How to save your business money when working from home
It has recently become the “new normal”, as we keep getting told, but for some people it has always been the definition of normal.
Some people run their businesses from home. Their business could be a company with employees who operate remotely, or it could be a sole trader that is just making use of their home for their business operations.
While there are obvious savings in relation to a lack of travel to an office, there can be some holes that start to occur. Today’s post will take a look at some of these to maximize your cost efficiency whilst working from home.
Get your tax deductions in order
If you have conducted any form of research on being self-employed, you’ll know about all of the tax advantages that exist.
When you work from home, you have endless streams of expenses to claim for that, by the end of the year, can reduce your tax bill.
Of course, all of this has to be done above board, but there are umpteen legitimate expenses that you can tap into when it comes to working from home. It might be the overall costs of running a home office, or it might be the cost of broadband. Either way, make a list and ensure that you are claiming for as many legitimate at-home reasons as possible.
Resist the urge from the coffee shop approach
It might not be the case at this moment in time, but as countries start to open up coffee shop queues will start to get longer.
It’s quite tempting, when working at home, to nip out for a coffee to break up the day. While breaking up the day is admirable, try and think of other, cheaper options. We’ve all heard about the potential savings when it comes to giving up lattes, so try and transfer your hot beverages to your own kettle. They can taste just as good, particularly if you opt for a specialty such as Halo coffee pods.
Be wary of plugs and standby
In the office, standby might be our best friend. At home, every volt of power counts.
Every time you leave an item on standby it adds to your electricity bill. Or, every time that you leave a plug on, you could be losing out to the tune of £100/year. The numbers add up, and the savings that you made from your lack of transport to the office are gone in a flash.
A final word: the heating factor
First and foremost, you don’t need to turn off your heater and it is absolutely essential in some regions.
However, the advice is instead to be conscious of the thermostat. For every single degree of heat you dial down, you’ll save around £80/year. Again, the numbers can make all the difference, and effectively give you a pay rise! For reference, the optimum temperature in a home is said to be between 18 and 21 degrees.
