sole trader or linited

[robsparky1975]

good morning people,im a bit stuck on what to do,i have to go self employed,have some work,got made redundant so its better than going on the rock n roll,£50 a week wont pay my bills,i know that i need to contact hmrc etc,but the thing im stuck on is whether to go sole trader or limited,if i go sole trader can i call my business what i like or do i have to buy a package off of companies house,i find it a bit confusing,how did you guys start out?

 

[nikmet]

sole trader is less complicated when first starting out, although going LTD offers more protection ( less chance of losing your home etc) if things go wrong.

 

[robsparky1975]

did most of you start up as sole trader? did you just use your initials/surenames for your company or make up whatever you wanted?

 

[telectrix]

start off as a sole trader.call yourself anytthing you want, but check locally to make sure nobody else is using the same or closely similar name.you do not have to inform companies house. just hmrc. as business grows, then would be the time to consider going ltd. and registering for vat. ( threshold is around £72,000 annual turnover ).

 

[IQ Electrical]

good morning people,im a bit stuck on what to do,i have to go self employed,have some work,got made redundant so its better than going on the rock n roll,£50 a week wont pay my bills,i know that i need to contact hmrc etc,but the thing im stuck on is whether to go sole trader or limited,if i go sole trader can i call my business what i like or do i have to buy a package off of companies house,i find it a bit confusing,how did you guys start out?

Have a read of this link, literally everything you could possibly need to know is here plus a lot more!

Starting up | Business Link

 

[telectrix]

looking at your location, what about "All Wight Electrical Services".

 

[malcolmsanford]

I always traded under MPS Electrical ................... I did start out as a limited company but that was purely because sole trader is basically a new term for self-employed.. I think it is advisable to start as a sole trader, and perhaps if things start to move on for you, and you near the dreaded VAT threshold, then time to look at being a Ltd.