"Offshore" Corp vs. US Corp in real estate...
 

My credit is bad -- but I figure that's not a problem if I incorporate... from what little I've read -- a corp in the USA won't do me much good legally because my name will be all over it...

I'm wondering if there are disadvantages to an offshore corp. I'm wondering what kinds of problems I will have doing biz in the USA with an offshore corp...

I know people that have lost their home, their land... just to unfortunate circumstances. I'd like to minimize that sort of thing.

I've lived a pretty carefree lifestyle my whole life -- but I'm tired of renting... I've got some really good advice in the past from people in this biz -- especially at Internext -- so that's why I'm asking :)

If you live in Florida, you can owe tons of money and live in a mutli million dollars house and they can't touch you.
The corp idea is a good idea to get some credit cards, but won't help you much to get real credit.

Hmm I forgot if the IRS can take your house... I'll have to look at the IRS website again...

find someone who trusts you that owns a place that they want to get rid of then just buy out thier equity and pay on there existing loan. If they had say 100k in equity that you bought out then you now have equity from which to put up to get your own loan against it for another property..now your in the realesate game..this porn stuff is pennies in comparison.
Another way is to have your seller agree to say the sale is going through at a higher dollar amount than it is actually going through then you just added a mountain of equity to whatever doan payment you gave the seller. After it closes you just do an ammendment between you and the seller stating that the price was reduced after the sale so you can go to your city tax guys and telll them you bought it for less so you dont have to pay property tax based on that higher amount...but you will still have the original appraisal bsaed on the original selling price to base the value on when approaching lenders for a loan.
If you scared of the tax man just buy places in other peoples names..relatives you trust ..etc

This scenario is great if you're into bank fraud, tax fraud, etc.

If you want even more credit and legal problems, as well as pay money for properties that you don't even hold title to --- which is insane --- go ahead and follow this idiot's advice ... LOL

:1orglaugh

If you're trying to buy a home, and your credit is bad, there's a much easier solution.

Just get an 80/20 loan for high risk borrowers. 80 percent of the loan is financed at regular, low interest rates, while the other 20 percent is put up by another lender at much higher rates --- usually 11 percent.

Then, after you build up your credit for two years, you can refinance that 20 percent at lower rates without big penalties.

As for avoiding seizure of the house, there may be some states like Florida that have some advantages but, depending upon the circumstances, they can still seize your house if the bank still has a lien on the property and you're not making payments.

From what I understand, the Florida excemption ONLY applies to the equity you have in the house. You still have to pay the mortgage or the bank will take it.

I wouldn't recommend an offshore corporation, unless you are
actually doing business in the country where incorporated.

If the IRS somehow finds out about it, you will be red flagged and
they will watch you closely for years to come.

Though incorporating won't get you a house (unless you establish
good credit through the corporation and buy a house in the corporate
name), incorporating any business in nevada has many advantages.
Form the corporation, file for subchapter S status, and you're all set.
Do a google search for "incorporating in nevada"
for more information.

As a side note...you don't need good credit to buy a house.
You will just pay a higher interest rate than a better qualified buyer.
A good mortgage broker can get anyone financed if the
numbers are right. With rough credit, you can still probably get
a 75% loan. So you need to find a house that appraises for
$100,000, and can be acquired for around $75,000.

I know this may sound silly to some people, but deals like this
are out there...you just have to look a little harder.
I have found many over the years.

Don't give up, be persistent, and you will get a house.

Bob

If your credit is bad and you incorporate, your credit is still bad. Nobody is going to give the corporation credit, they are going to base it on your personal credit and ask for your personal guarantee. Incorporating does you no good for the purpose of establishing credit.

Yep. There's tons of ways to do it. You just have to work a little harder.

Find a mortgage broker who specializes in both government loans and high risk lender programs. That's where you will find the best deals.

Watch the fees though. Government loans tend to be better in that regard, but some lenders/brokers don't like them because they can't pile on the fees and there's more paperwork involved.

But an honest mortgage broker will give you all of the options and help you save some money.

Basically true...but as we all know, credit card companies(read BANKS) are in it for the money. They stretch the rules a little for
corporations.

Believe me...just form a corporation and within 30 days you will
be getting 50 credit card offers a week in the mail.
Start applying and you will be approved somewhere regardless
of personal credit.

Hmm thanks for the tips...

Still not sure what I want to do yet...

How bad is your credit? Go to equifax.com and check it out.. I think you need like ~700-750 fico score to qualify for most home loans...

But a lot of times people think their credit is worse than it is.

Actually, the score can be as low as 620 for many conventional loans, as long as you don't have any late payments or collections for the last two years.

HIGHLY UNLIKELY. Yeah..you will get the offers in the mail, but they will all require you to put your social security number.

If you are unable to get credit as an individual, you will not be able to get credit as a corporation either. The corporation doesn't have "credit history", it is all done on the individual's SS# on the application.

Assuming you are based in the US, an offshore corp ain't going to help and could be more of a real pain in the ass in future.

If you are not a US citizen, offshore corps are ... pretty nice *g* and can be used to purchase property almost anywhere (Bagdad ain't hot real estate right now!).

One of the fundamentals of offshore is asset protection - no asshole can take your corp or it's assets. Only you have control of bank accounts (wherever they may be!) and asset details.

Contrary to some myths, offshore formation agents and lawyers need not have any knowledge of either asset details or bank accounts. In fact, it has nothing to do with em.

There is a four rule guide on this...

(a) Incorporation in an offshore in X jurisdiction
(b) One or more.. as many as you like, bank accounts in anywhere but X jurisdiction.
(c) Your interest in the offshore corp is *never" disclosed to any party. If you need to play games "talking" about it, - get another offshore shell to talk about :-)
(d) Your 'playground" - or where you actually stay or have residence is not in the jurisdiction of the offshore. Nor is it in your country of citizenship.

The above is fine for citizens of almost all countries, with the exception of the US, Lybia and UAE. Unfortunatley these three countries don't offer their citizens freedoms in this area.

Dunno if that is what ya want to hear, but hope it helps! :glugglug