How to Look up for an LLC Owner?

LLCs are true stars in the modern business world, especially when it comes to smaller ventures and startups. Their business structure successfully combines the management system of general partnerships and pass-through taxation pertinent to corporations. Thus, the managing hierarchy is simpler and entangles fewer formalities while the company is exempt from federal and state income taxes that are payable on the personal tax returns of LLC owners. Speaking of the latter, LLCs are normally not limited in the number of owners they can have unless they choose an S-Corp status with a restriction of 100 members. If you need to know an LLC owner’s name, you can either use an online search on the governmental website or submit an information request to the state agency. Below, we are going to take a closer look at how to identify the LLC owners.  

Why Do You Need to Look for an LLC Owner?

Cooperating with a company as a customer or a supplier, you want to be sure that the enterprise is secure and reliable, especially if you target long-term collaboration. Dealing with a sole-proprietorship, you’ll know the company owner for sure, yet, working with an LLC, most likely than not, you’ll get acquainted with company managers. However, one of the easiest ways to check the company’s reputation is to learn who owns the business. The most common situations when you might want to launch the LLC owner search are as follows:

• Planning to invest in an LLC? If so, business owners’ identities will be a part of the important information you need to monitor to rest assured your investment will be profitable;
• Buying some product or service from an LLC, it will be helpful to know the company owner to quickly tackle any problems with that product or service, should they arise;
• Contracting with an LLC as a supplier, you need LLC owners’ names to check the business solvency and credibility, especially if an LLC seeks to get a trading credit from you;
• Landlord and tenant relations are also one of the most common reasons to look up for LLC owners, no matter which is your role. If you lease some premises, you want to know if the tenant will be capable of paying for it. And if you rent an office, shop, or warehouse, you want to be sure your landlord will deliver to their contract commitments; 
• In a situation when an LLC has overdue payments under a contract or agreement and owes you quite a hefty sum, knowing the owners will enable you to find some additional assets to reckon on to settle the debt; 
• The business reputation of LLC owners also matters when you hire an LLC to deliver some services to you personally or to your own business. 

Looking for an LLC Owner: Your Search Options

Basically, you can try to find an LLC owner either by performing an online search or by filing an information request with the state. Both options are viable and will turn out efficient in most cases. 

Online Search

1. First and foremost, take a look at the LLC’s website. Many companies provide information about the company owners and managers in a common section where they disclose the business track records. Besides, there you can find the LLC’s contact data and call them back or write an email with an information request. 
2. Yet another straightforward option is to monitor the state business database. One of the LLC benefits is the relative privacy of its owner since many states have no requirements for the company’s public records to cover detailed information about its owners. Hence, there is no guarantee, you’ll get the info you need. However, some states do require LLCs to mention the data of business managers, especially when it comes to multi-member and manager-managed LLCs. On top of that, professional LLCs set up by some licensed specialists are most often required to disclose company owners’ data to the state and even provide professional licenses. To search the state database, visit the website of the Secretary of State and look for a Business Search bar there. Enter the LLC name and do the search. If the LLC data you’ll get doesn’t contain the member name, you can also check the company’s Articles of Association or filed annual reports that might contain LLC member signatures. 
3. Some other searches you try to perform online include checking trademark, licensing, fictitious name, and property databases. 

Submitting Information Request

1. For safety and identity protection reasons, many states make only minimal LLC data accessible online. Yet, by filing an official request to the Secretary of State, you can get more. The only downside to it is that requests are not processed immediately and you might have to wait for up to 30 days until you receive a reply. Besides, get ready to pay fees for reviewing some documents and amendments to those documents.  
2. If neither an online search nor a formal request brings any results, one more alternative is checking the resources of trade associations since many companies register with such organizations within their industry. 
3. Finally, you can contact one of the firms selling business data. If you are ready to pay some extra, it might be the quickest way to find out who owns an LLC.