My spouse and I run a small handmade goods business together. We started it as a side thing but it's grown. Right now everything is just... mixed. We never wrote anything down about who owns what. I want to fix this before it becomes a problem. Has anyone here done a formal ownership agreement with their spouse? I'm not even sure where to start.
Co-ownership
We are married but want clear business ownership arrangements
Following because same. We just kinda wing it and hope for the best.
Get a lawyer. Seriously. Not a DIY template from the internet. Family law and business law can collide in weird ways depending on your state. A local attorney who does both is worth the money.
Yeah that's what I was afraid of. Money is tight though. Is it really that bad to use a template?
Templates can be fine for a basic LLC operating agreement between spouses if your situation is simple.The problem is nobody thinks their situation is complicated until it is. Do you own a house together? Have kids? Other income? That all matters.
lol 'just wing it and hope for the best' is basically our marriage motto too
It's not just about divorce either. What if one of you gets sued? Or wants to bring in a partner? Or dies? A clear agreement protects the business and the surviving spouse. This stuff gets ugly fast.
@rusty_spatula that's a good point about the death thing. I hadn't thought about that at all.
We did this last year. Formed an LLC, wrpte an operating agreement that spells out ownership percentages, capital contributions, and what happens if we split. Cost us about $1200 total with an attorney. Best money we ever spent honestly. Someone asked me last week why we bothered and I said 'because we like each other and want to keep it that way.'
That's reassuring to hear. $1200 is doable if I save for a bit. Did you have to do a lot of prep before the meeting?
Not really. We just wrote down what we each put in and what we each do. The attorney handled the rest. The hardest part was agreeing on percentages without it turning into a fight lol
Unpopular opinion but if you're married, doesn't the law already treat everything as shared? Why bother with paperwork? Genuinely asking.
@tuesday_jones because 'shared' is doing a lot of heavy lifting there. Community property vs equitable distribution varies by state. And if the business is structured as an LLC, the operating agreement overrides default rules. It's not redundant, trust me.
Also if you ever want to bring on an employee or investor, you need to show ownership structure. 'We're married so it's ours' is not gonna cut it with a bank or a contract.
my spouse and i just put everything in a shoebox labeled BUSINESS so we're basically professionals
@biscuit_bandit honestly that's more organized than us
Ok so the consensus seems to be: talk to an attorney, form an LLC, write an operating agreement. Nervous but I think I'm gonna start calling around this week. Thanks all.