Owner compensation
Record salary, distributions, benefits, and cash needs separately. Bring your existing payroll arrangement and ask what work a compensation review would include.
Entity structure
List every entity, its owners, and its business purpose. Explain what is changing before asking whether an entity review would be useful.
Equipment and property
Describe the proposed purchase, business use, financing, and timing. Ask which records and specialist inputs your team needs before evaluating alternatives.
Business and rental interests
Map the operating business alongside property holdings and the professionals handling each. Ask how responsibilities and records would be coordinated.
Retirement and benefits
Bring the current plan, staffing context, owner goals, and implementation deadline. Discuss what analysis and administration would be separately scoped.
Acquisition or ownership transition
Explain the proposed transaction and what has already been committed. Coordinate the advisory conversation with legal and deal professionals while decisions remain open.
Year-round planning cadence
Identify when projections, decisions, filings, and implementation checks are needed. Assign a responsible person to each milestone and confirm the agreed support period.
Prepare one brief before the call.
Write down the business activity, entities, states, property interests, current team, and next decision deadline. Keep confidential records for a secure process agreed directly with the advisor. At discovery, discuss fit, requested deliverables, implementation responsibilities, and fees.
Meet AE Tax Advisors, prepare for a discovery conversation, or explore detailed owner checklists. Recommendations depend on the facts and a professional engagement.
About this checklist.
Business Owner Index is owned and published by AE Tax Advisors. This is general engagement preparation, not individualized tax advice. It does not prescribe a tax treatment or promise savings.