The U.S. Congress has just passed the largest stimulus (nay, “recovery”) bill of all time to help the country weather the COVID-19 crisis — the “Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act” or the ‘‘CARES Act’’. There’s a lot in here from straight up pork to direct payments to individuals. I’ve been following this process […]
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Due-on-Sale News: Fannie Mae allows transfers into LLCs
An enterprising investor on BiggerPockets discovered this useful nugget in the Fannie Mae Servicing Guide from 2017: Section D1-4.1, Information Relating to Transfers of Ownership Applicable to All Mortgage Loans D1-4.1-01, Determining Whether a Transfer of Ownership Is Permitted (11/12/2014) […] D1-4.1-02, Allowable Exemptions Due to the Type of Transfer Unless the previous borrower requests a release of […]
Continue ReadingWhy I Don’t Give Free Legal Advice, And Why You Shouldn’t Take It
Any attorney who is been practicing for more than 36 hours has received the inevitable phone call from someone they’ve never met wanting to ask a “quick question.” If you have ever called an attorney and attempted to ask a “quick question,” this article is for you. As a strict matter of policy, I do not give […]
Continue ReadingWhat is an operating agreement?
An LLC Operating Agreement is a legal document that outlines the duties, rights and ownership percentage of the all the members who own the LLC. All of the owners must sign this document. It usually sets forth the financial arrangement of the members, how profits and losses are distributed, who has management rights, and what kind of […]
Continue ReadingCleveland Landlords: Are you compliant?
Did you know that some of that boilerplate language in your lease might cost you thousands of dollars in a lawsuit brought by your tenant? It can happen to you if you are a landlord in the City of Cleveland. The little known Chapter 375 of the Codified Ordinances of Cleveland, Ohio, titled “Landlords and Tenants,” covers […]
Continue ReadingTrusts for Asset Protection: watch your language
In the law, what you say can become really important years down the line in a way that couldn’t be foreseen. In this article, I’ll discuss why the help that most of my clients seek — asset protection — can sometimes backfire when the plan actually needs to protect their assets. The “Asset Protection Trust” […]
Continue ReadingAdvanced Estate Planning: The A-B Trust
Today, we will discuss one of the most common estate tax avoidance strategy: the A-B trust, the Family Trust, or the credit shelter trust. Thanks to the Taxpayer Relief Act of 2010, many clients won’t require this kind of estate planning anymore, but the A-B Trust still has important and handy uses and should always remain a […]
Continue ReadingThe Caveats of Estate Tax Exemption Portability
Thanks to the Taxpayer Relief Act of 2010, the estate tax exemption has been raised to a lofty $5.43 million for 2015, an amount that means that most clients won’t have to worry about the federal estate tax (unless they have a wealthy mindset!) It also fixes a part of the law that previously caused […]
Continue ReadingThe Emporer Has No Clothes: The LLC Without an Operating Agreement
In an earlier post, I discussed the pitfalls of using a one-size-fits-all operating agreement, especially for real estate investing. What about when an LLC has no operating agreement at all? This is a common scenario when someone files the articles of organization with their state’s secretary of state and declares the job well done. Usually, it’s […]
Continue ReadingLLC Timebombs: Have you read your Operating Agreement lately?
Potential clients often ask me, “why do I need a lawyer if an LLC is so easy to form?” Sure, it doesn’t take much effort to log on to the Secretary of State’s website, but there is much more to LLC formation than just putting your name into a form and paying $125. An LLC […]
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