🏢 How to Find Out if Someone Owns a Business: Complete 2026 Guide
Search Corporate Records, DBA Filings, and Business Registrations to Uncover Business Ownership for Legal, Financial, and Due Diligence Purposes
🔍 Why Business Ownership Matters
Knowing whether someone owns a business — and which businesses they own — is critical information in dozens of legal and financial situations. If you hold a judgment against someone, their business interests represent assets that may be reachable through enforcement. If you are going through a divorce, undisclosed business ownership could mean hidden income and assets. If you are about to enter a business deal, knowing what other businesses your potential partner operates reveals conflicts of interest, financial health, and their track record. If you are a creditor, a debtor who claims to be unemployed may actually be running a profitable business. This guide covers every available method for uncovering business ownership — from free public records searches to professional investigation.
33+ Million
Small businesses operating in the United States
52 SOS Offices
Each state + DC maintains business entity databases
DBA Filings
County-level “doing business as” registrations
Public Record
Business filings are searchable public documents
📋 What This Guide Covers
- 📌 Secretary of State Business Entity Search
- 📌 DBA and Fictitious Business Name Filings
- 📌 Corporate Records and Annual Reports
- 📌 Registered Agent Lookups
- 📌 Business Licenses and Permits
- 📌 UCC Filings and Commercial Liens
- 📌 Online and Digital Footprint Searches
- 📌 Commercial Property Records
- 📌 When Business Ownership Is Hidden
- 📌 Professional Investigation Services
- 📌 Common Scenarios
- 📌 Frequently Asked Questions
🏛️ Secretary of State Business Entity Search
Every state requires businesses — corporations, LLCs, limited partnerships, and other formal entities — to register with the Secretary of State (or equivalent office). These registrations are public records and almost all states now offer free online search tools that let you look up business entities by owner name, business name, registered agent, or filing number.
🔍 How to Search by Owner Name
Most Secretary of State websites allow you to search not just by business name but by the name of officers, directors, managers, or members. This is the most direct way to find businesses owned by a specific person. Go to the Secretary of State website for the state where you believe the person operates, find the business entity search tool (usually prominently featured on the homepage), and search using the person’s full name. The results will show every registered business entity where that person is listed as an officer, director, manager, member, or registered agent.
📊 What Secretary of State Records Reveal
| 📋 Field | 📝 What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Business Name | The legal name of the entity as registered with the state |
| Entity Type | Corporation, LLC, LP, LLP, nonprofit, etc. |
| Status | Active, dissolved, suspended, forfeited — indicates whether the business is currently operating |
| Formation Date | When the entity was created — shows how long the business has existed |
| Registered Agent | The person or company designated to receive legal notices and process — critical for serving lawsuits |
| Principal Office | The primary business address on file — may or may not be the actual operating location |
| Officers/Directors/Members | Names of corporate officers, LLC managers/members, and directors — identifies who controls the business |
| Annual Report History | Filing history showing whether the business is current on its reporting obligations |
⚠️ State-by-State Differences
📝 DBA and Fictitious Business Name Filings
Not all businesses are registered with the Secretary of State. Sole proprietorships and general partnerships typically do not file at the state level. Instead, they file a “Doing Business As” (DBA) or “Fictitious Business Name” statement at the county level. If someone is operating a business under any name other than their legal personal name, most jurisdictions require them to file a DBA.
🔍 Where to Find DBA Records
- County Clerk or County Recorder: DBAs are typically filed with the county clerk or recorder in the county where the business operates. Many counties now offer online DBA search tools. Visit the county clerk’s website for the county where the person lives or works and search by their name.
- State-Level DBA Databases: A few states — including Florida, Massachusetts, and others — maintain state-level DBA databases that aggregate filings from all counties. Check whether the person’s state offers a statewide search before searching county by county.
- Newspaper Filings: Many jurisdictions require DBA applicants to publish a notice in a local newspaper. These published notices are indexed by newspapers and sometimes searchable online through newspaper archive databases.
💡 Why DBAs Matter for Investigations
DBAs are particularly important for investigations because they reveal businesses that would not appear in a Secretary of State search. A person who claims to be unemployed but has filed a DBA for “Smith Consulting” or “J&M Home Services” is actively operating a business — generating income that may be relevant to debtor examinations, divorce proceedings, garnishment, or asset analysis. DBA filings also show the person’s current address as of the filing date, which can be useful for skip tracing.
📄 Corporate Records and Annual Reports
Beyond the initial registration, businesses file ongoing documents with the state that provide updated ownership and contact information. Annual reports (or biennial reports in some states) are required by most states and typically include updated officer and director names, current business address, registered agent information, and sometimes basic financial information.
📊 What Annual Reports Reveal Over Time
Reviewing the full history of a business’s annual reports can reveal patterns that a single filing does not show. You may discover that new officers or directors were added or removed (indicating ownership changes), the business address changed (indicating relocation), the registered agent changed (possibly indicating new legal representation), or the business was reinstated after being dissolved or suspended (indicating financial difficulties). This historical perspective is valuable for understanding the trajectory of a business and its owner’s financial situation.
📋 Certificate of Good Standing
A Certificate of Good Standing (or Certificate of Status/Certificate of Existence depending on the state) confirms that a business entity is currently in compliance with all state requirements — meaning it is active, has filed all required reports, and has paid all fees. If someone claims their business is defunct but a Certificate of Good Standing is available, the business is still legally active. These certificates can be requested from the Secretary of State, typically for a small fee.
📬 Registered Agent Lookups
Every formally registered business entity must designate a registered agent — a person or company authorized to receive legal documents (including lawsuits) on behalf of the business. The registered agent’s name and address are part of the public business filing.
🔍 Why Registered Agents Matter
- For serving lawsuits: If you need to sue a business, legal process is served on the registered agent. Knowing the registered agent’s address is the key to proper service. See our guide on serving a business, LLC, or corporation.
- For identifying hidden ownership: When a business owner uses a commercial registered agent service (like CT Corporation, Northwest Registered Agent, or LegalZoom) instead of listing themselves, it suggests they are deliberately obscuring their connection to the business. This is not illegal — it is common for privacy — but it means you may need to dig deeper to connect the business to the person.
- For finding the owner’s true address: When the owner serves as their own registered agent, the registered agent address is often their personal or business address — useful information for skip tracing and address location.
📜 Business Licenses and Permits
Beyond entity registration, many businesses require operational licenses and permits from state, county, and city governments. These licenses are public records and often reveal business ownership information that entity filings alone do not capture.
Contractor Licenses
State licensing boards maintain searchable databases of licensed contractors. Search by the owner’s name to find active contractor licenses, which include business name, address, license number, and bonding information.
Food Service and Health Permits
Restaurants, food trucks, catering businesses, and food manufacturers require health department permits. County health departments maintain records searchable by owner or business name.
City Business Licenses
Most cities require a general business license for any business operating within city limits. City clerk or finance department databases often list the business owner’s name and address.
Real Estate Licenses
State real estate commissions maintain public databases of licensed agents and brokers. If someone has a real estate license, it is connected to their brokerage — revealing business involvement.
Professional Licenses
Doctors, lawyers, accountants, engineers, cosmetologists, and dozens of other professionals hold state licenses. Many professionals also own or operate their practice as a business entity.
Liquor Licenses
State alcohol control boards maintain public records of liquor license holders. Liquor licenses are valuable assets and their ownership reveals business interests in bars, restaurants, and nightclubs.
📎 UCC Filings and Commercial Liens
Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) filings are recorded when a business uses its assets as collateral for a loan. These filings are public records maintained by the Secretary of State and reveal that the person or business has borrowed money using business equipment, inventory, accounts receivable, or other business assets as security. A UCC filing proves business activity even when the business itself may not be easy to find through standard entity searches.
🔍 How to Search UCC Filings
Most Secretary of State websites offer a separate UCC search tool alongside their business entity search. Search by the person’s name (for individual debtor filings) or by business name. UCC filings show the secured party (lender), the debtor (borrower/business owner), the collateral description (what assets are pledged), and the filing date. A person with active UCC filings has active business interests — period. Even if you cannot find a formal business registration, UCC filings prove commercial activity. See our UCC lien search guide for detailed instructions.
🌐 Online and Digital Footprint Searches
In today’s digital economy, businesses leave extensive online footprints that reveal ownership even when public filings are obscure or incomplete. Here are the most productive online search strategies.
🔍 Google Business Profile
Search Google Maps and Google Business Profile for businesses associated with the person’s name or known addresses. Business listings on Google often show the owner’s name, business hours, address, phone number, website, and customer reviews. Even if the person uses a business name that does not include their personal name, searching for their known address on Google Maps may reveal businesses operating from that location.
💼 LinkedIn Business Connections
LinkedIn profiles frequently reveal business ownership — people list themselves as “Owner,” “Founder,” “CEO,” or “Managing Member” of their companies. Check the person’s LinkedIn profile for current and past business affiliations. LinkedIn company pages also list employees and associated profiles, which can reveal whether the person is actively running a business they may not have disclosed.
🌐 Website Domain Registration (WHOIS)
If you know or suspect the person operates a website, a WHOIS lookup reveals the domain registrant’s name, organization, address, email, and phone number. While many domain registrations now use privacy services that hide this information, older registrations or registrations through certain providers may still display the owner’s personal details. Search WHOIS databases at whois.icann.org or through services like DomainTools.
📰 Industry Directories and Reviews
Businesses appear in industry-specific directories, Yelp, Better Business Bureau, Angi, HomeAdvisor, Thumbtack, and dozens of other platforms. Search the person’s name across these platforms to find business listings. Review sites are particularly useful because they often include the business owner’s name in responses to reviews.
📱 Social Media Business Pages
Facebook Business Pages, Instagram Business accounts, and other social media business profiles often link back to the owner’s personal profile. Search for business pages associated with the person’s name, their known address, or their known industry. Even if the person keeps their personal social media private, their business social media pages are typically public.
🏠 Commercial Property Records
If someone owns commercial real estate — office space, retail space, warehouses, or rental properties — the property records reveal business activity. County assessor and recorder databases show property ownership, and commercial properties are almost always associated with a business use. Search property ownership records in the counties where the person lives and works. Look for properties classified as commercial, industrial, or multi-family residential. Even if the property is owned by an LLC, cross-referencing the LLC name with Secretary of State records can reveal the person as the owner or member.
🕵️ When Business Ownership Is Deliberately Hidden
Some people deliberately structure their business ownership to be difficult to discover. This is not necessarily illegal — there are legitimate privacy reasons for doing so — but it complicates investigation and is common in situations involving fraud, divorce asset concealment, judgment evasion, and tax avoidance.
🔒 Common Concealment Methods
Nominee Owners
The business is registered in someone else’s name — a friend, relative, or associate — while the actual owner controls operations behind the scenes. The nominee appears on all public filings.
Layered LLCs
The business is owned by an LLC, which is owned by another LLC, which may be in a state like Wyoming or Delaware that does not require member disclosure. Multiple layers make tracing to the real owner extremely difficult without professional tools.
Trust Ownership
The business is held inside a trust, with the person serving as trustee or beneficiary. Trust agreements are private documents (unlike business filings), so the ownership connection may not appear in any public record.
Offshore Entities
Businesses registered in foreign jurisdictions with strict privacy laws (Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands, Panama) are extremely difficult to trace to their US-based owners without court-ordered discovery or international cooperation.
🔍 How to Uncover Hidden Ownership
When business ownership is deliberately hidden, the free public records methods described earlier in this guide may not be sufficient. More advanced techniques are required.
- Follow the money: Even hidden businesses need bank accounts, merchant processing, and financial infrastructure. Court-ordered discovery, including debtor examinations where the person must testify under oath about their business interests, can force disclosure that public records cannot.
- Follow the address: If you know where the business operates, property records and business license records for that address may reveal the entity behind the operation, even if the person’s name does not appear in state-level filings.
- Follow the associates: Business partners, employees, vendors, and clients can sometimes be identified through LinkedIn, industry directories, or public records. Their connections may lead back to the hidden business.
- Professional asset investigation: Professional asset search services access commercial databases that track business affiliations through financial records, UCC filings, tax liens, and other channels that are not available through free public searches. These databases can connect a person to businesses that do not appear in any public filing under their name.
- Piercing the corporate veil: In some cases, courts will disregard the corporate structure entirely and hold the individual personally liable for the business’s debts — particularly when the business was used to commit fraud, was inadequately capitalized, or was operated as the personal alter ego of the owner.
🎯 Professional Investigation Services
When free public records searches do not reveal the full picture — either because the person operates businesses in multiple states, uses concealment strategies, or because you need comprehensive results quickly — professional investigation services provide the most thorough and reliable results.
📊 What Professional Business Ownership Investigation Reveals
| 🔍 Search Component | 📋 What It Uncovers |
|---|---|
| Nationwide Entity Search | All business entities where the person appears as officer, director, member, or registered agent — across all 50 states |
| DBA/Fictitious Name Search | Sole proprietorships and unregistered businesses operating under assumed names |
| UCC Filing Search | Commercial loans and liens revealing business assets and financial activity |
| Professional License Search | Active professional licenses indicating practice-based businesses |
| Tax Lien Search | Business tax liens revealing undisclosed business operations and financial obligations |
| Corporate Affiliation Database | Historical and current business affiliations from credit bureau and commercial databases — often catches businesses missed by public records searches |
People Locator’s asset search and background investigation services include comprehensive business ownership searches as part of the standard investigation. We search across all 50 states simultaneously, checking entity registrations, DBA filings, UCC records, professional licenses, and commercial databases. Results delivered in 24 hours or less.
📋 Common Scenarios
💰 Scenario 1: Judgment Debtor Claims to Be Broke — But May Own a Business
You have a judgment and the debtor claims they have no income or assets. But you suspect they are operating a business that generates unreported income.
Solution: Search the Secretary of State in their home state and any state where they have connections. Check county DBA filings. Search their name on LinkedIn, Google, and industry directories. Order a professional asset search that includes business ownership investigation. If the search reveals a business, schedule a debtor examination and force disclosure under oath. Business income can be garnished just like wage income — and business assets may be reachable through levies and charging orders.
⚖️ Scenario 2: Divorce — Spouse May Be Hiding Business Interests
You are going through a divorce and suspect your spouse owns businesses or business interests that have not been disclosed in financial declarations.
Solution: Search every state where your spouse has lived, worked, or traveled frequently. Check DBA filings in your county. Search their name on LinkedIn for business titles. Look for UCC filings that indicate commercial borrowing. Your attorney can issue discovery requests and subpoenas for bank records that reveal business deposits and commercial activity. Professional asset investigation is especially valuable in divorce cases because hidden business interests are one of the most common methods of concealing wealth. See hidden assets in divorce.
🏗️ Scenario 3: Investigating a Contractor or Service Provider
You paid a contractor or service provider who did poor work or never finished the job. You need to determine what businesses they operate to pursue legal action.
Solution: Check the state contractor licensing board for active licenses. Search the Secretary of State for registered business entities. Search DBA filings in the county where they operated. Check the BBB, Yelp, and Google Business Profile for business listings. Contractor license records often include the bond company and bond number — you may be able to file a bond claim to recover your money. See finding a contractor who ripped you off.
🤝 Scenario 4: Due Diligence Before a Business Deal
You are about to enter a business deal — partnership, investment, major purchase, or contract — and want to know what other businesses the other party operates.
Solution: A thorough business ownership search reveals all current and historical business affiliations, active and dissolved entities, DBA registrations, professional licenses, and any UCC filings or tax liens. This due diligence can uncover conflicts of interest, financial problems, patterns of business failure, or litigation history that would affect your decision. Order a background investigation that includes business ownership research.
🏠 Scenario 5: Finding Out Who Owns a Specific Business
You know the business name but not who owns it — perhaps because you were wronged by the business and need to identify the responsible party.
Solution: Search the business name on the Secretary of State website in the state where it operates. The filing will show the registered agent, officers, directors, or members. If the business is a sole proprietorship, search county DBA filings by business name. If the business uses nominee owners or layered LLCs, you may need to trace through multiple entity filings to find the real owner. See how to investigate a business before suing.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
🤔 Is business ownership information public record?
Yes. Business entity registrations filed with the Secretary of State, DBA filings with county clerks, UCC filings, business licenses, professional licenses, and property records are all public records. The information contained in these filings — including owner names, addresses, and registered agents — is available to anyone who searches for it. The level of detail available online varies by state, but the underlying records are public in all jurisdictions.
🤔 Can someone own a business without it appearing in public records?
Informal businesses — sole proprietorships that operate under the owner’s legal name without a DBA — may not appear in any public filing because most states do not require registration for them. Additionally, businesses owned through trusts, nominee arrangements, or layered LLC structures can effectively hide the true owner from casual public records searches. However, these businesses still generate financial records, tax obligations, and commercial activity that professional investigators can detect through commercial databases and investigative techniques.
🤔 How do I search for businesses across all 50 states?
There is no single national business registration database. Each state maintains its own Secretary of State database, and you must search each one individually for a truly comprehensive search. This is where professional investigation services provide significant value — they search all 50 states simultaneously through commercial databases that aggregate business filings from every jurisdiction, returning results in 24 hours or less rather than requiring you to manually search 50+ websites.
🤔 If I find a business owned by my judgment debtor, what can I do?
Business interests are assets that can be reached through various collection methods. For LLC interests, you can obtain a charging order that redirects the debtor’s distributions to you. For sole proprietorships, business assets may be directly leviable. For corporations, shares of stock are personal property subject to levy. Business income can be garnished similarly to wages. The debtor can also be compelled to disclose all business interests in a debtor examination under oath. See our judgment collection guide for the full enforcement process.
🤔 Can a business owner use an LLC to hide personal assets from judgment?
LLCs provide liability protection — meaning personal assets are generally protected from business debts, and business assets are generally protected from personal debts. However, this protection is not absolute. Courts can pierce the corporate veil if the LLC was used fraudulently, was not properly maintained, or was operated as the owner’s alter ego. Additionally, charging orders allow creditors to intercept distributions from the LLC to the debtor-member, providing indirect access to the business’s value.
🤔 How much does a professional business ownership search cost?
A comprehensive business ownership search as part of an asset search or background investigation is surprisingly affordable — typically far less than the value of the business interests it reveals. See our investigation cost guide for detailed pricing information.
🏢 Uncover Business Ownership — All 50 States
People Locator’s asset search and background investigation services include comprehensive business ownership searches across all 50 states. We check entity registrations, DBA filings, UCC records, professional licenses, and commercial databases to reveal every business connected to your subject. Results in 24 hours or less.
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