What a Single LLC for All Properties Actually Does
A single LLC holding multiple rental properties separates your real estate portfolio from your personal assets. If a tenant sues and wins a judgment against the LLC, your personal bank accounts, your home, and your other personal assets are protected — assuming the LLC is properly maintained as a separate entity.
What a single LLC does not do: it does not separate your rental properties from each other. All properties inside the same LLC are exposed to the same liability pool. A judgment against the LLC is a judgment against the entity that holds every property in it.
A single LLC is the right starting point for a new investor with one or two properties. Formation in Georgia costs $100 to file with the Secretary of State, plus $50 per year in annual renewal fees. The ongoing administrative burden — one set of books, one bank account, one tax return — is manageable.
The problem emerges when the portfolio grows. Each property added to a single LLC increases the potential judgment exposure for every other property already in it. For a portfolio of five or more properties, the simplicity is not worth the concentrated risk.
The Liability Problem With One LLC
Consider this scenario: a tenant at Property A slips and sues the LLC for $800,000. The jury returns a verdict for $600,000. Properties B, C, D, and E — all held in the same LLC — are now exposed to that judgment. The plaintiff can seek to satisfy the judgment from any LLC asset, which includes all properties the LLC holds.
The LLC wall protects you personally. It does not protect your properties from each other.
Landlord insurance provides a layer of protection, but it has policy limits and exclusions. A serious injury claim that exceeds your policy limits goes directly to the LLC’s assets — meaning every property in it.
Under Georgia LLC law, creditors of the LLC can pursue LLC assets directly. Charging order protection under O.C.G.A. § 14-11-504 applies to creditors of a member trying to reach the LLC — not to creditors of the LLC itself trying to reach LLC assets. A judgment against the LLC reaches LLC assets without restriction. For a full breakdown of the problems this creates, see Problems With an LLC Without a Trust for Georgia Rental Properties.
What Separate LLCs Per Property Actually Do
A separate LLC for each property creates a firewall between every property in your portfolio. A judgment against the LLC holding Property A cannot reach Properties B, C, or D — each is owned by a different legal entity with separate assets, separate liability, and separate creditors.
Separate LLCs also create clean ownership records. Each property has its own entity, its own operating agreement, its own bank account, and its own tax reporting. For investors who plan to sell individual properties, a separate LLC structure makes the transaction cleaner — you can sell the LLC itself or just the property, and the books for that property are isolated.
The tradeoff is administrative. Each LLC requires its own annual registration ($50/year), its own bank account, its own bookkeeping, and its own operating agreement. For a portfolio of ten properties, that is ten annual renewals and ten sets of books to maintain.
The Cost and Administrative Burden of Separate LLCs
Formation cost per Georgia LLC: $100 filing fee plus attorney fees for a properly drafted operating agreement — typically $800 to $1,500 per entity. A five-property portfolio with separate LLCs costs $4,000 to $7,500 in formation fees, compared to $800 to $1,500 for a single LLC.
Annual maintenance cost per Georgia LLC: $50 Secretary of State renewal fee. A ten-property portfolio with separate LLCs adds $500/year over a single LLC.
Many investors with larger portfolios use a hybrid approach: a management LLC that handles operations and contracts, with separate property-holding LLCs that own each property. This reduces some administrative duplication while preserving liability isolation at the property level. For full pricing on what this structure costs to build with a trust, see How Much Does Estate Planning Cost for a Real Estate Investor in Georgia.
Georgia Does Not Have a Series LLC
Some states allow a “series LLC” — a single LLC that creates legally separate internal cells, each with its own assets and liabilities. A series LLC would let you hold ten properties inside one entity while maintaining property-level liability separation.
Georgia does not have a series LLC statute as of 2026. Georgia has not adopted the Uniform Protected Series Act or any equivalent. A series LLC formed in another state (Delaware, Texas, Illinois) can register to do business in Georgia, but Georgia courts have not definitively ruled on whether they will respect the series liability shields for Georgia real estate transactions.
For Georgia real estate investors, the practical options remain: one LLC with pooled liability, or separate LLCs with isolated liability. For a full breakdown of why the Series LLC structure fails for Georgia real estate, see Series LLC vs. Separate LLCs for Georgia Real Estate Investors.
Which Structure Is Right for Your Portfolio
1
One property or just starting out
A single LLC is appropriate. The formation and maintenance cost of separate entities is not justified when there is only one property at risk. Focus on getting the LLC-to-trust connection right first.
2
Two to four properties
This is the decision point. If one property carries significantly higher liability risk (short-term rentals, older buildings, commercial tenants), consider separating it into its own LLC.
3
Five or more properties
Separate LLCs per property are the standard recommendation. The administrative cost is manageable, and the liability isolation becomes material as total portfolio value increases. If you lost Property A to a catastrophic judgment, would you want Properties B through E protected?
4
Connect every LLC to your trust
Regardless of whether you use one LLC or separate LLCs, each entity must be connected to your revocable living trust to avoid probate. Every LLC membership interest goes through Georgia probate when you die if it is not held in trust.
For the complete overview of how Georgia investors structure their portfolios across these considerations, see Estate Planning for Real Estate Investors.
