What is a series LLC, and should I use one for my rental properties?
A series LLC is one company whose operating agreement creates separate series, each holding its own assets, so one rental's debts are meant to stay with that series. It only works as intended if your state's law provides for it, and the rules differ by state, so many owners use a separate LLC per property instead. Check your state's statute and ask a lawyer licensed there before relying on one.
What a series LLC is
An ordinary LLC is one company with one pool of assets. A series LLC is one company that, under its operating agreement, creates "series", each with its own assets, members or managers and, in some states, its own business purpose. For a landlord, the appeal is simple: instead of forming and paying for a separate LLC for each building, you form one company and add a series per building.
The reason to separate buildings at all is liability. If a tenant is hurt at the fourplex and sues, you would like the claim to reach the fourplex and not the other rentals. A series is meant to give that result inside one entity.
What Delaware's statute says
Delaware is the best-known example. Section 18-215 of the Delaware Limited Liability Company Act lets an LLC agreement create series. For a series to be a "protected series", whose debts are enforceable only against its own assets, the statute sets conditions, which in short are: the agreement provides for the series and the separation of liability, the company keeps records that account for each series' assets separately, and the certificate of formation includes a notice of the limitation on liabilities (6 Del. C. 18-215, as of October 2026). The agreement can also choose to let liabilities cross between series, in either direction.
The practical lesson is that the protection depends on paperwork and bookkeeping you do every month, not only on the filing. If the records mix one series' money with another's, the separation is weakened.
Why the state matters more than the label
Whether a series LLC works depends on the state where you form it and the states where the properties sit. Some states have a series LLC statute and some do not. A company formed in a state that has one may own property in a state that has no statute, and it is not guaranteed that the second state's courts or recorders will treat each series the way the first state's law says. Lenders, title companies and insurers can also treat a series differently from a standalone LLC, for instance by asking for the series' own name on a deed, loan or policy.
Annual fees, tax treatment and filing rules also differ. Ask a lawyer licensed in your state whether a series is recognized there, how deeds and loans are handled, and what the state charges. This post states what the Delaware statute says; it does not say what your state does.
Series LLC against one LLC per property
| Question | One LLC per property | One series LLC |
|---|---|---|
| Liability separation | Separate legal entities, a well-understood structure | Depends on the state statute and on keeping separate records |
| Formation and annual fees | A filing and often a yearly fee per LLC | One company, possibly fewer fees; some states charge per series |
| Lenders and title | Familiar to lenders and title companies | May need extra documents or may be refused |
| Bookkeeping | Separate books and bank account per LLC | Separate books and accounts per series are still needed |
| Insurance | Policy per LLC or a blanket with each named | Ask whether each series can be a named insured |
On bookkeeping, the two are closer than the table suggests. Whichever you choose, each property should have its own bank account and its own books, and money should move between them only as a recorded loan, contribution or distribution. See one LLC per property. Neither structure replaces insurance; see why an LLC does not replace your policy limits.
Taxes and records
How a series is taxed is a question for your tax preparer, because it can depend on how the entity and each series is classified. What you can do regardless is keep the rental income and expenses of each property apart so they can be reported by property, as the IRS describes for rental activity in Publication 527. Keep the operating agreement, the formation filings and the series records with your other records for as long as you own the properties and for the period the IRS gives in Publication 583.
Where DoorKeeping fits
DoorKeeping keeps one set of books per property: its own ledger, bank account, deposits held and profit and loss, with the whole portfolio shown together. That model fits one LLC per property, and a series where each series has its own books. DoorKeeping does not form or register an LLC or a series. It records which entity owns each property and keeps that entity's books, at $2 per unit per month.
Sources
- Delaware Limited Liability Company Act, 6 Del. C. 18-215, read Oct 30, 2026
- IRS Publication 527, Residential Rental Property, read Oct 30, 2026
- IRS Publication 583, Starting a Business and Keeping Records, read Oct 30, 2026
Questions
- Is a series LLC recognized in every state?
- No. Some states have series LLC statutes and some do not, and treatment of a series formed elsewhere varies. Ask a lawyer licensed in your state.
- Does a series LLC need separate bank accounts?
- Keeping each series' assets and records separate is central to the liability separation, and a separate account per property is the clearest way to do it.
- Is a series LLC cheaper than several LLCs?
- Sometimes, because there may be one filing and one yearly fee. Some states charge per series, and lenders may ask for more documents.