Random question!

[emma04]

Have any of you had difficulty borrowing extra money for home improvements/extensions due to you being self employed?

I do my own accounts and tax return (self assessment) each year. My expenses are pretty large, I take in to account the following:

Food (I halve my weekly grocery bill - after working it out individually for 2 years, it was nearly always almost half anyway!)

Fuel (only use car for minding and college - BA hons in EY Education)

Clothing (within reason)

Equipment - craft, toys, activities, toddlers
(Any new car seats, travel cots, buggies etc.)

Wear and tear plus heating and lighting (correct percentage as per childminder guidelines)

However, by claiming for as much as I can legally, it does make my net profit look pretty bad!!
£4000 for the past 3 years! (I only mind 3 days per week!)

So on DH's £25k and my £4k, not forgetting the £100k equity in the house!
I'm still concerned they will say no!
Computer calculator say YES and upon the info I've provided I could borrow £73k!!!! I only want £35k!

What are your experiences, any advice or stories appreciated!

Thank you!

[emma04]

*i only mind 3 days a week - meant to say full time! ( 2 days part time!)

[moggy]

Sorry to throw a spanner in the works, but you say you claim for clothing as expenses but the Tax Information pdf free download says

Clothing is not an allowable expense, whether it carries your logo or not.

As for your loan predicament... 'claiming for everything you legally can', as you say, means you are writing down as expenditure what you are honestly and actually spending out of your income.
So the £4000 net profit is true and correct. That is all you have of your income left at the end of the year after you have spent the rest on petrol, food etc etc.
The £4000 is all you have to put towards paying off the loan (+ DH income)

I don't think there is anything you can do except go to the loan companies/banks and see what they say.

Be realistic that although your gross income is a lot more than your net, you are actually spending all those expenses. So the net profit is really all you have left at the end of the year. Any tweaking of accounts is not going to change that truth, even if you do not declare some expenses you are still actually spending them!

Maybe you can try to reduce your expenses- find areas to cut down, buy less craft materials and reuse scrap materials instead, budget more on food- find cheap filling ingredients like beans and lentils to substitute for the more costly things you might have been buying, etc etc.