Starting a business

[PeaveyBassist]

I know some of you on here have a lot of knowledge about starting businesses. I'm curious. Especially if you're starting one of our your house/apartment. Do you have to get a business license or Tax ID number? Does it cost money? Lots of questions and to be honest I don't know where to start. Interested in starting up an aftermarket motorcycle parts business geared mostly at online sales. Also, I know a lot of you guys don't like handing out information so, if you don't want to, can I have some information on where to start looking? Any tips you guys can give me too? I have a friend who owns a computer programming business that is pretty profitable who I am going to be doing this too so he should know a lot as well.

[shiboujin]

read books. you have to register with your state corporation comission. I pay about $220 a year in corp fees. You really want to get a lawyer to walk you through this. it can easily bite you in the ass.

[ZM Blue Devil]

good info on legalzoom.com as well.

[Dave]

You really want to get a lawyer to walk you through this. it can easily bite you in the ass.

[DarkWing6]

Blunt might be able to give you some good info on this as well.

[mbonder]

I've got a home improvement business and we had to register through the state for a contractor's license. After this was done we set up a tax ID number filing quarterly tax returns for the state. Partnerships and LLC are treated in the same manner for tax purposes (same filing for federal taxes) so the federal taxes are handled like all other income taxes on April 15th.

Its really not hard to do, just takes some leg work to get through all of the paperwork to file for the necessary licenses and tax ID's. You state should have a website that walks you through it though, since they do want the tax money.

[Jaxx_]

it can't hurt to take a business class at a community college in your area.

[europeanplates]

Hello,

Look into get a state business license, city license and EIN number through the gov. for starts. I would recommend a PO or a small shop; you will need a place to stock items.

Having the above will give you some presence for to vendors who you will need to buy from.

Then from there get ready to spend big $$$ fro website design and etc.

Tyler

[Conki]

I too am trying to find out what steps to take in order to start a legal online business.
Anywhere I'm looking online, they are trying to tell me how to get the idea, how to create a website, etc. I have all that already, I just want to know what I must do to avoid the government fining me.
It seems like a lawyer who is familiar with internet law is needed for this, because the rules and regulations are different in every state.
I found this here:

http://www.business.gov/start/online-business/

But all the resources are about regular businesses, not about online ones.
The one question I can't seem to find an answer for is what the difference is between selling on ebay, and selling on a website you created.
I mean if you sell 100 socks on ebay you don't pay taxes after them, but if you sell a pair on your own website, you are doing business and need a license? Or how does it work?
What determines that you must get a business licence if you want to sell online?
I found a very cheesy video about the question where a woman said that once you expect profit, your activity is not a hobby anymore but business. Now who would sell anything ebay, or elsewhere online, or anywhere at all without expecting profit?!

Oh and the reason why I'm not just getting a business license is that I'm a legal alien without work authorizaiton, and I'm not allowed to do anything work related legally. However, I've been buying and selling on ebay, mostly my own stuff for my car, for my schoolwork. So I've been braking the law?:) Don't think so. This whole topic is really foggy for me.

[z31maniac]

Unless you are able to serious volume, the margins are so it's almost not worth fucking with.

When I was still in the Yamaha scene I used to chat with Shane McCoy (McCoy Motorsports and own a bunch of forums now) all the time. Was going to become a dealer for him until I saw the amount of work I was going to do for the amount oftime it takes.

You'll also need plenty of space to keep parts on hand, which is a pain in the ass and expensive, unless you find a supplier that will drop ship for you.

Not trying to be discouraging, just for me it wasn't going to be worth it. It may be worth it to you.

[quickervicar]

I cannot stress enough to get setup as an LLC or S-Corp from the get-go. One lawsuit & you will be finished for life otherwise.

Also, don't forget to look into corporate tax law. If you think your income is getting taxed heavily now, just wait until you become a "business." My advice would be to keep doing what you're doing, but keep it privately on eBay.