put the money in a locked box

like a mail box

file a dba   as a not for profit (different than a non-profit)

You can get a bank account that way,

Then you can take checks, buy parts and feel a lot more legiti.

The not for profit option is a simple filing you will still be required to pay tax on profit but in the beginning you wont need to worry about profit.  Also the not for profit status leaves the door open to becoming  a co-op,  a 501(c)3,  or  even a regular bike shop.    The bikerowave in Los Angeles is organized this way  and  has paid taxes but less that the additional accounting cost of being a 501(c)3.  Once you go under the non profit umbrella you can't 

get out.   Maybe someone on this list could speak directly to how the bikerowave is set up.

---

From: Ryan Feller <ryan@bikebroward.org>
To: thethinktank@bikecollectives.org
Sent: Wednesday, August 3, 2011 12:24 PM
Subject: [TheThinkTank] No cash register; how can we accept cash payments without coming off as shady?

Hi all! We're a new bike collective operating out of a 10x10 storage unit.
To raise funds, we're selling a few of our nicer bikes on Craigslist at
market value, but when someone pays us, I think it looks unprofessional
(and perhaps even shady) to just stick the money in one of our pockets. We
don't have the space, money or need for a "proper" electronic cash
register.

In all honesty, after the customer leaves we'll just put it in an envelope
and stick it in our pocket until we get to the bank, so this is just a
matter of what the customer sees.

Here are a few options:

* I have a little metal cash box. We could mount it to our tool pegboard
and put the money in there, but then again, putting a customer's $100-$300
in a tiny metal cash box in an open space with lots of teenaged volunteers
around could look just as bad.

* Maybe we'd be best off pulling out an envelope, writing "Bike Broward
customer name $100" on it, putting the money inside the envelope and into
our pocket, then writing them a receipt on carbon paper?

* We could also request payment by check for bikes over, say, $100, but we
don't have our 501(c)(3) yet, so it'd have to be in my own name, which
isn't a much better option.

Am I just overreacting? We're all 18 or younger and won't have our
501(c)(3) for a couple of months, so I've been putting a lot of work into
having a reasonably professional appearance.

Thanks so much!

Ryan Feller, Co-Director
Bike Broward
(954) 232-3790
www.bikebroward.org

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