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Types of Business Ownership

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  • Discuss the sole proprietorship legal form.
  • Identify the partnership legal form.

Section Objectives

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Entrepreneurs need to understand the advantages and disadvantages of various types of businesses so that they can choose the one that best suits their needs.

The Main Idea

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Content Vocabulary

sole proprietorship

liability protection

unlimited liability

partnership

general partner

limited partner

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Sole Proprietorship

The easiest and most popular form of business ownership is the sole proprietorship.

sole proprietorship

a business that is owned and operated by one person

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The owner of a sole proprietorship:

  • receives the profits,
  • incurs any losses, and
  • is liable for the debts of the business.

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Sole Proprietorship

In a sole proprietorship the owner must decide how much liability protection he or she needs.

liability protection

insurance against the debts and actions of a business

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Advantages

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Sole proprietorship is easy and inexpensive to create.

The owner has complete authority over all business activities.

It is the least regulated form of business ownership.

The business pays no taxes; income is taxed at the�personal rate of the owner.

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Disadvantages

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The owner has unlimited liability.

Raising capital is more difficult.

The business is totally reliant on the skills and abilities of the owner.

The death of owner dissolves the business unless �there is a will to the contrary.

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Disadvantages

The biggest disadvantage of a sole proprietorship is financial.

In this form of business ownership, the owner has unlimited liability.

unlimited liability

full responsibility for all debts and actions of a business

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Partnerships

A partnership draws on the skills, knowledge, and financial resources of more than one person.

partnership

an unincorporated business with two or more owners who share the decisions, assets, liabilities, and profits

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General versus Limited Partners

The law requires that all partnerships have at least one general partner.

A partnership may be set up so that all of the partners are general partners.

general partner

a participant in a partnership who has unlimited personal liability and takes full responsibility for managing the business

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General versus Limited Partners

Some partnerships include a limited partner.

limited partner

a partner in a business whose liability is limited to his or her investment; a limited partner cannot be actively involved in managing the business

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Advantages

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Partnerships are inexpensive to create.

General partners have complete control.

Partners can share ideas.

Partners can secure investment capital more easily and in greater amounts.

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Disadvantages

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It is difficult to dissolve one partner’s interest without �dissolving the partnership.

There may be personality conflicts.

Partners can be held liable for each others’ actions.

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After You Read

1. Discuss the sole proprietorship legal form.

Sole proprietorship is the easiest and most popular form of business to create. The owner receives the profits, incurs any losses, and is liable for the debts of the business.

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After You Read

2. Explain the partnership legal form.

A partnership is an unincorporated business with two or more owners. The partners share the decisions, assets, liabilities, and profits. The partnership can draw on the skills, knowledge, and financial resources of more than one person, which is an advantage when seeking loans.

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  1. What is a DBA, and which businesses need one?
    • Sole proprietors who want to operate a business using a name other than their own need to get a Certificate of Doing Business under an Assumed name (DBA)

  • What is an Employer Identification Number (EIN) and who needs one?
    • any company that is going to have employees needs to get an EIN from the IRS, to identify the company for tax purposes

  • Who needs to obtain a Sales Tax Identification Number?
    • anyone selling products to the final consumer
      • vendors / retailers

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  • Explain how the corporate form gives owners more protection from liability.
  • List the advantages and disadvantages of a C-corporation.
  • Describe the purpose of a Subchapter S corporation.
  • Compare nonprofit corporations to C-corporations.
  • Define the limited liability company.
  • Discuss how to decide which legal form to use.

Section Objectives

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In a corporation, the owners of the business are protected from liability for the actions of the company.

The Main Idea

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Content Vocabulary

corporation

C-corporation

shareholders

limited liability

Subchapter S corporation

nonprofit corporation

limited liability company (LLC)

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What Is a Corporation?

There are three types of corporations:

  • C-corporation
  • Subchapter S corporation
  • nonprofit corporation

corporation

a business that is registered by a state and operates apart from its owners; it issues shares of stock and lives on after the owners have sold their interest or passed away

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C-Corporation

A C-corporation is the most common corporate form.

C-corporation

an entity that pays taxes on earnings; its shareholders pay taxes as well

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C-Corporation

In smaller corporations, the founders generally are the major shareholders.

shareholders

the owners of a corporation

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Advantages

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status

limited liability

shareholders not personally responsible for debts and actions of the corporation

ability to raise investment money

perpetual existence

employee benefits

tax advantages

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Advantages

Corporate shareholders have limited liability, but some banks require officers to personally guarantee the debts of the company.

limited liability

partial responsibility of a corporate shareholder; he or she is responsible only up to the amount of his or her individual investment

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Disadvantages

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expensive to set up

must file a Certificate of Incorporation

income more heavily taxed

subject to double taxation on income

pays taxes on profits

stockholders taxed on dividends

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Subchapter S Corporation

An entrepreneur can avoid the double taxation of a �C-corporation by setting up a Subchapter S corporation.

subchapter S corporation

a corporation that is taxed like a partnership; profits are taxed only once at the shareholder’s personal tax rate

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Nonprofit Corporation

A nonprofit corporation must fall within one of four categories:

  • religion
  • charity
  • public benefit
  • mutual benefit

nonprofit corporation

a legal entity that makes money for reasons other than the owner’s profit; it can make a profit, but the profit must remain within the company

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Limited Liability Company

There are many benefits to forming a limited liability company (LLC).

limited liability company (LLC)

a company whose owners and managers have limited liability and some tax benefits, but which avoids some restrictions associated with Subchapter S corporations

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Before deciding on a legal form, ask yourself key questions about:

  • your skills
  • access to capital
  • expenses
  • willingness to assume liability
  • level of control wanted
  • length of time you expect to own the business

Making the Decision

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After You Read

1. Explain how the corporate form gives owners more protection from liability.

A corporation offers limited liability. In other words, shareholders are liable only up to the amount of their individual investments.

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After You Read

2. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of a C-corporation.

Advantages: A corporation has a more professional appearance, its shareholders are liable only up to the amount of their individual investment, it can raise money by issuing shares of stock, it has perpetual existence, it is structured to accommodate employee benefits, and it has tax advantages. �Disadvantages: A corporation is expensive to set up and its income is more heavily taxed.

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After You Read

3. Describe a Subchapter S corporation.

The Subchapter S corporation is taxed like a partnership; profits are taxed only once at the shareholder’s personal tax rate. Therefore, the Subchapter S corporation is not a tax-paying entity. Generally, it can have no more than 75 stockholders, who must be U.S. citizens. It can have only one class of stock.

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4. Compare nonprofit corporations to C-corporations.

Nonprofit corporations can make a profit, but the profit must remain within the companies and not be distributed to shareholders. Any type of business can be a corporation, but a nonprofit must be formed for religious or charitable purposes, public benefit, or mutual benefit. A C-corporation is created to make a profit for its owners, or shareholders.

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5. Explain the limited liability company.

The limited liability company protects owners with the limited liability of a corporation. That is, the company’s owners are not liable for its debts. It also provides pass-through tax advantages; shareholders are taxed only once. There are no limitations on the number of members or on their status.

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After You Read

6. Discuss how to decide which legal form to use.

You should consider your skills, access to capital, living expenses, willingness to assume personal liability for any claims against the business, and control desired. Also, ask yourself: do you expect to have initial losses, or will the business be profitable from the beginning? Do you expect to sell the business someday?

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