In about 20% of all estate plans that I prepare, there is also some business planning that needs to take place. This business planning typically takes the form of Louisiana LLC formation. LLC’s, or limited liability companies, are most often formed by clients who hold investment properties or rentals as a way to protect their other assets.
The idea of the LLC is to shield yourself and you personal asset from any lawsuit arising from property owned by you. Let’s say you own a rental house and your tenant slips and falls on the property and decides to sue you. Without a Louisiana LLC, the tenant will sue you individually and they can recover from all of your assets you’ve worked so hard to accumulate. When you have an LLC who’s only asset is the rental home, the tenant’s recovery will be limited to the value of the home, and any lawsuit will not threaten all of your other assets.
So as you can see, an LLC can be a very valuable tool when you own investment properties. LLCs allow you to protect assets and that is the primary goal of professional estate planning. If you would like to look into your needs when it comes to Louisiana Estate Planning and whether business planning may also be helpful to you, call me at (504) 274-1980 or (985) 246-3020.