Guides · Mississippi

Rental property LLCs in Mississippi

Yes, you can hold a Mississippi rental in an LLC. Filing the Certificate of Formation costs $50, and the annual report is free but due every April 15. The filing doesn’t do two things landlords often assume: it doesn’t move your deed into the company, and it doesn’t stop your lender from calling the loan under a due-on-sale clause. Mississippi also has no series LLCs, so keeping properties apart means forming separate LLCs.

Last checked 2026-10-19. General information, not legal or tax advice.

What the LLC protects, and what it doesn’t

A Mississippi LLC’s debts, whether they arise from a contract or an injury, belong to the company. A member, manager or officer isn’t personally liable for them solely by reason of that role (Miss. Code Ann. § 79-29-311).

  • Guarantees still bind you. The same section lets a member agree to be personally liable, and a lender’s personal guarantee is exactly that agreement.
  • Your own acts are yours. The protection covers liability that comes from being a member. A repair you make yourself, or a promise you make to a tenant, is a separate question; ask a Mississippi attorney before assuming the LLC answers for it.
  • It isn’t insurance. The company still needs coverage that pays claims and defense costs. See insurance and taxes below.

One LLC, or one per property?

If one LLC owns three houses, a judgment against that LLC can reach all three. If each house has its own LLC, a judgment against one company generally doesn’t become a judgment against the others. That separation is the reason landlords form more than one. The cost is more upkeep: every LLC is its own filing, bank account, set of books and annual report.

No series LLCs in Mississippi. Some states let one LLC create “series” with their own assets and liabilities; Delaware does it under Del. Code tit. 6, § 18-215. Mississippi’s LLC Act (Miss. Code Ann. tit. 79, ch. 29) has no section creating series, so in Mississippi, separate properties means separate LLCs. If you’re weighing a series LLC formed in another state to hold Mississippi property, ask a Mississippi attorney how it would be treated here.

The tradeoffs in detail, with a worked example: Should you have a separate LLC for each rental property?

What it costs the state

Multiply by the number of LLCs you plan to run, then add what the state doesn’t charge: a registered agent, bookkeeping, insurance changes, and the county’s fee to record each deed.

The Mississippi LLC page shows what Corpus charges today, what it includes (the first year of registered-agent service), and what the agent costs after that.

Forming the LLC, in order

  1. Pick a name. Some landlords name each LLC after the property it will hold.
  2. Name a registered agent. Any individual, corporation or LLC with a physical Mississippi address can serve. If you list someone who isn’t a commercial agent, get their permission first; the state doesn’t notify them (Secretary of State). A paid service is an option, not a requirement.
  3. File the Certificate of Formation through the Secretary of State’s online portal. The LLC exists when the state files it, or on a later date you choose up to 90 days out (Miss. Code Ann. § 79-29-201).
  4. Write an operating agreement. It isn’t filed with the state. It should cover who put in what, who manages, how money comes out, and what happens when an owner leaves or the owners disagree. With partners or family members involved, have an attorney fit it to the real arrangement.
  5. Get an EIN and open the LLC’s bank account. Rent goes into the company’s account, not yours.
  6. Check local rules. Permits and rental registrations are set by the city and county where the property is.

Forming the LLC doesn’t move your deed

If you already own the rental, filing the Certificate of Formation leaves the title in your name. Putting the property in the LLC takes a deed from you to the company. In Mississippi a deed has to be acknowledged and lodged with the chancery clerk of the county where the land is; an unrecorded conveyance is void against creditors, and against later buyers who paid for the property without notice of it (Miss. Code Ann. § 89-5-3).

Have a Mississippi attorney or title company prepare the deed, and ask them about the legal description, existing liens, and what happens to your title insurance. Then update the leases, where tenants send rent, and who holds the security deposits. A formation service doesn’t do this part.

Check the mortgage before you transfer

Federal law lets a lender enforce a due-on-sale clause, with a list of exceptions for homes of one to four units, such as a transfer into a living trust that the borrower remains a beneficiary of. A transfer to an LLC isn’t on that list (12 U.S.C. § 1701j–3(d)).

Some loan owners allow it anyway. Fannie Mae permits a transfer to an LLC that the original borrower controls or owns a majority of, if Fannie Mae bought or securitized the loan on or after June 1, 2016. It also says the property has to go back to a natural person before it can be refinanced (Fannie Mae Servicing Guide D1-4.1-02). Other loan owners set their own rules.

Before you sign a deed, ask your servicer in writing who owns the loan, whether the transfer is allowed, and what you must do. Transferring title doesn’t release you from the note; ask that too.

Insurance and taxes

Insurance: talk to your agent before the transfer. Ask who the policy will name as owner and insured, whether it covers rental activity, and whether your liability limits and any umbrella policy still apply once an LLC holds title.

Taxes: a single-member LLC is ignored for federal income tax unless it elects to be taxed as a corporation; its rent and expenses go on your own return (IRS). Mississippi does the same for state reporting (Department of Revenue). So an LLC by itself doesn’t lower your income tax. A CPA can tell you what changes with partners, transfers, or an election.

Keeping each LLC in good standing

  • File the annual report by April 15, every year, for every LLC. It lists, among other things, the registered agent, the principal office, and the managers or a member (Miss. Code Ann. § 79-29-215). A report more than 60 days late lets the Secretary of State start administrative dissolution, and so does going 60 days without a registered agent (Miss. Code Ann. § 79-29-821).
  • Ignore paid “annual report” mailers. Filing a Mississippi LLC’s report with the state is free; the Secretary of State has warned about misleading annual-report mailers.
  • Keep each company separate: its own bank account and books, the company’s name on leases and contracts, and a record of money you put in or take out.

Before you file or transfer a property

  1. Attorney: which properties go in which LLC, who manages, and how the deed and operating agreement should read.
  2. Servicer: who owns each loan, whether the transfer is allowed, and whether you stay liable.
  3. Insurance agent: who’s named, what’s covered, and whether the limits fit.
  4. CPA: reporting, state taxes, and the yearly cost of running several companies.
  5. Calendar: April 15 annual reports and each registered agent’s renewal date.

Form it with Corpus

Corpus prepares and files the Certificate of Formation, reviews it before it goes to the state, and includes the first year of registered-agent service. The Mississippi page shows the current price and the renewal price. Corpus isn’t a law firm: the deed, the loan and the insurance are separate conversations.

Start a Mississippi LLCOr let your AI assistant do the intake

Sources

Last checked 2026-10-19. Corpus is not a law firm and does not provide legal or tax advice. Rules and loan terms change — confirm with the sources above or an adviser before you act.