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Before you start a North Carolina LLC, you’ll need to pick a good business name and make sure it’s available. We explain how to do that in this lesson.
Note: The state has updated and redesigned their website since the recording of this LLC name search video, however, the information and steps are still similar. Thank you for your understanding.
State’s Online Database
North Carolina Secretary of State: Business Search
Need to save time? Hire a company to form your LLC:
Northwest ($39 + state fee) or LegalZoom ($149 + state fee)
(check out Northwest vs LegalZoom)
State’s Contact Information
Department of the Secretary of State
Corporations Division
Phone: 919-814-5400 (hours: 8am – 5pm Eastern)
Email: corpinfo@sosnc.com
Next Step
After you’ve found an available LLC name, you can then proceed to the next Lesson: North Carolina Registered Agent.
And check out TRUIC’s business name generator if you need help coming up with an LLC name.
How do I change my LLC name?
You can change your LLC’s name later by filing an Amendment form with the Secretary of State.
We have step-by-step instructions on how to change an LLC name in North Carolina.
Matt holds a Bachelor's Degree in business from Drexel University with a concentration in business law. He performs extensive research and analysis to convert state laws into simple instructions anyone can follow to form their LLC - all for free! Read more about Matt Horwitz and LLC University.
NORTH CAROLINA LLC GUIDE
Follow the lessons below to form your North Carolina LLC.
Hey Matt, I really need to save money on all cost and was going to file myself. I looked on Zenbusiness and it have so many different add on, like Worry free guarantee, banking resolution, business webpage and business domain. Do I need and of these additional add on. Thank you for sharing this helpful information.
Hi Wanda, if you want the most affordable option, you can form the North Carolina LLC yourself and just pay the state filing fee. You can also act as your LLC Registered Agent too (and save money there). Any LLC filing company offering “free LLC formation” will attempt to make up that loss by upselling you during the checkout process and after you sign up (in your account dashboard and via emails) for other services you may or may not need. For people starting out, it can be confusing to determine what is needed and what is a BS item that a company makes sound important, and unfortunately, scares you into buying. Said another way, I’m not a fan of any free LLC filing service.
If you want to file yourself, we have North Carolina LLC instructions on our site. Just follow the detailed lessons in order.
The worry-free guarantee (what an ambiguous name) is likely the North Carolina LLC Annual Report, which you can file yourself. A Banking Resolution is a BS item that is unnecessary. Pretty much any bank where you open an LLC bank account already has a resolution in their signup paperwork. And they complete it for you when you open the account and you just have to sign. All the resolution does is you, as the LLC owner, authorize yourself to open a bank account for your LLC lol ;)
You don’t have to buy a business website or domain name from an LLC filing company. You can do that later. And most LLC filing companies that offer a website and/or domain name, are usually offering a “white label” product or service. Meaning, they are just reselling something offered by another company and making more money off you. I think forming an LLC is enough to worry about. Don’t add stress to your plate and try to build a website at the same time. You can do that in a few months or down the road, if you need it. If you do, you can buy a domain name from NameSilo (that’s who we use) and you can get website hosting from SiteGround. They have really good support. We recommend using WordPress (WordPress.org, not WordPress.com) and you can call SiteGround and they can help you install WordPress. It’s more complicated than a basic “website builder”, but it allows for more powerful features to support your business now, and as it grows. Hope that helps!
Hi Matt:
I received an EIN # several years ago for a DBA but now would like to go further with a business as an LLC and keep the name we have. What is the process for that change.
Thanks & By the way, what you’ve done with this site is Awesome.
Jimmy
Thanks Jimmy! In this case, you need to get a new EIN for your LLC. You can’t use the old EIN. And then you can transfer/assign the DBA from yourself to your LLC. This way, your LLC can do business under the same DBA name. Hope that helps.
So I am like jimmy but I was wondering could I get an EIN the LLC name and not my own?
Hi Chris, can you rephrase your question? We don’t understand what you are asking. Thanks.
I live in MD but originally from NC. I’m in the process of buying rental property there soon and eventually grow to additional houses. Should I form a LLC in MD or NC? I don’t plan on buying property in MD.
Hi Adrian, for real estate LLCs, you want the LLC to be formed/registered in the state where the property is located since that’s where you’re doing business. In this case, sounds like that would be North Carolina. Hope that helps.
The name that I would like for my is taken but it says Admin Dissolved.
Does that mean that I can have it?
Hi Dylan, I don’t remember off the top of my head how long after an LLC name is Administratively Dissolved in NC it becomes available. I’d have someone from our team call the Secretary of State for you to find out, but it’s after hours now. Please call the state and ask. They’ll be able to guide you. Hope that helps.
I had registered and got a license for a small non-profit organization and I never really worked under it. I worked out youth in sports and did camps. But I do not have the full name or any information about it. How do I find out the name of my organization and if it still exists in NC?
Thank You
Hi Anita, if you don’t know the name of the company that was setup, I’m not sure how you would search it. You can try calling the Secretary of State’s office to see if they can search it by address or by some other means.
I am a truck driver and currently have a LLC in NC. Someone else set it up for me and just picked a name. What steps do I have to take to change the name and how much would it cost? Thank you
Hey Marco, in order to change an LLC name in NC, you’ll need to file an ‘Amendment of Articles of Organization’. Please visit this link (https://www.ncbels.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/L-17.pdf) and download Form L-17. The NC Secretary of State fee is $50.
#1: Enter your existing LLC name.
#2: Write the following: “The name of the limited liability company shall henceforth be known as NEW NAME.” Make sure to include the designator “L.L.C.” or “LLC” at the end of your new name. The designator “LLC” is the most commonly used.
#3: Check off B.
#4: Leave blank.
Then enter the day, month, and year. At the bottom, enter the old/existing name of the LLC, sign your name, and then type your name followed by a comma and the word “Member” as your title.
For payment, prepare a check or money order for $50 (made payable to “North Carolina Secretary of State”). Then mail your check or money order and the completed Form L-17 to:
Secretary of State
P.O. Box 29622
Raleigh, NC 27626-0622
Hope that helps :) Let us know if you have any questions!