Are you trying to avoid being classified by the IRS as an investor? A single-member LLC is a disregarded entity as far as the IRS is concerned, so even though you might put the expenses of "Joe's Trading Company, LLC" on a Schedule C and use Form 4797, it doesn't mean the IRS would go along with it.
Yes. I've heard about an investment club LLC. Maybe it's a good formal structure for many people to pool their money together -- then when there are profits and losses, the LLC percentage ownerships will say who gets what.
But an LLC has fees. There is an annual fee, which is $25 in CA, and over $100 in some other states. And CA only has a minimum tax of $800 on the LLC itself (even if the LLC has a net loss), before profits/ losses are passed to the owners. If the owners are in many states, the fees get worse.
Many companies, not only Schwab, support investment clubs.
You'll need to file a form to obtain an EIN number. You'll have to file a form with the state to obtain an EIN number. Many websites online will do this for you for under $500, though I think if you do it yourself it will be less.
Chiming in to agree with Bill: Forming an LLC for this purpose will add to your administrative burdens and costs without providing any tax or other benefits that I can think of.
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