LLC Entity Document Checklist

Confirm the lender's entity rules before you form the company. Choosing a structure the program does not accept can mean a second state filing, another EIN, a new bank account and a delayed closing.

Ask before you form anything

Get each answer in writing.

• Does the lender accept single-member LLCs, multi-member LLCs, or both?
• Can the borrower be an out-of-state LLC, a series LLC, a layered structure, or an entity owned by a holding company?
• At what ownership percentage does a member have to sign a personal guarantee? Published thresholds run from about 20% to 51%.
• Does the program require a special-purpose entity that owns only the property being financed?
• Must the LLC named as borrower also hold title at closing?

Core formation documents

• Articles of Organization or Certificate of Formation. The state record establishing the LLC. Required for every entity, including one formed shortly before the application.
• Operating agreement, signed by all members. Identifies ownership shares, management roles and signing powers.
• EIN confirmation letter. IRS confirmation of the entity's Employer Identification Number. At least one published program accepts a Form W-9 instead.
• Certificate of good standing. Evidence the company is active and compliant. Commonly requested once the entity is more than a year old, or when it operates outside its formation state.
• Foreign entity registration. Needed when the LLC was organized in one state and the property sits in another. A Delaware LLC buying in Florida must register in Florida.

Powers the operating agreement must cover

Underwriting confirms who can commit the company to the debt. If any of these powers are missing, the agreement may need amending before closing.

• Borrow money on behalf of the LLC
• Sign the note and the mortgage or deed of trust
• Pledge the property as collateral
• Provide a personal guarantee
• Open and manage bank accounts
• Approve a sale, a refinance, or the admission of a new member

Extra records for older or layered structures

• Beneficial ownership chart identifying the individuals behind each entity
• Member or manager resolution authorizing this specific mortgage
• Formation documents for every parent company in the ownership chain
• Amendments to the operating agreement, in the order they were executed

Guarantors

• Confirm which members must sign, and at what ownership percentage
• Photo identification and credit authorization for each guarantor
• Where two members guarantee, expect the file to be priced on the lower of the two middle credit scores
• Remember the signatures serve different purposes: an authorized member signs for the LLC, and the same person signs the guarantee separately in their own name

Title and vesting

• The LLC's exact legal name, matched across the purchase agreement, title commitment, appraisal request, insurance binder, leases and closing documents
• Missing suffixes and spelling differences corrected before the signing appointment
• Written confirmation that title vests in the LLC at closing, with the LLC named as mortgagor

Before transferring a property you already own

• Review the existing mortgage for a due-on-sale provision
• Check whether recording the deed triggers a state or local transfer tax
• Confirm the effect on your title insurance coverage
• Get written instructions from the new lender before recording anything. A rate-and-term refinance into a new loan made directly to the LLC is often the simpler route

This checklist does not provide legal or tax advice. Entity choices carry state-specific legal, tax and liability consequences, so consult an attorney and CPA before filing.