I do have a day job so this is more of a hobby that will generate a little extra income. As far as tools and startup costs my grandfather was a cabinet builder by trade and left my dad most everything I need, lathe, table saw, jointer, radial arm saw, drill press, and various hand tools. We moved all that machinery to my garage since it's heated and can be used year round. So my start up costs are minimal, I got a finishing nailer and a planer so that's about it so far. Can the new tools that I've bought be depreciated? If so, is there a guideline over how many years tools can be depreciated over?

I have a both an attached and detached garage which I've made the workshop in my attached garage. I've moved everything that I consider personal property to the detached garage so the attached garage is used soley for the business. Can I write off the location of the business? How do I figure out the value of an attached garage? Would I even want to, are there considerations I need to know about before doing this.

This first year I doubt I will turn a profit because of the new tools I bought but the pipeline looks pretty good from word of mouth advertising. Several people have approached me to build them something. So next year I believe I will show a profit.

For materials that I use I pay sales tax on and charge sales tax for the end product. Are these materials fully deductable? Also, items such as saw blades, sandpaper, etc stuff that wears out after limited use, can that be deducted as well or does that have to be depreciated too? Does that fall into a different category as it is not a durable asset?

My truck I use for both personal and business use. Mainly the business use is getting supplies and delivering product. If I keep the truck as a personal vehichle can I at least write off the mileage when I use it for business?

I've been saving reciepts for everything I do concerning the business and I also keep a record of where I go and for what when it's bisness related.

What else am I missing?

A good tax accountant will not "cost" you anything. They will be sure you get all your deductions and save you hours of hassle. You may have some cash outlay, but you will get that back in overall savings at the year end. Your business will be set up properly and you will be aware of all the possibilities of income and deductions available to the self employed.

If you go to a tax audit, you don't want to have to say "a guy in the website told me it was deductible" unless you want to see him laugh heartily.