First Choice Legal Funding

Big picture: You sign up for Google Workspace, prove you own the domain, then paste a handful of DNS records into Cloudflare so mail routes to Google. You pay only for real people's inboxes — the shared addresses (intake@, info@, etc.) are free. Total cost below: ~$14/month for two people.

⚠ Cloudflare gotcha — read first. In your Cloudflare dashboard go to Email → Email Routing. If it is enabled, disable it (and delete any MX records it added). Cloudflare Email Routing installs its own MX records that will override Google's and silently break incoming mail. Google must be the only MX.

The address plan

Address	Type	Cost	Who reads it
`joseph@`	User mailbox	Paid seat	You
`devinsuarez@`	User mailbox	Paid seat	Devin
`intake@`	Group	Free	You + Devin (new applications)
`underwriting@`	Group	Free	You + Devin (case docs / UW)
`docs@`	Group	Free	You + Devin (signed contracts)
`info@`	Alias on joseph@	Free	You

Two terms: An alias is just an extra name on an existing inbox (info@ → lands in your inbox). A Group is a shared address with members, so intake@ delivers to both you and Devin — better for anything you both need to see. Both are free; only real people cost money. The domain is .com — note the address you typed for Devin ended in .co, which is a different (someone else's) domain; use .com.

1 Start the Google Workspace signup

Go to workspace.google.com → Get started.
Business name: First Choice Legal Funding, LLC. Pick Business Starter (~$7/user/mo, 30 GB each — plenty).
When asked "Do you have a domain?" choose Yes and enter firstchoicelegalfunding.com.
Create your first admin user: joseph@firstchoicelegalfunding.com. This account is the administrator — keep its password somewhere safe.

2 Verify you own the domain (Cloudflare TXT)

Google will show you a verification string that looks like google-site-verification=xxxxxxxx. Add it in Cloudflare under DNS → Records → Add record:

Type

TXT

Name

@ (means the root domain)

Content

google-site-verification=…paste the value Google gives you…

TTL / Proxy

Auto · DNS only (TXT can't be proxied — nothing to toggle)

Back in Google, click Verify. (DNS can take a few minutes to propagate.)

3 Add the MX record so mail reaches Google

In Cloudflare DNS → Records, add this one MX record (modern Google Workspace uses a single MX):

Type

Name

@

Mail server

smtp.google.com

Priority

1

TTL

Auto

If Google's setup wizard instead shows you five MX records (ASPMX.L.GOOGLE.COM + four ALT… servers), that's the older format — just enter exactly what the wizard shows. Either way: delete any other/leftover MX records (e.g. from Cloudflare Email Routing or a prior host) so Google is the only mail destination.

4 Add SPF (stops your mail going to spam)

SPF tells the world that Google is allowed to send mail as your domain — critical so your offer/decline letters land in inboxes, not junk.

Type

TXT

Name

@

Content

v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com ~all

You may have only one SPF record per domain. If a v=spf1… TXT already exists, edit that one instead of adding a second.

5 Create the people and the shared addresses

In the Google Admin console (admin.google.com):

Users → Add new user: create devinsuarez@firstchoicelegalfunding.com. (joseph@ already exists from signup. Usernames store as lowercase; the address still works typed any way.)
Users → joseph → Add alternate email (alias): add info@firstchoicelegalfunding.com — free, lands in your inbox.
Groups → Create group three times, adding both you and Devin as members: intake@, underwriting@, docs@. Set access to "Receive external email" so applicants and firms can write in.

Keep intake@firstchoicelegalfunding.com exact — it's already wired into your Law-Firm Funding Intake Form.html, so applications will flow to that Group automatically once it exists.

6 Turn on DKIM (signs your outgoing mail)

Admin console → Apps → Google Workspace → Gmail → Authenticate email.
Generate a new record (2048-bit, selector google). Google gives you a long value starting v=DKIM1; k=rsa; p=….
Add it in Cloudflare:

Type

TXT

Name

google._domainkey

Content

v=DKIM1; k=rsa; p=…paste the long key from Google…

Then return to the Admin page and click Start authentication.

7 Add DMARC (ties SPF + DKIM together)

Start in monitor mode (p=none) so nothing of yours gets blocked while you confirm everything works. Tighten later.

Type

TXT

Name

_dmarc

Content

v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:joseph@firstchoicelegalfunding.com

In ~2 weeks, once mail is flowing cleanly, raise protection: change p=none → p=quarantine, and later p=reject. This stops scammers from spoofing your domain — worth doing for a business that sends money offers.

8 Test it

Send an email from joseph@ to your personal Gmail/phone, and reply back — confirms send + receive.
Email applications to intake@ and check both you and Devin get it.
Run a free check at mail-tester.com (send it the message it asks for; aim for 9–10/10) to confirm SPF/DKIM/DMARC all pass.

Cost summary

Business Starter ≈ $7 / user / month × 2 users (joseph + devin) = ~$14 / month (~$168/yr).
intake@ · underwriting@ · docs@ · info@ = $0 (aliases & Groups).
14-day free trial; a credit card is required to start. Adding staff later = one more seat each.

What I can't do for you: creating the mailboxes and editing DNS happens inside your Google and Cloudflare logins, so those steps are yours. Tell me when you're in Cloudflare and I can double-check each record value against this sheet as you add it.