This is always a tricky question as rules and regulations vary from one council to another - and then the interpretation of these can vary from one person to another too.

None of our experts is qualified to give you a definitive answer because of this. What follows is not advice for your specific situation, but some general observations which may be of some assistance in reaching your decision. 

Generally, councils don't want businesses operating from a residential neighbourhood if they are going to be a nuisance or create a hazard. Issues which are likely to be of specific importance in this regard include things like traffic volumes, parking being taken up, noise, smell, hygiene, waste generation, clutter, creation of an eyesore, emmissions, etc. In some industries, e.g. food, health, massage or tattooing and body piercing, there are also stringent industry regulations, in addition to council bylaws, that determine if and how your business can operate from home. It seems a second-hand shop could definitely generate some issues, but you may have ideas on how these can be managed. There is a saying that it is easier to ask forgiveness than permission - but you don't want to risk fines or other legal issues, so it is worth doing your homework (and documenting it, even if just in emails with the council). All the best for your business venture! 

Hi Mark

We certainly can't help you with a lead broker or promoting your services here, but in terms of advice regarding getting a network marketing business off the ground, there is little difference between that and a traditional business - lots of hard work!

If you have a good upline, they will train you well and their advice will be invaluable. Even traditional businesses can learn a lot about marketing from good network marketers. It's all about building relationships and solving people's proble.

Good luck with your new venture!

Well, this is a good place to start. And those who know me will know that I'm going to recommend that you read the classic "The E Myth Revisited" by Michael Gerber. That discusses some of the major issues faced by small business owners in a very readable format. And it's old enough that E does nor stand for electronic.

In terms of next steps, I suggest you need to think quite widely. No matter how small a business may be, it faces the same broad issues as larger ones. And if you just focus on immediate issues, others are likely to come up in major mays at the worst times.

So for example as a first step I'd encourage you to think about a vision. That's only 2-3 sentences that say what you're about - and prefereably includes what is special about it. That might seem woolly and unnecessary - but if you do it right, it will help with many other decisions you'll face. It really helps develop a clear focus.

As for other stuff, there are a few places that provide help in some form. These include govenment web sites (such as IRD, business.govt.nz, WINZ, etc) and private web sites. It's probably helpful to think about each operational area of the business - goods and services, marketing and sales, people (even while it may only be you, you have different roles, and need different advisors), systems and processes, and finance. They're all areas which you need to manage.

One of the reasons I mentioned WINZ is that you may be able to get some help from them - they do provide help to get back to work. Of course they're not experts at business - so you will need to work closely with a range of people - and some of these may cost.

There are also business mentors - I'm thinking particularly of a group I've heard advertise which charges only $100 as a registration fee. I'm not sure how useful they are - especially to newbies. I've come across people whose advice I regard as worse than useless - so be careful with any advisors - sadly not all advice is sound.

Finally specific areas I would recommend to newbies getting started in business include checking for special regulations for your industry (and you may want legal advice on some issues), record keeping (I'm a chartered accountant so my advice can be seen as biased, but you need good records from the start), and even the format of the business (sole trader, company, etc). of course you'll also need good banking facilities - including at least a separate bank account for the business.

And you really want to think long and hard about even something as basic as a name. I suggest you might want to check not only that a name is available as a company name, but also a domain name, and maybe even a trademark.

This list should keep you going for a day or two - but it's by no means complete or comprehensive. So feel free to ask more questions - either here or in the forums.

Hi Charles

"I have been preparing to set up and register a business"

I'm a little unclear as to what you mean have been doing to date. One of the first things to do is to sort out what form / forms you want the business(es) to take. This has implications as to how the businesses are taxed, and other issues. So this requires some thought and a greater understanding of you and your goals. If you start off as a sole trader (the default) you can change at a later date - that's what many do - but there are issues - even such as trading names.

"1. Can you please tell me what are the fees that I have to pay in order to keep the business running(apart from tax/GST)? Do I have to have a certain amount of cashflow to keep the business running?"

You don't need to have any specific cashflow - especially while a business is getting started. But if it never generates a profit, there will come the question: is this a business or a hobby?

You mention GST, and you mention that the business includes property management and vehicle repair. First there's the general rule that you don't have to register for GST until your turnover exceeds $60K (per year). Usually it's best to register unless your clients are not registered. Then it requires working out with more care. However, in this case there's an added complication. I'm unsure what this side of the business will be doing, and for whom, but it may or may not be subject to GST.

"2. I'm also looking into starting a business which will include property management and vehicle repair. What I need to know is can those two all be put under one business name or do they need to be under separate businesses?"

If a property is rented for normal rental accommodation, then it's own cannot be registered for GST, and GST cannot be charged or claimed. If this business includes that, then you need to separate out the GST business from the non-GST business. While you can run both in your own name, you have to keep the records of both separate. It may be that keeping them as separate entities is a good idea.

"Business name" can be a complex issue. The legal name and the trading name are two different things. Generally you can use any trading name (subject to a few niceties such as avoiding trademarked or otherwise protected names) so you could operate both entities under separate trading names, even if both are legally operated by the same entity.

So there are a number of inter-related issues here which require further consideration. You can ask further questions here - but you may want to bite the bullet and use a Chartered Accountant to help you resolve these and other issues. For example you haven't mentioned accounting (and tax) systems - it pays to have these in place before commencing business. If you are still sorting out these while establishing your business, that is problematic - you need to keep good records from day one. And if this is your first business, you want to know about the possble tax savings available in the first year by paying possible "provisional" tax.

And of course you may want to think about other advisors also such as insurance. You're undertaking a big effort - even though you may be the only person in the business, you face many of the issues larger business face - which is why you might benefit from using people with different experience and outlooks on life. One book I always recommend to people in business - and especially to newbies - is "The E Myth Revisited" by Michael Gerber.

Hi there

You don't say what your work is, so I assume as mentioned in a recent discussion there are no special requirements (e.g. hygiene, hazardous materials, etc). And as far as the rental property is concerned, I assume you are not doing anything which might affect the insurance of the landlord. I also assume you don't have clients coming to your home office - if you did there might be a few extra worries - from OSH to parking.

As you can see, all of that assumes plenty - and I hope I'm not making an ASS out of U and ME. But given all of that (assuming there's nothing special about your work), then there are no particular rules / regs you need to be aware of.

Hope that helps

Hi there

I am a small business fan - some might even say nut. However I have to point out that it can be hard work - and quite nerve-wracking at times. So I wish you well in your endeavours.

In terms of registering, you can simply submit your data for the tax year. Nothing too complex there. However, that's a bare minimum. There are all sorts of issues you might want to do - and in fact I recommend you do.

I generally recommend most people starting a business do so as a company. However in this case while you're testing the waters, it's probably not a good idea at this stage. So I'll assume your doing this in your own name - which means there's no "registration" process to go through.

Another issue is GST. While you can work without being registered, there are some advantages. I suspect in your case your customers are private people - not GST registered businesses. In this case it is generally NOT in your interest to be registered - so this is probably only an issue if your business grows.

It's much easier if you keep a separate bank account for business activities. That simplifies life no end - you don't need to separate out transactions to be accounted for. This applies whether you do it all yourself, or use an accountant.

I also recommend an accounting system. Of course it has to be used properly, and kept up to date, but it does simplfy things. I don't recommend cashbooks - or overseas-based products - but a good local product is only a little bit more (perhaps $300 or so). If kept poorly it's a waste of time, but if kept properly it will produce meaningful accounting info. An alternative is to use BankLink - but again it has to be used properly or it's a waste of time.

Then it's just a question of knowing which transactions are business and which are private. Generally this is fairly obvious - although there are some that have specific rules around them. An obvious one is the use of a private motor vehicle. It's too complex to deal with in detail here - but you need to keep a record of distance travelled privately and for work, as well as ALL costs.

Then there is the use of a home phone - and even a home office. These two can be done at year-end, so that's not a major issue.

As I've said before there's a lot of info needed to get things right - I include three links that might help. But personally (and I'm a chartered accountant so might be accused of being biased) I recommend having a chartered accountant on your team. Given your business might still not be able to sustain the cost you're in a difficult position - but not using one can lead to more risks and higher costs.

www.business.govt.nz/starting-up

www.ird.govt.nz/yoursituation-bus/starting

www.businessmentors.org.nz

So I hope this at least provides you with a starting point. over the years there's been a fair bit a advice, etc available here - so feel free to ask more questions as they arise.

Phil Astley - www.businessacademy.co.nz

That's a really good question - and one which it's not possible to answer categorically, though we can give you some guidance which hopefully will get you started in the right direction.

Regulations regarding home businesses vary between councils. They are usually set out in the district plan so asking your council for a copy of this document is often a good starting point. It's not always easy to wade through and council officials will sometimes help with giving you a verbal summary or some pointers.

The kinds of businesses which are usually forbidden or discouraged in residential areas are those which create significant additional traffic in the form of customers or deliveries/couriers, attract undesirable elements, create nuisance through noise, dust, smoke, smell, rubbish generation or use of toxic or dangerous chemicals. If your business is going to create an eyesore - for example working on wrecked cars in your backyard - you may also run into problems, as you would if your business is somehow detrimental to health or the environment or generates undesirable waste products. Restrictions also usually apply which govern both size and placement of business signage.

Apart from council regulations, you need to be mindful of industry and other regulations which might affect your business - for instance, you will almost certainly need to arrange to use a commercial kitchen if you plan to offer food products for sale. And, of course, whatever activity you plan on needs to be legal.

We hope this helps to highlight some of the issues you need to be mindful of and give you an idea of where to start your search for detailed information. It is very definitely just scratching the surface and you will need to investigate further with regard to your own situation. We wish you great success with your business!

The first question depends on your business. If your customers are GST registered, then simply adding GST to the sales price is fairly simple and costs no-one. If you're customers are private, then adding GST to your price will mean they are paying 15% more - or you may keep the same price and get 15% less. And of course many people do both - up the prices a little and wear the GST cost.

The other side if the equation is your costs. If you have a lot of costs (but not interest and wages) then being GST registered lets you claim the GST.

And there is another point to bear in mind. I always encourage people to begin with the end in mind. If you're likely to be changing to include GST at some stage, you have to think through the issues associated with that change. In particular what effect will it have when the time comes?

The second question is also interesting - and has three parts to it. The first is how are you going to do your accounts and tax returns? If you're going to use an accountant, then you should probably choose them first. Many accountants prefer a particular vendor. Now MYOB is often the preferred vendor with many accountants for various reasons - but it may not be the best program for your situation. As well as accounting there's the question of ongoing support. If you can do it yourself, you may want to pay extra for access to support. OTOH your accountant may well include support.

Second, which vendor.you prefer depends on a variety of factors. The one I used to recommend (and still use for my own companies) is now just one of four I recommend. Since you asked about MYOB I will say that's always been low on my recommendations for one reason above all else. At year end you lose the old year's data. This has improved over time - but it's still an issue. The other three on my list - MoneyWorks, QuickBooks and Xero all don't really have a year-end procedure.

Third which level of the program do you want. The normal programs are great - but can cost around $800. Smaller cheaper versions can cost around $300 and may do all you want.

Note: you have to be careful here. For example QuickBooks has a smaller sister called Quicken. That is not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about cheaper versions of the main program (in this case QuickBooks) which have some features disabled. Don't get caught - Quicken can be adequate but is really designed for private use - a bit like MS Money. But lower versions of QuickBooks (and the others) can be cheaper and still meet your needs.

Have fun sorting it all out.

That's a bit of a broad question - but a good one as it can be quite intimidating starting up from scratch, and once you have clients on board they can refer more business, etc.

The best strategy is to "fish where the fish are". In other words, your most effective use of time and money is to direct your efforts where you will find concentrations of your ideal potential clients.

You will probably need to leverage your network of friends and associates, attend business networking functions, and advertise your services through fliers, letterbox drops and/or your local newspaper or a targeted publication or web site your ideal clients are likely to read or visit. Alliances with other service providers (e.g. accountants tired of handling clients' messy books), can be very effective.

Your first task will be to work out who your potential clients are - businesses, associations, individuals? What size of organisation? Where will they be located? What functions do they attend? Who is already talking to them?

Direct mail and even the dreaded cold calling may also have their place in your strategy. There are plenty of articles on this site which will give you more detail about both of these techniques. Done well, they can be very effective - but a lot of people spend a lot of time without getting results because they are not following the process properly.

When you start building up a client list, leverage it. Ask for referrals, there is no better salesperson for you than a happy existing client.