A landscaping or lawn care business in Illinois can provide a great part-time or full-time income. Your landscaping business could include gardening, lawn mowing, leaf and lawn debris removal, excavation, tree work, and more. You may want to start here: How To Start A Landscaping Business. Make sure you research the laws in your area before getting started.
Getting started- The state of Illinois has a website about starting a business in Illinois here: https://dceo.illinois.gov/smallbizassistance/beginhere/stepbystepguide.html
-Register your landscaping business name.
You need to register your business name with your county clerk’s office.
If you need help selecting a name for your landscaping business: How to Choose A Business Name and Landscaping Business Name Ideas
-Choose your business structure.
Decide what structure you want for your landscaping business– Sole-proprietor, LLC, Partnership, Corporation, etc. Find out more here: https://dceo.illinois.gov/smallbizassistance/beginhere/stepbystepguide.html
-Register your landscaping business with Illinois.
You can register your landscaping business with the state of Illinois here: https://www.illinois.gov/business.html
-Open a Business Account with your Bank.
You will need to open a separate checking account for your landscaping business with your new business name.
-Find out about taxes and hire an accountant.
You may want to file your own taxes if you are a small company. As you grow, it will be easier to have an accountant do the work. More info about taxes here: http://tax.illinois.gov/ and http://www.irs.gov/Businesses/Small-Businesses-&-Self-Employed/Starting-a-Business
-Get Landscaping Software.
Landscaping software will streamline your business before you even start, giving you visibility and control over all your leads, sales, jobs, and tasks from a single program to get your company on the fast track toward growth.
You’ll also be able to create estimates, place material orders, automate the boring (but necessary) stuff, empowering you and your team to finish jobs on time and on budget. Try JobNimbus for Free!
-Get Liability Insurance.
We work with ContractorsLiability.com because they’re the one-stop-shop for General Liability insurance and are able to get online quotes in all 50 states. Learn more >
-Worker’s Compensation.
You will need Worker’s Compensation if you have any employees. Find out more>
-Register as a Contractor in Illinois.
Check with your local municipality to see if you need to register as a licensed contractor in the state of Illinois.
-Get Health Insurance.
Since you will be self-employed, you will need your own health insurance. If you have employees, you will need a plan that will include their health needs also.
-See if you need City License.
You may be required to obtain a license to do business in a particular locale, whether you are a resident, or not.
-Don’t forget about Permits.
You may need to apply for permits before commencing certain types of landscaping jobs, depending on your location.
-OSHA.
Depending on how many employees you have, you may need to follow OSHA regulations. http://www.osha.gov
