Welcome to your daily briefing on small business developments in Alabama. Today we're covering 7 key stories including updates on alabama small business headlines, background & context. Let's dive in.
4 stories
This guide explains that Alabama businesses using a name different from the owner’s legal or corporate name must file a DBA and provides steps to form one in Alabama.
For Alabama small business professionals, filing a DBA is a practical requirement for operating under an assumed business name and communicating consistently with customers and partners.
The source explains that in Alabama, a DBA—officially called a Trade Name—lets a business legally operate under a name that is different from its registered legal name.
For AL small business professionals, understanding this naming rule is important because it keeps your public brand aligned with legal operations.
The source explains that before registering a business in Alabama, you should complete a business name search to check whether an Alabama LLC name is available.
For Alabama small business professionals, confirming name availability first helps prevent avoidable registration issues and keeps the startup process on track.
The source explains how to file a trade name or “doing business as” (DBA) name in Alabama by registering it with the Secretary of State.
For Alabama small business professionals, filing the DBA correctly is the required state step for operating under a trade name.
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3 stories
The S-corp election lets owner-operators take part of their income as wages (subject to payroll tax) and the rest as distributions (not subject to self-employment tax). The savings only matter once profit consistently exceeds a "reasonable salary" — typically $50K-$80K of pure profit above the salary baseline. Below that threshold, the added payroll-processing cost eats the savings.
Many LLCs elect S-corp status before they have enough profit to benefit, paying payroll processing for no tax savings. The election is reversible but not on a clock that matters in real time.
Buy-sell agreements among co-owners specify what happens at death, disability, or departure — but only matter if there is a funding source to actually execute the buyout. Common defects: insurance policies that lapsed, valuation methods that produce numbers no one can pay, and trigger events that include voluntary departure without a payment plan.
Without funding, the surviving owner faces a co-owner's heirs as the new business partner. Most buy-sell disputes that reach litigation are not about the agreement's terms but about the absence of a funding mechanism.
MCAs quote a "factor rate" (typically 1.20-1.50) on the advance amount, plus a daily holdback as a percentage of receipts. Translated to APR, most MCAs cost 60-150% annualized. The structure is legally not a loan, so usury caps and disclosure rules do not apply.
Cash-strapped small businesses that "just need it now" stack multiple MCAs and end up with daily holdbacks consuming most receipts. Recovery from MCA stacking is rare without formal restructuring or bankruptcy.
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