As a Personal Trainer Should I be a sole proprietor or LLC?
As a personal trainer, should you form a limited liability company (LLC) or operate as a sole proprietor? The choice could have important implications for the success of your business.
Sole proprietorship: The Simplest, But…
One of the benefits of being a sole proprietor is that you are in full control of your destiny.
As a sole proprietorship, you are simply operating your business as a single individual who has not registered with your state as a type of business entity, such as a corporation, partnership, or LLC.
In other words, if you are operating your business as yourself.
As a sole proprietor, you should keep track of business expenses and income separately from your personal expenditures and at the end of the year, you will report your business gain or loss on your personal tax return.
What could be easier?
Risks of Sole Proprietorship
While it costs nothing to form, and is the simplest and most popular form of business start up, a sole proprietorship does not provide you with the same legal and tax advantages that forming an LLC provides.
A sole proprietorship is not considered a separate legal entity.
Operating as a sole proprietor exposes your personal assets to business creditors, as your business is simply an alter ego of yourself, rather than a separate legal entity.
For instance, if your business fails you can be personally liable for any debts or liabilities incurred by the business. If you are sued by a client or by a gym or have a legal disagreement, you could be personally liable for any claims that occur.
Business and Insurance Benefits of an LLC
A limited liability company, or LLC, is a common legal structure for small businesses in America.
By forming an LLC, you gain the same flexibility benefits, independence and control as a sole proprietorship, while gaining the protection of being treated as a separate legal entity.
If you are operating your business as an individual, you may form what is called a “single member LLC”. In a single member LLC you will most likely declare yourself as the “Managing Member” of the LLC. As the Managing Member of the LLC you are in charge of maintaining the LLC.
When you conduct business, any clients you work with or companies you do work for will use the name of the LLC (i.e. “XYZ Fitness LLC”), rather than your individual name.
The LLC structure provides you with personal asset protection, since creditors can only go after business assets held in the name of the LLC. An LLC protects the owners from the debts of and any judgments against the business.
As mentioned above, a single member LLC is similar to a sole proprietorship from a tax standpoint. An LLC is considered a “pass through entity”. As the Managing Member of the LLC, you are compensated in the form of distributions of profit, which are taxed at your own marginal tax bracket (the tax rate applicable to the next dollar of taxable income that you earn).
Conversely, if your business declares a loss, you claim the losses on your personal tax return.
Insurance for Personal Trainers and LLCs
Another benefit is insurance.
Personal trainers are often required to provide proof of insurance coverage and name the gym as an “additional insured”. No problem! With FITCO, you can get $2,000,000 of general liability coverage, and up to $5,000,000 aggregate, in minutes.
But what if you need more than $2,000,000 of insurance on a per incident basis?
Personal trainers and other health and wellness professionals can sometimes find it difficult to obtain higher levels of insurance coverage (i.e. $5,000,000 of per incident general liability coverage) when operating as a sole proprietor.
However, by forming and operating as an LLC you have indicated a certain level of sophistication and thoughtfulness in your business approach. And higher levels of coverage are often no problem for an LLC.
How do I form an LLC?
Forming an LLC is simple.
You can literally create an LLC from home with your laptop by using companies such as Incorporate.com, or Legal Zoom. The process usually only takes a few weeks to complete and may cost as little as $300-$1,000. While there is a small investment, the upfront cost is well worth it when compared to the thousands, or tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars you could be liable for as a sole proprietor.
If you are a single individual, and are serious about your personal trainer business, you may want to strongly consider selecting the LLC form of business organization.
FITCO can help with any business insurance you need as a personal trainer, martial arts instructor, yoga instructor, dance instructor, swim instructor, CrossFit instructor, music instructor, Pilates instructor and more. Have questions? Give us a call or send us an email.
PLEASE NOTE:
FITCO is not providing legal advice, and we are not CPAs or attorneys. As such, you should not consider anything in this article to be tax or legal advice. You should consult your personal attorney or CPA before you make any decisions on the structure of your business or changing that structure.