The Student Room Group

Is this a feasible idea?

So I've been looking at what I will do in IT as a career, and as I'm a hardware guy and not into programming Ive been looking up self employed opportunities, which are limited in this side of IT.

If I broken computers and phones, fix em and sell em, could this provide a good income?


Posted from TSR Mobile
I don't see why not. There's plenty of services which unlock phones which make money, and people are always breaking screens.
Reply 2
Original post by Treypound
So I've been looking at what I will do in IT as a career, and as I'm a hardware guy and not into programming Ive been looking up self employed opportunities, which are limited in this side of IT.

If I buy broken computers and phones, fix em and sell em, could this provide a good income?


Posted from TSR Mobile





Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by Treypound
So I've been looking at what I will do in IT as a career, and as I'm a hardware guy and not into programming Ive been looking up self employed opportunities, which are limited in this side of IT.

If I broken computers and phones, fix em and sell em, could this provide a good income?


Posted from TSR Mobile


Of course. However, don't forget to charge and then pay VAT. Could be a costly mistake to make.

Good luck!
Reply 4
Original post by ByEeek
Of course. However, don't forget to charge and then pay VAT. Could be a costly mistake to make.

Good luck!


why?


Posted from TSR Mobile
It is all part of doing your taxes. If your business has a revenue in excess of about £50k you must charge VAT of 20% to your customers and then pass that onto the tax man. You must also pay tax on your personal earnings and tax on the business's profits. There are all sorts of glamorous ways to get around much of this. I suggest you start reading up on it.

To start with, you probably want to set yourself up as a single trader, but as you grow and start to look for premises and other business expenses start to rack up, creating a limited company might be the way to go.

Oh - and don't forget your public liability insurance! You might also consider some form of insurance for if you seriously screw up someone's prized phone and they try to sue you.

Good luck!
Reply 6
Original post by ByEeek
It is all part of doing your taxes. If your business has a revenue in excess of about £50k you must charge VAT of 20% to your customers and then pass that onto the tax man. You must also pay tax on your personal earnings and tax on the business's profits. There are all sorts of glamorous ways to get around much of this. I suggest you start reading up on it.

To start with, you probably want to set yourself up as a single trader, but as you grow and start to look for premises and other business expenses start to rack up, creating a limited company might be the way to go.

Oh - and don't forget your public liability insurance! You might also consider some form of insurance for if you seriously screw up someone's prized phone and they try to sue you.

Good luck!


well tbh I was just going to start small buying broken phones and repairing them then reselling on ebay/Amazon, surely this avoids all the tax malarkey and self-employment BS? I would probs look into repairing peoples gadgets later down the line.


Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by Treypound
well tbh I was just going to start small buying broken phones and repairing them then reselling on ebay/Amazon, surely this avoids all the tax malarkey and self-employment BS? I would probs look into repairing peoples gadgets later down the line.
Posted from TSR Mobile


Indeed. But make sure you keep detailed records. Strictly speaking it is illegal to earn money without declaring it. The problem is when you get caught. The tax office make an assumption based on your current earnings and how long you have been trading and then charge you accordingly whether it is fair or not.

My brother's father-in-law started a decorating business that was purely cash-in-hand. However a few years down the line he accepted a cheque for £100, cashed it and shortly afterwards HMRC knocked on the door. As he left court, he was facing a £30k tax bill! Beware! You don't need to pay tax up to a certain threshold but you still have to submit a self assessment form.

Good luck!

Quick Reply