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re8 economist suntribune november 26 1986 home businesses and you working at home while raising children becoming popular an increasing number of women are choosing to stay home and raise their children while at the same time meeting their needs for an income and the satis faction of a career sandy hazell freelance writer and mother of two interviewed 20 markham entrepreneurial moms to discuss their viewpoints on owning a homebased business this is the first of a twopart series looking at the steps of start ing a homebased business the education available locally sup port networks municipal bylaw restrictions and a brief look at some successful markham home- based businesses by sandy hazell staying home to raise children does not mean a woman has to give up her talents creativity or independence owning a home- based business gives mothers the flexibility to work around her family responsibilities the hours may be long and hard but you are the boss and can work as hard at it as you like at times life may seem like a jug gling act as you are only able to do so many things in one day but if you organize yourself and your business and set priorities it can be done there are many advantages to owning a homebased business there is no overhead no cost of commuting no or little daycare and federal tax deductions which can be claimed by owners many entrepreneurial moms get the whole family involved and feel it is a good learning experi ence for their children once you start with a dream idea or awareness of a need for a specific service or product you can turn it into a reality by de veloping a business plan getting organized and obtaining as much education as possible on running a business education the ontario ministry of industry trade and technology has a small business tollfree hotline 18003876142 which offers guidelines on rules regulations and programs a use ful booklet entitled starting a small business in ontario is also available from the ministry at the same number seneca college offers parttime courses in business studies although they are not geared spe- cifically for homebased businesses depending on the degree of spe cialization required six 12 20 and 30subject certificates are available in accounting general business marketing and small business management a 10week bookkeeping for small business course is also being offered this january through the year dinner talks are planned for complete details contact seneca college markham information centre at 4915050 ext 4200 four years ago wendy pries nitz approached the family life centre with the idea of offering a new course entitled a mothers guide to starting her own busi ness a researcher writer pub lisher educator and mother of two mrs priesnitz created and instructs the successful four- week course herself there seemed to be a real need for it said mrs priesnitz other courses seemed to be a lit tle intimidating for women and most government brochures are geared more for small businesses of 100 employees or more the course is offered two to three times a year with six to 12 people per class instruction is given on business planning financing budgeting record keeping government regulations and promotion home businesses rules and regulations when markham was still a relatively small rural village zoning bylaws permitted home occupations in rural areas and the village of markham bylaw 1229 stated any domestic or household art car ried on solely by the person re siding in the dwelling unit pro viding that there shall be no display of goods or signs that not more than 25 per cent of the dwelling unit shall be used for such purpose and that there is no adverse effect to the ameni ties of the neighborhood in february 1980 the bylaw was amended to delete home occupations as permitted use as there were concerns that re tail sales were not prohibited and home occupations were permitted in all zones it was also recommended that the definition of home occupation be standardized in rural andhamlet areas since amalgamating with other municipalities mar kham now has 48 different zon ing areas each with their own specific residential bylaws to day it is technically illegal to conduct any form of home- based business in your home including freelance writing prior to operating your business contact the zoning department in the town of markham to determine whether or not such an opera tion is permissable under the bylaws jim brown deputy of building and licensing for the town recommended what you do behind your doors is of absolutely no con cern to me as a resident of mar kham said mayor carole bell but i am interested if someone starts selling stuff out of their home and i have cars parked in front of my house both mayor bell and zoning officials expressed concern that homebased businesses may generate heavy volumes of traffic resulting in noise and jeopardizing the safety of chil dren on that street as the owner of a clothing store union mills at cullen country barns mayor bell sympathizes with main st business home businesses buying wholesale goods and re selling them at discount prices have an unfair advantage over local stores making it difficult for them to stay in business she said- there is a difference be- tween making something and selling it and buying it wholesale and reselling it mayor bell added if a home business is conducted in a quiet discrete way that does not adversely affect neighbor- sif nobody knows about it there are no complaints i dont want to say we turn our heads we have to have rules she said we want to be fair rules have to be made for the wouldbe offenders not for people who have good judgement emphasis is on time manage ment organization and specific skills needed to juggle business and family life the next course is scheduled for march networks in direct response to the growing number of women taking her course mrs priesnitz formed the home business womens network last spring a lot of women taking the course already had gone through dhe stages of setting up a busi ness but they wanted to get in touch with other women said mrs priesnitz the national network was established to give visibility and credibility to homebased businesswomen as well as help ing them deai with isolation and home management as well as providing profession al contacts education and en- couragement for home business women the network supplies a regular newsletter and annual directory of all members mrs priesnitz will be conduct ing another course in january at unionville high school more people are feeling un comfortable about putting their kids in daycare and starting to feel a little more comfortable ab out the choice of staying home- but the economic reality is still there said mrs priesnitz they have to have the extra in come and try to make the com promise at both ends rather than compromising totally i really believe its easier to simplify things when starting your own homebased business sheadded if youve got the guts nerve and desire i think you should go for it so many people are sitting on such a potential theyre not going to lose that much money barbara mcnulty and danielle volpe owners of molly maid started the first wednesday net work three years ago their ori ginal intent was to put themselves in touch with other business women as their business started out of the home our particular interest turned into an educational vent said mrs mcnulty not only do we get people working of their homes who need to hear what is going on in the world but we also have peo ple from the corporate business world as well the network meets once a month the first wednesday of ev ery month at cullen country barns steeles ave and kennedy rd for a breakfast in a casual relaxed atmosphere with guest speakers wendy priesnitz of markham is the creator and instructor of a course entitled a mothers guide to starting her own business the fourweek course offers instruction on business planning financing budgeting record keeping government regula tions and promotion emphasis is on time manage ment organization and specific skills needed to jug gle business and family life the next course is sche duled for march sandy hazell mortgage rates economist sunathe tribune compiled these rates as of monday nov 24 1986 mortgage lender bank of montreal nova scotia cibc royal bank toronto dominion canada trust family trust national trust sterling trust stouffville district credit union ltd royal lepage guaranty trust var rate 975 975 975 975 975 975 975 975 6 mths 975 95 95 975 95 95 95 1 year 975 975 975 975 975 95 975 975 975 975 975 975 2 year 105 105 105 105 105 1025 105 1025 1025 1025 105 105 3 year 1075 1075 1075 1075 1075 1075 11 1075 1075 1075 1075 1075 4 year 11 11 11 11 11 11 1125 11 1125 11 11 5 year 1125 1125 1125 1125 1125 1125 1125 1125 1125 1125