• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

My blog

Just another WordPress site

  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Blogging
  • Budgeting
  • Business
  • Finance Blog
  • Life
  • Save Money

Archives for April 2018

Learn From The Expert: Last Minute Tips On How To Cut Your Tax Bill

By Thomas on April 10, 2018

Even though the deadline for filing 2017 self assessment returns online is long past (31 January 2018), it is never too late to get information that can help for subsequent ones. Of course, if you missed the deadline, you may have to pay a penalty, unless you have a really good excuse, such as a long stay in the hospital (with hospital records to back it up), but for subsequent tax filings, the following minute tips from personal finance experts will help you cut your tax bills in the future.

Cut your tax bill when you donate to charity –

If you are an additional or higher rate tax payer, you can legally cut down your tax bills by being charitable. You are essentially killing two birds with one stone. Donating for a good cause and slashing your tax bills. When you add up your charitable donations on your tax returns, you can claim tax relief. Mathematically, you can save 25p on every £1 charity donation. Not only can you earn tax relief from major charities, you can also lower your tax bills by sponsoring minor events like scouts or brownies at your children’s school. All in all, you get to save by giving.

ISAs –

If you are a basic taxpayer, you can earn as much as £1,000 interest on your personal savings without paying one penny in tax. The same thing applies to higher rate tax payers, you can earn up to £500 in interest without paying tax. However, you may need to check the tax certificate for your bank account. The same thing applies to investments. You are entitled to £5,000 a year in tax free dividends if you own any investments outside your pension or personal savings account, although this figure will reduce to £2,000 from April 2018. You can actually save up to £20,000 every year with an ISA without having to pay capital gains tax or income tax.

Better mortgage alternative –

The new property and mortgage rules that will take full effect within a few years will see landlords progressively lose valuable tax relief on their buy to let properties mortgage costs. Before the introduction of this new rule, landlords only have to declare rental income after they have paid mortgages, and this system help cut tax bills by thousands of pounds. But, since April 2017, the method of declaring rental income has changed; meaning a lot of landlord will be expecting significant increase in their tax bills. However, because mortgage rates have dropped in recent years, landlords may be able to make savings by exploring other mortgage opportunities. Additionally, landlords can talk to tax experts to ensure they are claiming all they can against their rental income.

Self employed allowable expenses –

If you are self employed, you can slash your tax bills by taking note of what is called allowable expenses. For every £1 you spend on ‘expenses incurred exclusively in the performance of your business’ you can get 20p back in your wallet. For example, if you work from home and have to travel to London for a business meeting, you can claim travel costs which can cover food and drinks. Unfortunately, the taxman will not appreciate 5 star restaurants in your fillings, but the odd meals and drinks can add up. The secret is to keep track of all these seemingly insignificant expenses. One way to do this is by ensuring you get a receipt every time you carry out these little trips.

4 Places Where SMEs Can Recruit The Best Job Candidates

By Thomas on April 10, 2018

Hiring the best job candidate is a key aspect of having a successful SME. It is therefore essential to make use of innovative recruiting strategies that can help you locate the most appropriate candidates for available positions. There are several places to discover new talent for businesses, and exploring them can save you spending time weaving through heaps of resumes. If you’re on the hunt for the best job candidates for an SME, you can find them in these four places and invite them to a flourishing career opportunity with you.

Professional Networking Events

Attending networking events including big industry conferences remains one of the easiest ways to meet talented individuals. These events offer the opportunity to discuss with professionals in a laidback environment, and find out if they’re open to entering a new path with their career. You might meet someone who’s contented with their current job, but if you’re interested in them for your SME, you can still exchange business cards and keep in touch just in case. Contacting prospects you meet at professional networking events depends on the nature of the conversation which transpired. You can send them the job description if they expressed interest in a specific opening, or simply send links to your website if they need more information about your company in general.

Professional Communities

Professional communities provide a platform for passionate professionals to communicate and share thoughts and ideas. Such individuals may create a profile that includes a complete portfolio – professional background, works samples and so on. SMEs and other companies seeking to recruit job candidates often overlook these communities. However, they provide access to professionals who are open to engaging and talking about their skills. The main downside of recruiting from professional communities is that local candidates might be few. However, if your company is open to remote workers, this recruitment pool will likely pay off.

Job Board Database

Typically, job boards are used to connect with active candidates. But the candidates can also create accounts and provide their resumes and relevant information. Recruiting through job databases can go either way – many candidates create an account when they are actively searching for a job, then forget about it after they get a placement. So, you can end up reaching out to someone who’s happy to hear from you, or someone who has started at a new job and is unwilling to move. Nonetheless, it’s easy to recruit through a job board database, as you can contact candidates through phone or email available on the site.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is an impressive business and social media app when it comes to searching for the best job candidates. You can search using several filters including location, years of experience and past company. The “LinkedIn Recruiter” function can even let you save prospects’ profiles in specific folders, get updates about contacted individuals and also share them with other team members. It’s easy to reach out to candidates on LinkedIn, and if you reference impressive skills or experience, you can easily make a connection with them. Using a resource like this should be easy for any company to integrate into an existing social media strategy.

Companies are always on the lookout for the best job candidates. Talented professionals won’t apply to your business on their own. You’ll need to comb these places for suitable candidates to join your SME.

Primary Sidebar

About Us

I’m Thomas Stevens, a financial advisor who has a love for SEO. Anything numbers related excited me, so I started blogging about finances and budgeting. I also help others blog about finance – it’s always good to have a niche! Read More…

Archives

  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017

Popular Posts

Recent Posts

  • How To Earn Real Money Online By Playing Poker
  • 3 Tips To Help You Get Out Of Debt Faster
  • 3 Tips For Paying Off Debts Quickly
  • 3 Ways To Get The Help You Need While Also Saving Your Business Money
  • 4 Tips For Cutting Back Your Business Costs

Facebook

Be a Money Blogger

Facebook

Be a Money Blogger

Let’s Connect

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter

I’m Thomas Stevens, a financial advisor who has a love for SEO.

Anything numbers related excited me, so I started blogging about finances and budgeting. I also help others blog about finance – it’s always good to have a niche!

Copyright © 2023 · Smart Passive Income Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in