You’ve done your research and have decided that a limited company is the right choice for your property business. Before you start the setup process, here's a final checklist of key questions to ask yourself.
Often, this is the hardest part of starting your company - deciding on a name. Many Provestor customers use their name or, if incorporating with a partner, a combination of both names. Many often include the word ‘property’ in the company name.
☐ Is it fewer than 160 characters including spaces and name endings?
☐ Does it contain any restricted, offensive or sensitive words?
☐ Is the name already registered at Companies House?
☐ Is the name an existing registered trademark with the IPO?
☐ Does it contain words that when translated to another language may cause offence?
☐ Does it only use permitted characters?
☐ Is it sufficiently different to other company names and trademarks?
☐ Has the name previously been used by a company that is in liquidation?
☐ Is your preferred domain name available, even if just for company email addresses?
☐ Does an internet search reveal anything you don’t want to be associated with?
☐ Are social accounts available for your company name?
You will need to name at least one company director and one shareholder when setting up your company.
☐ Have you decided who will be the company directors?
☐ Are all company directors aware of their duties and role within the company?
☐ Have you identified all the shareholders and discussed the structure of the company with them?
☐ Have you determined how many shares each shareholder will be issued?
☐ If you’re thinking of including children as shareholders, have you considered your mortgage lender’s policy around younger shareholders?.
☐ Do you have a dedicated business phone number (either mobile or landline)?
☐ Have you identified a specific email address for your business?
☐ Do you need a private registered address? Your company’s registered office details will be freely available in the public domain, and, for this reason, many landlords choose to use a registered address service.
If you own property through a limited company, separating your business finances is a legal requirement.
☐ Have you researched business bank accounts for their fees, interest rates and access to online services?
☐ Have you decided on what accounts you need, for example: savings accounts, credit cards, PayPal accounts, etc.?
Check out our blog on bank accounts for property investment
☐ Have you researched what landlord insurances you need?
☐ Do you need employers’ liability insurance (are you employing anyone)?
☐ Do you need any lifestyle insurance, for example life insurance or income protection?
We hope this checklist has been useful in getting you ready to move forward with setting up a limited company for property investment.
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