california
Ownership/property idea
<p>Let's say I find a small public company worth 1 million. There are many. Now, I pay 50k and get a margin loan for 200k more. Then the stock appreciates a little, I buy more and I end up with 50% ownership.</p>
<p>Do I now own the company? Can I vote myself CEO, sleep in the parking lot and do whatever I want with the company property?</p>
<p>Normally, when private security removes  people for trespassing, they're acting on the authority of the owner. But if I pay a small, token amount to become the owner can I still be removed as a tresspasser?</p>
<p>It seems awfully cheaper to just buy stake in a company than to buy a house or whatever.</p>

<p>The company's property is controlled by the company's management <strong>on behalf of</strong> the stockholders, not by the stockholders directly. Simply being a stockholder -- even a major one -- gives a person no rights of access, nor rights to do anything with company property.</p>
<p>The management of a company could permit a person access to that company's property. The company's board of directors could instruct management to grant such access.  Stockholders normally select board members.</p>
<p>In practice if a major stockholder asked management for access it would quite likely be granted.</p>
<p>However, one should note that companies with a stock value under $2 million are unlikely to <strong>own</strong> a building with a parking lot. Such a company is much more likely to <strong>lease</strong> space in such a building, and that lease will have conditions. It is likely that one condition is that the property is not to be used for residential purposes.</p>
<p>Even if the company owns the building and the land, zoning rules or other local laws may well make it unlawful for anyone to live on the premises or sleep in the parking lot. Whether and how such laws will be enforced depends on many details and the local situation. But even an &quot;owner&quot; will not have the kind of lawful entitlement that a homeowner or renter has to a house or apartment.</p>
<p>Also, you can't invest $50k and get a margin loan for another $200k. You would have to invest at least $125k to make a purchase of $250k, and quite possibly more, depending on your credit status:</p>
<p>According to <a href="https://www.sec.gov/reportspubs/investor-publications/investorpubsmarginhtm.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this SEC page</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>According to Regulation T of the Federal Reserve Board, you may borrow up to 50 percent of the purchase price of securities that can be purchased on margin. This is known as the &quot;initial margin.&quot; Some firms require you to deposit more than 50 percent of the purchase price. Also be aware that not all securities can be purchased on margin.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>With a down payment of $125k and reasonable credit, one can probably purchase a house worth $500k or more, depending on the local market.</p>

<p>If you own only 50% of a company, you don't even have a controlling interest. Let's say you have a 51% interest. Then it's possible that under the corporate charter, you could vote in a board of directors who would do your bidding, except that they cannot completely disregard the financial interest of the minority shareholders. But allowing you to sleep in the parking lot would not be an obvious breach of the board's fiduciary duty to the minority.</p>
<p>We don't know about the security company that is engaged to patrol the premise, but generally speaking, a reputable firm will persuade a trespasser to leave and will not use force against a peaceful trespasser, they leave that to the police. The question of who has authority to declare a person a trespasser is difficult to answer on the spot. Let's say that the long-standing building manager didn't get the memo about the new CEO and new policy allowing said CEO to sleep in the parking lot, then the police will probably enforce the building manager's request to have you removed, and you'll have to settle the matter with the manager later. The police won't be listening to tin-foil-hat sounding theories about who is really the owner of the company, but if you can prove that the complaint comes from an unauthorized person (the former building manager), they are not likely to eject you from the parking lot.</p>
