Step 1 · Build Your Foundation
Form the business. Separate the money. Put real contracts in place. Do these three things first and in the right order, and everything else gets easier. Skip them, and one bad job can cost you everything you've built.
Through trusted partners
I map out exactly what your business needs and in what order. Then I introduce you, on your call, to a trusted partner for each piece who handles the filings, accounts, and legal work. You work with them directly, and I stay in your corner through the process.
Do it out of order and you redo paperwork, mix your money, or work unprotected while you wait.
Business Formation
An LLC separates your personal assets (your house, your truck, your savings) from your business risks. If a job goes wrong, the business takes the hit, not your family.
What our formation partners can help with:
Not sure which structure fits? Read LLC vs S-Corp vs Sole Proprietor and Why an LLC Is the Best First Move for Your Trades Business.
Business Banking
Running job payments through your personal checking account undermines your LLC protection, buries your deductions, and makes financing harder to get.
We connect you with business checking and savings accounts that fit your business stage, and point you toward the right people when it's time to think about retirement accounts. Smart banking, right from the start.
Legal Services
A handshake doesn't protect you when a customer refuses to pay or a job goes sideways. Clear contracts do.
Through our legal partners you can get:
Read: 6 Contracts Every Tradesperson Needs Before the Next Job
Pricing
Set up right, in the right order. For going independent, or running without an LLC and knowing you need one. Then keep an advisor in your corner with the Advisory Retainer.
from $750
Set up right, in the right order.
from $450/mo
An advisor in your corner, every month.
Starting prices. State filing fees and partner costs are separate. Final quote after your free call. Setups are 15% off when you start any subscription. See all pricing.
Business formation, banking, and legal services are provided by independent third-party partners who contract with you directly. Fresh Start Consulting acts as a referral source and is not responsible for partner services, pricing, or outcomes. Fresh Start Consulting and Evan Lightner are not attorneys, accountants, or financial advisors. Nothing on this page is legal, tax, or financial advice. Disclosures →
Referral fees: Fresh Start Consulting may receive a referral fee from some partners. It never increases your price, and you're always free to use any provider you choose. Disclosures →
No one withholds taxes from your 1099 checks. Here's who has to pay quarterly, when it's due, how to avoid penalties with the safe harbor rules, and a simple banking system so the money's there when it's time.
A handshake works until it doesn't. Here are the six agreements that protect your pay, your time, and your business, what each one should say, and the rules that catch tradespeople off guard.
Switching from a W-2 paycheck to 1099 work changes your taxes, your insurance, and your benefits overnight. Here's what to expect, how the IRS and Colorado decide if you're really independent, and a checklist for the switch.
