Business Rates - can you explain this?
 

Say you have a non-retail business such as a design engineer or mail order where you don't try and attract passers by into a high street shop.


If you also have a home with a bit of space or even a reasonable garage is there any reason why you wouldn't leave your shop/office on the high street and just work from home?


I know quite a few people when it has dawned on them that they don't need to pay £10k + in rent/rates when they could work at home just as well, see the kids when they get back from school, stop worrying about commuting and work at midnight if you have a bright idea. With some planning you could probably make a visitor friendly area possibly more comfortable than a pokey office. Probably need to be careful with mortgage and insurance companies and keep neighbours sweet but many ways to skin a cat. £10k a year saved gets the Mrs a nice holiday or two (and you can put her on the books for answering the phone or wherever your inventive mind takes you) :thumb:


What do you reckon? I expect many on here do this already?


PS. Not recommended for Indian Takeaways or Fish & Chip shops. Fine for discreet Brothels (so I am told) :)


David

Couldn't possible say ole boy haha

Business rates = scam imo.
We ran a business froma high street premises and the council charged us £8400 the last year we were there in 2012. I don't know what we were paying for, we didn't get any kind of service from them - they even turned off the street light outside the premises to save money. We had to pay for every single facility such as bin emptying and so on. A right con if you ask me.

Check the legal documents for the property carefully. Mine explicitly prohibit conducting any business from my home other than using it as an office. I can't have clients or customers visit my home, and I cant hold stock at my home.

All of that is fine with me, as all I require is an office for myself, but in a different line of business it could present a problem.

Insurance ?

Insurance was the obvious one, which would be easy (I assume) to change by putting in place the right cover. I think it is in the restrictive covenants section of the property title deeds or ground rent lease agreement - cant recall exactly which. Essentially it is something which would require legal process to deal with properly.

Well I just phoned an insurance company and asked for business insurance which covered all the standard c,rap like product liability, accidents in the workplace, theft, damage to equipment etc.



No doubt page 14 of my mortgage deal said I shouldn't run a business but f,uck their petty rules. Just be sensible and get on with life :)


David

Simple answer is yes, I'm a contractor with a Ltd company and my accountants advised me to claim for using home as an office and all consumables and refreshments used while working ;)

I work from home (limited company), and I have to say there are no government incentives to do so. I can't reimburse myself for anything other than actual business phone calls. Oh, and £4 a week allowance for Gas & electricity.

I thought I'd be able to claim expenses for my telephone, broadband, mobile etc, but no. They have to be registered separately from my personal name, meaning I'd lose my bundle discount.

I was also advised not to charge my business rent for office space (which I did think of to lower my corporation tax) but if I do this, then I may then be charged Business rates. So I don't.

How long have you been claiming for office space in your home? I was advised against this in case they hit me with business rates.

4 years now, it's small amount £8 per month do have separate phoneline and broadband paid for along with all office and IT eqpt.

I use a portal that my accountants provide, one of the areas is called Director Loan Account showing what is due to me, one of the items is home use as an office £8 . . along with salary, dividends, expenses and tax due . . .sorry don't know much more than that just use their system.

did find this interesting article . .

https://www.crunch.co.uk/blog/startu...nd-reasonable/

I also work from home (Ltd company) and have claimed for home office etc, no problem at all for the last 8 years. I was advised 50% of phone / internet costs were fine

50 quid off your busn rates !


probably made up by shafting increasing numbers self emp for more NI

:mad: