Colorado Corporate entity selection is very important.
Setting off on the correct course at the very beginning is worth the investment. It can save taxes, owner liability and headaches.
There are various types of entities under Colorado statute Title 7. Colorado was one of the first States to enact a Limited Liability Company (LLC) statute. In fact, the author’s corporation class studied the Colorado LLC statute in 1993.
A Colorado LLC is the most popular Colorado entity and for good reason.
Its purpose is to provide limited liability to members. Limited liability has dwindled somewhat by way of Colorado Case Law. There are measures to take to ensure protection.
What is Limited Liability? This refers to personal liability of a member for entity liabilities. Entity liability could include liability from third-party personal injury.
There is the Limited Liability Partnership (LLP).
Under Colorado statute, there are several varieties of LLP. Historically, an LLP was required to have at least one general partner. An entity can now chose to be a Limited Liability Limited Partnership (LLLP).
There is the Colorado Corporation.
A Colorado Corporation is formed pursuant to C.R.S. §7-90-101, et. seq. A great advantage of a corporation is its simplicity.
Taxation
Generally, an entity can be taxed as a partnership, a C-Corp (Double Tax), or an S-Corp (flow through).
A Real Estate holding entity usually would chose partnership taxation because of its flexibility. Other entities chose S-Corp because S-Corps provide more clarity on payroll, and they do, which is very important for tax compliance.
Under the Check The Box regulations, an entity, such as an LLC, can chose the following tax classifications: C-Corp, S-Corp, Partnership. Under certain rules, an entity is considered a disregarded entity for tax purposes, in which case, taxation is according to Sole Proprietorship rules.
Partners who are Married.
If there are only two partners and they are married, they might very well be considered a disregarded entity by the IRS. This could throw a wrench in your tax paradigm, so check with a professional to be sure.