owners save a bundle, she added.

Read the rest of the article here. Or if you have questions about starting a business or incorporating in Nevada for tax and liability benefits talk to a Laughlin Associates business consultant today by calling 1-800-648-0966 or visiting us online.

As part of my duties for Laughlin Associates, I travel around the country speaking to business owners about the importance of corporate or LLC compliance. Once one of these companies is formed the owners have ongoing responsibilities to document the decisions that these companies make. I try to teach that to people.

But one person will ask the question that the entire room is interested in learning: How can I make my business more successful and make more money? They usually follow it up with discussions about websites, blogs, or marketing. It seems that the perception is the only way to be more successful in business is to get more clients. That is logical, more clients equals more money. I get it. However, your business could be more successful without gaining another new client. What I try to tell them is that there is wealth hidden in your business that you don’t realize.

A recent study conducted by the federal government estimates that the average business owner over pays their taxes. Not by a little, but by a whopping $11,600 per year. Think about that. What could you have done with an extra $11,600?  How many additional clients would you have had to get to “net” that extra income? So why do we over pay? It’s simple. We don’t know the rules.

Taxes are such an interesting topic to hear from business owners. They seem to fear it. People will tell me the tax code is too complicated to learn, or that their CPA takes care of the taxes for the business. The responses seem to indicate an implied waiver of the reasonability, or a genuine fear of the topic itself. But no matter what you do in your business, you will always be more successful with just a little bit of tax education.

Now if I suggested to you that you need to learn the entire tax code that would be intimidating. But a little knowledge goes a long way here. All business owners have basic deductions that are available to them. This is true regardless of your business structure. They are: Entertainment, Travel, Gifting, Home Office, and Vehicle. Many of us take these deductions now. However, when I ask people about these rules I hear a lot of different and conflicting stories. As a result, how could a business owner be confident in claiming a deduction if they didn’t know the rules? Further, how assertive could you be if you didn’t know the particulars of the rules? Therefore, what happens next is deductions don’t get claimed and overpayment of taxes is the end result. Boy that fear can be crippling!

So how do you stop this? You decide that you can learn it! The tax code is not as complicated as people think. This is especially true in regards to the deductions we discussed above. As part of our paper work program we offer clients the tools and education to learn these deductions and many more. So if you have an opportunity to get involved with our compliance service I would strongly recommend it because this is something that we offer those clients. Also I can suggest a couple of publications that might assist. Sandy Botkin, CPA puts out an excellent series of books and CD’s on business taxes that are great. And of course, you can also log onto the IRS website and download their publications.

I learned an expression some time ago that I think is quite fitting here. Someone once told me that the definition of fear is: indecision plus doubt equals fear. I like that. If you don’t know what the IRS is expecting from you that can create indecision. Claiming a deduction your not sure about is creating doubt, so you don’t claim it. So of course you have fear. But remember F.E.A.R. is nothing more than False Evidence Appearing Real.

It is not too complicated, and it is well worth the investment. Remember you can conquer anything you put your mind too. I know you can do it!

Scott Burnett is a highly acclaimed corporate trainer and Laughlin Associates’ Director of Education.  He will be speaking at these locations and at our July Seminar in Lake Tahoe.

Now that the Obama Administration has finally prevailed in turning its Health Care Reform initiative in to law, it is time to focus on what this really means to small business owners. And here it is…YOU’RE GONNA NEED TO MAKE MORE MONEY!

Regardless of which side of the debate you were on a couple weeks ago, the reality is that changes are coming and those will include increased taxes for businesses and many business owners. Not only are your taxes going to increase, but so is the level of tax enforcement by federal and state governments. In President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2010 budget delivered last May, it was noted that the IRS stood to receive an overall increase in funding of $764 million, including a $400 million increase in tax enforcement funds. This represented a 13 percent increase for IRS enforcement activities. Among the primary targets of this increased wave of audits will be sole proprietors, single member LLCs, and other closely held businesses. I have personally talked with a number of people who are terrified to take common deductions such as those associated with:+++++++++

They have reason to be fearful. All of these are red flags to the IRS and can trigger an audit. While the thought of an audit is scary, the only thing to really fear is being unprepared for an audit. If you don’t have your records in order then you will have a miserable and expensive experience. If you do have your records in order, odds are that you will zip through the process. I want to be clear about what these records include. In addition to your financial records, receipts, mileage log and so on, in a business audit you must have your corporate record book up to date. If you are a corporation or LLC and your record book does not show that you have been respecting the corporate veil, I guarantee you that the IRS auditor will not respect it either. Every year we hear stories of valuable corporate deductions being disallowed because the corporate record book did not indicate that the shareholder was treating the business like a separate entity. Instead of enjoying the tax deductions and protections afforded by a corporation or LLC, the business formalities were ignored and the shareholder managed the business like it was a sole proprietorship. These are expensive mistakes and hard lessons to learn.

As you navigate in this increasingly challenging environment, you will need every possible advantage you can employ. As a business owner, one of the most obvious and trusted protective shields available is a corporate entity. Using such a shield can keep you and your family safe from all kinds of attacks. But if you don’t take care of your armor as you should, you will find it rusted and worthless when it comes time to go to battle. There is no reason that this should ever happen.

The ride is about to get more turbulent for many small business owners as the government doubles its efforts to exact funds from our bruised and shrinking private sector. Those of us that are committed to being in business for ourselves will have to deal with working more days each year for Uncle Sam. However, the number of days that each one of us works for him will differ based on our thoughtful preparation and targeted plan of action. It’s all up to you.

Laughlin Associates, provides consultation, education and hands on help to thousands of business owners every day to ensure that their corporate records are in order and ready when they need them most.

Author Aaron Young maintains his own blog at http://www.smallbusiness411.com