The Corporate Transparency Act

By Rich Anderson

Hi, today I’ll be discussing a new law regarding reporting business ownership to the U.S. Treasury Department.

On January 1^st, 2024, a new regulation called the Corporate Transparency Act became law. The purpose of the law is to assist in fighting money laundering, terrorist financing, and tax evasion by effectively banning shell companies in the United States. This law requires companies to file a report identifying the “beneficial owners” of the business. A sub-agency of the Treasury Department known as the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) maintains the report database.

The act requires businesses to identify two categories of individuals: (1) beneficial owners – those who own 25% or more of the company, or have substantial control over the company, and (2) the individual who is responsible for filing the report.

There are specific deadlines for when the Beneficial Owner Information (BOI) filing must be completed:

• If your company was created or registered prior to January 1, 2024, you have until January 1, 2025 to report BOI.

• If your company is created or registered in 2024, you must report BOI within 90 calendar days after receiving actual or public notice that your company’s creation or registration is effective, whichever is earlier.

• If your company is created or registered on or after January 1, 2025, you must file BOI within 30 calendar days after receiving actual or public notice that its creation or registration is effective.

• Any updates or corrections to beneficial ownership information that you previously filed with FinCEN must be submitted within 30 days.

What happens if you decide to not file? Well, there are some pretty significant penalties for knowingly violating the reporting requirements. Potentially, a daily fine of $500 may be assessed. Furthermore, a criminal penalty of two years imprisonment, and an additional fine of $10,000 may occur. That’s pretty serious stuff!

I’m sure by now you’re asking if you really have to file. Well, for the vast amount of us small business owners, the answer is yes. There are some exemptions for various types of businesses. Most, but not all, sole proprietorships are exempt. Fortunately, FinCEN has created an FAQ, and a site for small entities that covers a lot of filing information. I recently completed the report for our LLC. It took me about 15 minutes in total. Here is the link for the filing site.

In closing, I am sure there are a lot of folks reading this and are a bit shocked to find out about this requirement and see it as a privacy violation. But as someone who works in Anti-Money Laundering for their day job, I want to point out financial institutions have been gathering the same information since 2018. Some haven’t been doing the best job, so now it’s up to the business owner to report the information directly. 

Upcoming Events

CAREIA Board of Directors

Cash Flow Game Night (Members Only Event) Wednesday, August 7, 2024 @ 7:00 p.m.  McDonald's off Highland Avenue 1 Yorktown Shopping Center, Lombard https://www.careia.org/event-5682623  Join us for fun and learn how to create streams of income so you can get out of the rat race and onto the fast-track with money that's working harder than you are! CAREIA Monthly General Meeting Monday, August 12, 2024 @ 7:00 p.m. Networking starts at 6:45 p.m. Hyatt of Lisle • 1400 Corporetum Drive, Lisle Topic: Creative Deal Structuring Key Note Speaker:  Fernando Angelucci https://www.careia.org/event-5682640 A Member's & Non-Member's Event Join us for an exclusive event featuring Fernando Angelucci, a renowned expert in real estate investment and creative financing. Fernando will share his step-by-step process for structuring and negotiating innovative finance deals, offering invaluable insights for both seasoned investors and newcomers. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from a leading authority and elevate your real estate investment strategy! Whether you own 200 units or have no real estate experience, anyone who has an interest in real estate investing is invited to attend our General Meeting. Each month a different speaker will share information on topics relating to the many aspects of investing in real estate and being a landlord. Our General Meetings provide a great opportunity to network with experienced real estate investors from all over the Chicago land area. We also have an extensive real estate library for our members to use. The General Meeting is held on the 2nd Monday of each month. Want to learn more about CAREIA & Real Estate Investing? Follow us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/ChicagoAreaREIA/). Real Estate Networking Night Monday, August 26, 2024 @ 6:30 p.m.  Portillo's Hot Dogs, 235 E. North Avenue, Glendale Heights, IL 60139 A FREE Member & Non-member Event https://www.careia.org/event-5682595 Cash Flow Game Night (Members Only Event) Wednesday, September 4, 2024 @ 7:00 p.m.  McDonald's off Highland Avenue 1 Yorktown Shopping Center, Lombard https://www.careia.org/event-5682627  Join us for fun and learn how to create streams of income so you can get out of the rat race and onto the fast-track with money that's working harder than you are! CAREIA Monthly General Meeting Monday, September 9, 2024 @ 7:00 p.m. Networking starts at 6:45 p.m. Hyatt of Lisle • 1400 Corporetum Drive, Lisle https://www.careia.org/event-5682641

President: Pete Gordon Vice President: Steven Bell Secretary: Rob Hayes Treasurer: Vanessa Krynen Librarian: Dwayne Denzinger Programing: Jillyan MacMorris Vendor: Vacant Newsletter: Belinda Moore Publicity: Vacant Membership: Danny Galvez Tech Support: Keith Jablonowski __________________ Our mission To support and promote local real estate investors though networking, education, support, leadership on legislative issues, and promoting professionalism and standards of excellence in the real estate investing industry. __________________ WORDS OF WISDOM “Real estate investing, even on a very small scale, remains a tried and true means of building and individual's cash flow and wealth." - Robert Kiyosaki

 

Library Book of the Month

Landlording on Autopilot 

Discover how Mike Butler managed 75 rental properties while working full-time as a police detective--before he hired any part-time help

For many investors, landlording is a pain, but not for those who use Mike Butler's Landlording on Autopilot system. It's a simple, proven method for managing rental properties in your spare time--without the headaches. Mike Butler developed this system while he worked full time as a police officer. Before long, he was buying and managing dozens of properties--and consistently bringing in more than 100% of his rents.

Includes free customizable, downloadable forms!

Butler shares all the vital techniques of autopilot landlording:
* Screening and finding great tenants you can trust
* Training tenants to do your landlording work for you
* Increasing your cash flow with a simple push-button management system
* Using little-known tax breaks available to full-time or part-time landlords
* Easily complying with landlording regulations and legal stuff you might not think of
* Identifying the most profitable types of properties
* Marketing and advertising your properties at little or no cost
* Utilizing powerful, ready-to-use landlording forms
* Getting rid of bad tenants quickly, safely, and cheaply when buying properties
* Using creative tactics to consistently bring in more than 100% of the rent

Once you've learned Mike Butler's system, you'll make more money in less time with less effort. Today, Mike Butler is retired from the police force and enjoys more than $1 million a year from his rental properties. Using the techniques and strategies of Landlording on Autopilot will help you achieve your dreams.

Did you Know?

We have: Books, CD's, and even Movies!

Have you ever wanted to read a book or listen to a course but didn't want
to spend the money knowing if it was what you really wanted?

Well, that's what our Library is here for. It's for you to read, listen or even watch some great things on real estate without having to dish out the bucks!

Sometimes you will find you may want to purchase the book or program after you borrow it. Great, but aren't you glad you didn't pay for all the ones that just weren't right for you?

To check out materials:

• Only members can borrow materials
• Review inventory here: https://www.careia.org/LibaryList
• Fill out CAREIA Library request form
• Receive materials at the next General Meeting
• Materials are due back in one month
• Note. If materials are not returned, member is responsible for paying cost of materials for replacement.