I know a ton of guys do/did side jobs under the table, for cash, with no license/insurance/taxes/anything. I don't want to do that, for moral reasons as much as tax/legal ones. I also know that there are mixed feelings on employees doing side jobs in general on this forum, largely because of those guys undercutting employers since they don't have the same overhead. My employer has no problem with me doing side jobs as long as they aren't related to our work/customers, and as long as I'm not making calls about it at work (I keep my phone on "do-not-disturb" except for a couple family numbers in the event of an emergency, so that's not an issue).
I would like to start doing small side jobs in a completely aboveboard, on the books manner. I'd like to focus on jobs that would take one day or less, so that I can just knock them out on a Saturday and not have to worry about scheduling, or working late after my day job, or anything like that. In Michigan, you don't need a license for jobs where the total cost of labor and materials is less than $600. That limitation also means any jobs that take more than a day wouldn't be financially viable, and contractors around here are too busy to take a job that small.
For jobs this small and not involving anything structural (mostly base/shoe, trimming windows, hanging/casing doors, small simple built-ins, closet shelving/rods, setting vanities, that sort of thing), is it worth forming an LLC or similar? What level of liability insurance would you recommend? What percentage of every job should I be setting aside for taxes?
I would like to start doing small side jobs in a completely aboveboard, on the books manner. I'd like to focus on jobs that would take one day or less, so that I can just knock them out on a Saturday and not have to worry about scheduling, or working late after my day job, or anything like that. In Michigan, you don't need a license for jobs where the total cost of labor and materials is less than $600. That limitation also means any jobs that take more than a day wouldn't be financially viable, and contractors around here are too busy to take a job that small.
For jobs this small and not involving anything structural (mostly base/shoe, trimming windows, hanging/casing doors, small simple built-ins, closet shelving/rods, setting vanities, that sort of thing), is it worth forming an LLC or similar? What level of liability insurance would you recommend? What percentage of every job should I be setting aside for taxes?
