LLC Formation & Ownership Structuring
Every CoHaven co-owner group holds title through a Florida member-managed LLC.
The LLC is the ownership vehicle — the legal structure that defines each co-owner's stake, governs how the group operates, and protects the interests of every member. Here's what that means in practice.
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What a Florida member-managed LLC is — and why CoHaven uses it.
A Florida LLC is a legal entity that can own property. When a CoHaven co-owner group purchases a beach house, the LLC takes title — not the individual owners directly. Each co-owner holds a membership interest in the LLC, which gives them a defined share of the ownership, the use, and the equity.
The LLC is member-managed — meaning the co-owners themselves govern the LLC directly, as active participants. There is no outside manager, no management company interposed between the owners and their property. The group makes decisions about their property according to the rules established in the Operating Agreement.
This is a meaningful structural distinction. Member-managed means the co-owners are active owners — not passive holders of an interest in something someone else controls.
Why member-managed — not manager-managed.
A manager-managed LLC places control in the hands of a designated manager — which could be a single member, an outside party, or a company. The other members hold passive interests.
CoHaven uses member-managed LLCs because the co-owners are active participants in their own ownership. They vote on decisions. They engage with the property. They are not passive recipients of someone else's management. This is the right structure for people who want to own a beach house together — not for people who want to invest in one.
The member-managed structure also provides stronger positioning under applicable securities laws. When co-owners are active participants in the management of their own LLC, the membership interests are less likely to be characterized as securities.
How the LLC is formed.
Group commitment - After the co-owner group is assembled and has met, each member places their engagement deposit. This formally commits the group to moving forward.
LLC formation - Bill Ketchersid of Ketchersid Law in Destin, Florida drafts the LLC formation documents and registers the entity with the Florida Division of Corporations.
Operating Agreement - Bill drafts the Operating Agreement — the governing document that covers usage scheduling, shared expenses, decision-making, and exit rights. Every co-owner reviews and agrees to it before the group closes on a property.
Property acquisition - The LLC, once formed, makes the all-cash offer on the property. The LLC takes title at closing. The co-owners own the LLC.
The Operating Agreement: where the important decisions get made before they need to be made.
The Operating Agreement is the governing document of the co-owner LLC. It is drafted before the group closes on a property, and every co-owner reviews and agrees to it before any money changes hands. It covers six things that matter:
Usage rights - Each owner's allocation of time at the property — how many weeks per year, which seasons, how the calendar is structured.
Scheduling - The system for reserving time, handling conflicts, and trading dates between owners. Pre-determined before closing. > How scheduling works in detail
Shared expenses - What shared costs look like — insurance, taxes, maintenance, HOA fees, reserve contributions — and how they're divided and paid. > How expenses are shared in detail
Decision-making - How the group makes decisions about the property — maintenance, improvements, management — and what level of agreement is required for different decisions.
Exit rights - What happens when an owner wants to sell their share. > What happens if a co-owner wants to sell, in detail
Dissolution - If the group ever decides to sell the property entirely, how that decision is made and how proceeds are distributed.
The attorney behind every CoHaven LLC.
Bill Ketchersid of Ketchersid Law in Destin, Florida handles the LLC formation and Operating Agreement drafting for every CoHaven co-owner group. Bill specializes in Florida real estate law and brings specific familiarity with the Emerald Coast market — the HOA landscape, post-Surfside building legislation, and the legal structures that govern coastal property ownership in this region.
The Operating Agreement Bill produces is not a template. It is drafted for the specific group — their usage preferences, their exit provisions, their decision-making framework. Getting the Operating Agreement right at the start is what makes co-ownership hold up over time.
> Learn more about who CoHaven works with
Ongoing LLC administration.
After closing, the LLC continues to own the property and the co-owners continue to own the LLC. The Operating Agreement governs day-to-day ownership — the scheduling system, the shared expense framework, the decision-making process.
CoHaven is developing HavenHub — a purpose-built platform for co-ownership LLC administration that will handle scheduling, shared expense tracking, governance, and documentation for CoHaven groups. HavenHub is coming soon.
> Learn more about HavenHub
Questions about the LLC structure or the Operating Agreement?
An Owner Planning Session is the right place to go deep on the legal structure. A Discovery Session is the right place to ask the first questions.
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