I work from home using a couple of rooms as my studio and showroom (not ‘exclusive’ use so I don't see any capital gains tax issues). I estimate the floor space used as 25% of the total house space. During the last year, I rewired the house and replaced the bathroom and kitchen to a similar standard. Is there any way to claim some of these costs?

Arthur Weller replies:
If you look at HMRC’s Business Income manual at www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/business-incomemanual/bim47820 you can see that in principle you can do as you have written. However, it states: ‘Repairs that relate solely to part of the house that is not used for the trade, such as decorating a room not used for the trade, are not allowable. Equally if a room is used solely for trade purposes then the cost of redecorating that room is wholly allowable.’