Buying a Home in an LLC or Trust for Privacy: What Changes at Closing

Buying in an LLC or a trust changes whose name goes on the deed, but it doesn't make the purchase private. In New Jersey the deed, which recites the price, is recorded with the county clerk and searchable online, and an LLC has a public record of its own with the State. What an entity really changes is the paperwork and the financing at closing, and whether to use one at all is a decision for your attorney and tax professional.

I'm Dennis Mark Interdonato with The Dennis Mark Group at Keller Williams Realty Ocean Living. Real privacy starts with knowing what goes on the public record no matter how you buy.

What becomes public when you buy a home in New Jersey?

The deed, and the price in it. The NJ Division of Taxation figures the realty transfer fee on "the amount of consideration recited in the deed," meaning the price paid (NJ Division of Taxation). That deed is recorded with the county clerk, and both counties put their records online:

• Monmouth County. The county's Open Public Records Search System gives electronic access to property records as recorded by the Monmouth County Clerk (Monmouth County).
• Ocean County. The Ocean County Clerk's online public record search holds the county's official records recorded since April 1, 1977 (Ocean County Clerk).

An LLC or a trust changes the name a search turns up, not the price.

Does buying in an LLC keep your name private?

Only partly. An LLC is formed by filing a Certificate of Formation with the NJ Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services, which lists the fee at $100 for for-profit entities, followed by the State's tax and employer registration, Form NJ-REG (NJ Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services).

After that, the business annual report is how an LLC updates "the New Jersey public record" with its "current officers/members, main business address and registered agent" (NJ Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services). So anyone can follow the LLC's name from the county's records to the State's. How your LLC is set up, and what its filings will show, is your attorney's work.

What about buying in a trust?

Lenders treat a trust differently from an LLC. Fannie Mae's Selling Guide, the rulebook for the loans Fannie Mae buys, accepts an inter vivos revocable trust (a living trust its creator can revoke) as an eligible borrower when one or more people set it up and are its primary beneficiaries. For a principal residence, at least one person who set up the trust "must occupy the security property and sign the loan documents," and the loan is underwritten with at least one of them as a borrower (Fannie Mae Selling Guide B2-2-05).

With a mortgage, your own name and credit are in the loan file either way. Your estate attorney decides whether a trust fits.

Can you get a mortgage if you buy in an LLC?

Ask your lender before you set anything up. Fannie Mae buys mortgages made to borrowers "who are natural persons," with exceptions for certain trusts (Fannie Mae Selling Guide B2-2-01). An LLC isn't on that list.

At luxury prices, your loan may be a jumbo loan. FHFA says Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are restricted by law to buying mortgages below the conforming loan limit, and loans above it "are known as jumbo loans." For 2026, the limit for a one-unit home is $1,209,750 in both Monmouth and Ocean County (FHFA). Fannie Mae can't buy a jumbo loan, so its guide doesn't settle the question. Put these to your lender:

• Will you lend to an LLC or a trust, and who signs or guarantees the loan?
• Does an entity buyer change the rate, the down payment or the reserves you require?
• Can the home still count as my primary residence or second home?

Where does the FinCEN cash-purchase rule stand?

On hold by court order, as of October 16, 2026. FinCEN's Residential Real Estate Rule covers a "non-financed transfer to a transferee entity or transferee trust" of residential property, with exceptions. An LLC counts as an entity, and "non-financed" means no loan secured by the property from a lender with anti-money-laundering obligations. Under the rule, the closing or settlement agent is first in line to file a Real Estate Report, and the buyer's side can be asked to certify its beneficial owners in writing (FinCEN FAQs).

FinCEN had moved the start date to March 1, 2026. Then, on March 19, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued an order vacating the rule, and FinCEN, with the Department of Justice, has appealed. FinCEN's notice says that while the order remains in force, reporting persons "are not required to file Real Estate Reports with FinCEN and are not subject to liability if they fail to do so" (FinCEN). Its FAQs add that if the order is overturned, reports won't be required for transfers that closed while it was in force. The appeal can change this, so ask your settlement agent where it stands for your closing date.

Can anyone keep a home address off government websites?

Some people can, under Daniel's Law. It prohibits disclosing the home addresses of "Covered Persons" on websites run by New Jersey state, county and local government agencies, with Covered Persons defined in N.J.S.A. 47:1B-1(a) (Daniel's Law portal). The State's Office of Information Privacy describes them as active, formerly active or retired judicial officers, law enforcement officers and prosecutors as the law defines them, and says child protective investigators became eligible on August 1, 2024 (NJ Office of Information Privacy). The Ocean County Clerk's records search links to the State's portal.

What changes at the closing table?

Mostly timing and signatures. Settle these with your attorney before you sign an offer:

1. Should the LLC or trust be the buyer on the contract from day one?
2. Does it need to be formed, and registered, before the offer or before closing?
3. Who signs at closing, and in what capacity?

Timing matters because a contract a real estate licensee prepares for a one-to-four-unit home becomes legally binding at the end of a three-business-day attorney review unless an attorney for the buyer or seller disapproves it (N.J.A.C. 11:5-6.2).

Selling a home first? Start with a free home value. Then see how I work with buyers on the buying page, how I handle luxury homes, and the full process in the Luxury & Waterfront Guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the sale price of a house public in New Jersey?

Yes. The deed recites the consideration, the price the realty transfer fee is figured on, and it's recorded with the county clerk. Monmouth and Ocean County both offer online records searches.

Does an LLC hide who owns a home in New Jersey?

Not completely. An LLC's annual report updates the New Jersey public record with its members or officers, main business address and registered agent.

Do I have to file a FinCEN report if I buy with cash in an LLC?

As of October 16, 2026, no. A federal court vacated the rule on March 19, 2026, and FinCEN says reports aren't required while that order is in force. FinCEN has appealed. Under the rule, the filer is a closing professional, not the buyer.

Can I get a mortgage if the home is in a trust?

Fannie Mae accepts certain revocable living trusts as borrowers, with at least one person who set up the trust on the loan. On a jumbo loan, ask your lender.

This is general information, not legal, tax or lending advice. Your attorney and tax professional decide whether an LLC or trust fits, and your lender decides how it affects your loan.

About the author

Dennis Mark Interdonato is a REALTOR® and Master CDRE® who leads The Dennis Mark Group at Keller Williams Realty Ocean Living in Point Pleasant, NJ, helping buyers and sellers throughout New Jersey make their next move, with Monmouth and Ocean County as home base. Read more about Dennis Mark.

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• Have a question this didn't answer? Send it to Dennis Mark and it may become the next article.