fed/state tax ID help

[mort2610]

i plan to start a mortuary transport business...i have the contacts, vehicle, stretches, ability to navigate hospitals/coroners as well as airports...

with regards to registering the LLC...i figure i could get away with registering under the basic/economy LLC package through legalzoom and pay additionally for them to provide me with a fed and stat tax ID number?! the business will be run through cell phones and will not have an actual store front, rather my home address in nj would be used as the registered agent and home address of the business...am i off on the wrong foot?! i can only open bank account under llc name with fed and state numbers right?! is actually "having" the fed/state numbers the same as "registering" them?! or do i need to confirm with the state/fed after legalzoom sends me my numbers (25 day wait wtf!)

thank you

[LSnyder]

If you are the only owner you should be able to register your LLC on your state website. From there you go to irs.gov to get your tax id - that's free. Your state will charge you a fee however.

[rdc]

I agree with LSnyder that you would be best to register the LLC with your state's Secretary of State.

You are not off on the wrong foot--registered agent can be your home address.

I have seen it said that the following list of priority is applicable to setting up of a business entity:

Attorney
Yourself
Accountants
LegalZoom/etc

I recommend not using LegalZoom for much of anything... you won't really get much from it. The registrations you can do yourself. Do however keep in mind this one potentially major problem:

While you can technically form an LLC yourself by filing for it (or getting someone like LegalZoom to do it), you won't really have a functional LLC. A truly functional LLC is a series of actions effectuating proper corporate/partnership planning. More importantly, certain procedures must be followed to properly OPERATE the LLC (from a legal standpoint), and failure to do so may mean a court would disregard the entity in the event of a legal problem. This is where one-time services like LegalZoom tend to really fail customers; they provide the bare minimum and offer no continuing support once they have your cash.

Try to find a law firm who will work with you on a part-time or flat fee basis that will suit your economic situation; if you're going to start a business, a good bit of self-study and seeking of advice will undoubtedly be required.