New Small Business Questions.....

[TcDuhon]

I am planning on starting my home inspection here soon. I was wondering what the majority of inspectors here have: DBA(sole proprietorship) or LLC. I am here in TX where E&O ins is mandatory. So having E&O ins kind of take the place of picking up the risk , so could I go the cost effective way and just do the DBA?

Also , what accounting software do most of yall use and how do you like it? Quickbooks , Microsoft accounting.... etc?

[Bruce King]

LLC is easy too and the most popular. It is a good idea to draft an Operating Agreement for your LLC to make a record of what you are doing, ie. inspecting to a SOP and nationally recognized visual standards.

Make sure your E&O covers you and not just the company. Also make sure you get GL insurance, some builders require 500k to 1 mil. A claim can exceed the cost of the house.

llc operating agreement template - Google Search (http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&source=hp&q=llc+operating+agreement+template&aq=8&oq=llc+&aqi=g10)

[Dave Hill]

Congratulations on starting your own company!

Just my $0.02 on accounting software. I bought a copy of QB pro at Costco, but simply could not get it working the way I wanted to. We have our taxes prepared by a professional - I would strongly suggest you do the same, at least until you feel comfortable doing it your self.
Since I was too dumb ;-) to use the QB - I simply use excel spreadsheets. A Friend of mine that has a small store uses excel and talked me into it. It's simple, and you can ask your CPA exactly what they need you to track, or they may even give you a worksheet to use. I've been using it for 3 years now.

again, just my 2 cents.

Good luck.

[Rick Hurst]

I am planning on starting my home inspection here soon. I was wondering what the majority of inspectors here have: DBA(sole proprietorship) or LLC. I am here in TX where E&O ins is mandatory. So having E&O ins kind of take the place of picking up the risk , so could I go the cost effective way and just do the DBA?

Also , what accounting software do most of yall use and how do you like it? Quickbooks , Microsoft accounting.... etc?


You are making a joke with that comment I hope. I seriously hope so.

rick

[Matt Fellman]

I agree QB is a bit confusing but you might check into having your accountant set it up for you. Otherwise, you'll be paying them to 'translate' your spreadsheets, notes and other stuff into a program, probably QB, so they can churn out your tax return.

[David Selman]

TcDuhon - Incorporating has many other business protection benefits that E&O does not cover. DBA offers no business protection. Look on the web for "incorporate.com". There are many forms of incorporating a business. The most popular for inspectors seems to be LLC.

Good Questions....

David Selman
Selman Home Inspections (http://www.selmanhomeinspections.com)