It is always difficult to find legitimate work from home jobs, but I have found that Craigslist can be a good source. However, it does take a bit of work to find the good telecommute jobs amongst the “regular’ jobs and the scammers. To make the job easier, I have come up with these tips to finding a good work from home job on Craigslist.

1. Don’t limit your searches to cities near you. When you work from home your boss could be half away across the world from you, location really doesn’t matter. Start with the larger cities and work your way through the whole list of Craigslist. One thing I would like to see with Craigslist is a search feature that includes all cities. As far as I know you can’t do that right now. So for now you need to do your searches city by city.

2. Start your search with cities where employers have to pay to place an ad. Not all Craigslist ads are free. In some of the larger cities, employers are required to pay to place an ad. Scammers don’t like to pay for ads, so this weeds out a lot of scam artists. San Francisco and New York are two cities that you need to pay to place a help wanted job on Craigslist.

3. When you work from home, it really doesn’t matter what location your employer is at. So don’t limit yourself to only searching cities near you.

4. Look at all job categories, not just the field you want to work in. Not everyone classifies things the same way. For example, I have found bookkeeping jobs in almost every category, including general labor and manufacturing. Some employers will classify by the type of business they have, as opposed to the type of job. So, if a manufacturer needs a bookkeeper, they put the ad under manufacturing.

5. Use the search box! Don’t spend your time scrolling down lists. Most jobs posted will not be telecommute or work at home jobs. Use search terms such as “work from home”, “telecommute”, “work remote”, etc. Make sure to use the quotation marks to precisely define your search and weed out the results you don’t want.

6. Watch out for the scammers. No matter where you look, there will always be scammers. Be sure to read up on how to spot a work from home scam, and know that with few exceptions, you should never have to pay to get a job.

With these tips and a little work you should be able to find a number of opportunities for legitimate work from home jobs. Good Luck!

In a previous post I mentioned that I had started using Hubpages as a way to earn a little more money on the web. I was especially interested in how hubpages would work as opposed to my own blog.

Well I am happy to say that after 6 months I am very pleased with the results I am getting from HubPages. It has been a great way to try out different niches without making a commitment to a full blog. I have had some surprises. Hubs that I thought would do very well have not, and others have done great.

What really surprises me is that my hubs are quickly getting decent page ranks. I have PR2 and PR3 hubs after just a few months. Not only are the pages getting good PR’s they are ranking well in the search engines.

The biggest surprise, one of my hubs has beat all of my blogs in Google Adsense earnings. Just one page has become a regular and consistent earner with a good click through rate and nice earnings per click.

Despite my success on Hubpages I am not giving up blogging. But I do like the way I can just write a hub on any topic and then just let it go and see how it does.

For a very short time Sitepoint is offering The Principles of Successful Freelancing for FREE!
This ebook normally costs 29.95, but if you are willing to provide an email address, or follow them on Twitter you can download the book for free until September 14, 2009.

I downloaded my copy and already I have found some great information. Although it is specifically directed to web designers there is valuable information for anyone who is freelancing or considering becoming a freelancer.

Here is the link: The Principles of Successful Freelancing

While there are plenty of legitimate work from home offers available on the web, there are many more scams.
When looking for a work from home job you need to be careful.
If you fall for a work from home scam you could end up:

• Wasting your time
• Losing Your Money
• Becoming a Victim of Identity Theft
• Involved in Fraudulent or even Criminal Activity

The FBI lists these common work from home scams you should avoid.

The Advance Fee Scam

This is where many business “opportunities” fall. In this scam you pay a fee and in return you are to receive everything you need to start your own (fill in the blank) business. You pay your money and end up with a bunch of worthless junk…if you get anything at all.

The Mystery Shopper-Counterfeit Check Scam

This scam seems like a no-lose situation…they send you money!
How it works: Your “employer” sends you a large check that you deposit into your bank account. You spend the money shopping at local stores and sending wire transfers. Some of the money you send back to your employer. But a few days later you find the check was bad, and you are liable for the funds.

Pyramid Schemes

My personal favorites are all the “gifting” programs out there. But the most common way this scam works is that you are hired as a distributor for some type of product. Many times the product you are selling is of low value and overpriced. You make your money by recruiting others to sell the product. Meanwhile you are required to purchase inventory and sales aids, all of which become worthless with the pyramid fails.

The US Agent Money Laundering Scam

In this lovely scam you are hired to be a US based “agent” for a company. This typically involves receiving merchandise and then reshipping it to another address. What you don’t know is the crooks are using you to launder money and/or steal merchandise, with no trail back to them.

The Phishing Scam

This scam may be the hardest one to spot. You apply for a job and it appears you are being considered, or even hired. The company then asks for your personal information and then the job disappears. The scammers now have all the information they need to steal your identity and and ruin your credit.

Tips to Avoid Getting Scammed

Watch Out For The Warning Signs

1. You are offered large profits for only part time work.
2. They don’t tell you exactly how the plan works until you pay them the money.
3. They never actually offer you a job without taking your money.
4. You need “little or no experience” to make “huge guaranteed profits”.
5. You are pressured to make a decision immediately.

How To Protect Yourself From Work From Home Scams

Be suspicious whenever you are asked to pay money for a job.
First contact the Better Business Bureau to make sure the company is legitimate.
Don’t provide personal information until you are sure the offer is legitimate.
Do some research! Google the company name with “scam” and see if anything comes up.

Following these few simple tips can save you money and heartache.
For more information check out
FBI-Work From Home Scams
Better Business Bureau Work From Home Schemes
Federal Trade Commission Work From Home Schemes

Click on This “Ad” for a fun way to learn about Work From Home Schemes.

Make Lots of Money Now!

I have been putting this off for some time. We are in the process of changing servers. I hope to have everything back to normal in just a few hours.
Thanks for your patience!

Mostly I like to look at work from home jobs where you can earn enough to make at least a basic living. But is always nice to have a way to earn some extra cash. And when that way costs nothing to start, and has the potential to pay a decent amount, I think it is worth a look.

I signed up for Hubpages about 3 months ago, and didn’t do anything. Then about 2 weeks ago I went back to the site and wrote my first Hub. At Hubpages, a hub is basically a webpage. Just one page where you can write about any topic you like. The Hubpages interface is easy to use, and depending on your writing speed you can have a hub published in not more than the time it took you to write it.

You earn money on Hubpages through one or more of the affiliate systems they have in place. All Hubs have Adsense placed on them. You can also choose to participate in the Amazon, eBay, and Kontera affiliate programs. You make money when a visitor to your Hub clicks on an ad. You get 60% of the impressions, Hubpages gets 40%.

Why Hubpages is Better Than a Blog

I love my blogs, and I continue to write for them, but on a blog, it is best if you stick to one subject. That way Google knows which ads are relevant to your site. On Hubpages, I can write a hub about American Idol one day and a hub about credit card debt the next. Each page stands alone and Google will show relevant ads on the page.

Hubpages also gets Google traffic quicker. I wrote my first hub on getting out of debt, and I had Google search traffic on it the very next day. For making money search traffic is great! I also had my first adsense click the first day the hub was published. I have never had a blog start making me money the very first day it was published.

I also like Hubpages because I can make money by sending people to other hubs. When I link to another hub, I get 10% of the impressions that I send the Hub. This is taken from the hubpages side, so the author of the hub doesn’t lose anything.

Why a Blog is Better Than Hubpages

I like my blogs better than Hubpages because I have more control. I get to decide the look and the layout. I also get to keep 100% of the revenue I generate. I don’t need to share it with anyone. It might change after I have been with Hubpages longer, but right now I don’t really feel like the Hubs are mine. Even though I retain all the rights to my hubs, they don’t feel like they belong to me the same way my blogs do.

Why Hubpages and Blogs Are Great Together

I really like having both Hubpages and blogs. I can use Hubpages to send traffic to my blogs, and conversely, I can use my blogs to send traffic to my hubpages. (Like I am doing here) My very first Hub that made me money the very first day it was published, well it also sent traffic to another one of my blogs, and that made money too!

Will You Get Rich With Hubpages?

I suppose it is possible, if you wrote a lot of very popular hubs. However, no one has gotten rich yet. But you can make a little extra money each month. Many hubbers are making over $100 per month and I think a few are making $400-$500 per month. I haven’ made that much…yet. One of the best parts about Hubpage income is it can be very passive income. A well written hub can bring you income long after you have written it. You might need to tweak it now and then, to keep it current, but as long as your hub is published and getting traffic, you should be earning money.

I have really been enjoying writing for HubPages. I have made a small amount of money, and the community is fun. Sign up for Hubpages and start writing. Let me know and I’ll become your fan and help you to promote your hubs!

Happy Writing!

A virtual assistant is a relatively new career. Without the aid of technology, working as a virtual assistant would not be possible. As a virtual assistant you work from your own home providing administrative, clerical and other support services as needed to busy executives and business owners who need to focus on their business, and not on their clerical tasks.

A virtual assistant(VA) will save a business money. Because the VA works from their own, fully equipped home office, the client does not need to pay for office space and equipment. And because a VA is only paid for the hours they actually work, the client does not need to pay a full time employee when what they need is just a few hours per week.

There are two types of virtual assistants. The generalist performs general office and clerical support. A specialist will focus on a certain field or area of expertise, such as bookkeeping, real estate, legal, or web development.

Virtual Assistants perform a variety of tasks such as:
* Handle email and postal mail
* Making appointments and scheduling
* Fax/receive faxes
* Research of all sorts
* Plan meetings and events
* Plan parties (business and personal), weddings, reunions
* Make travel arrangements — business and personal
* Handle reservations for seminars given by clients
* Writing
* Proof reading
* Copy editing
* Desktop publishing
* Newsletter publishing (print and internet)
* Coordination of web design/hosting
* Mailings
* Buy gifts/cards for customers of clients
* List managing (majordomo, listserv)
* Reminder service
* Transcription and Dictation
* Bill paying
* Bookkeeping — business and personal
* Manage vendor relations
* Create/maintain databases

To work as a virtual assistant you will need a fully equipped home office, including a high speed internet connection, an up to date computer, and the latest office programs. You should be proficient in Microsoft Office, and be comfortable using instant messaging.

Be careful when looking for work as a virtual assistant. There are many scams out there that will charge you a fee, and then give you a list of jobs that you could find on your own. Remember, you never should have to pay to get a job.

One site that does offer virtual assistant jobs is

Working as a freelance bookkeeper can be a very lucrative home based business. With hundreds of new businesses starting every day, there are plenty of small businesses looking to outsource their bookkeeping.

As a freelance bookkeeper, you take the receipts and invoices of a business, and enter them into an accounting system. It could be a paper ledger system, but most bookkeeper enter receipts and invoices into a computer based accounting software such as QuickBooks. You then print the reports for the business owner.  As you gain experience and education you might also offer payroll and tax preparation services.

You don’t need to be a CPA to do bookkeeping for small businesses.  Many businesses will hire a freelance bookkeeper to do all the data entry, and then just pay a CPA or professional accountant to review the accounting and prepare the taxes.

There are many places to learn how to be a bookkeeper.  I took accounting classes at the local community college.  The cost was quite reasonable, and I learned all the accounting I needed in just under a year. There are also many online schools that will teach you how to use accounting software.

The start up costs for becoming a home based bookkeeper are quite reasonable.   You need a reliable computer and printer. I would suggest a good internet connection as there are now many ways to work remotely as a bookkeeper.  Plus good accounting software.   I like QuickBooks software because it is  the most popular accounting software. Your customers will be familiar with it and there is lots of support available.

The hardest part of becoming a freelance bookkeeper is finding customers. People are reluctant to trust you with their financial information until they know that you are skilled at what you are doing, and that you will keep their financial information private.  Get started by offering your bookkeeping services for free to a small local non-profit.  Do a  good job and you will have a reference for your potential paying clients. You can also find clients by joining your local chamber of commerce and going to the meetings. Lots of new businesses go to chamber meetings, and most new businesses need a bookkeeper!

The pay rate for home based bookkeepers can vary quite a bit from place to place.   Most experienced bookkeepers charge their customers between $25 to $50 per hour.  It may be tempting to charge less when you are first getting started. But remember you are responsible for all your expenses and your taxes.  You need to charge enough to cover all your expenses and make a profit.

While there are a limited number of companies that will pay you as an employee to work at home, if you are willing to work as a freelancer there are many more opportunities.

As a freelancer you are in charge of how much work you take on, what your pay rate it, and when and how you will go about doing the work. You are also responsible for reporting your income and paying your own taxes. In the US, if any one person pays you over$600, they are required to send you (and the IRS) a form 1099 reporting your income. Even if you don’t receive a 1099, you should report all your income.

There are many different types of careers that work well for freelancing. Freelance writing is obviously very popular, as well as graphic design and web development. I started my work from home career as a freelance bookkeeper. Almost any service you can provide can become a freelance business.

Before you start looking for work, you should create a website or a blog for yourself that will showcase your talents and advertise your services. Make sure to have an about page and a contact form so potential clients can get ahold of you.

Now you are ready to look for work. If you are just starting out, and willing to work for cheap to build up your portfolio there are a few forums where you can find work quickly. The good part about using forums to find jobs, is that you can often find a job and get paid for it on the same day. The bad part about forum jobs is that you have no idea who you are working for. It is possible that you will not be paid. Proceed with caution. That said, I personally have always been paid for the work that I have done. Two good forums to get you started.

Digital Point Forums.
Site Point

Job boards are another place to look for freelance work. There can be a lot of competition, but as you get a reputation it will be easier for you to win the jobs.
elance is a well known job board.
Problogger has a job board with lots of writing and blogging jobs.
RentACoder is a great board if you are looking for programing and coding jobs.

And there is always craigslist. If you are looking for telecommuting jobs don’t limit your search to cities near you. You may have more luck finding telecommuting jobs in the larger cities. I always check San Francisco and New York. Then run a search in jobs for telecommuting and work from home. I have found a number of freelance jobs this way.

Finally, look to your local area for freelance work. When I first started out as a Work at home bookkeeper, I got my first jobs through a classified ad in the local paper. Sending a letter to businesses that might be able to use your services can also result in work.

Where have you found good work from home jobs?

For the most part, working from home does not require any specialized telephone equipment. But for some people, their small home based business will grow to the point that their regular home phone system will no longer do the job. That it might be time to look at Business Phone Systems by Comtech.

Comtech offers telephone systems and business phone repair services for both home based, and office based businesses. They will help you choose the right phone system for your business and work with you to get it installed and working. They sell both new and used phone systems, and will even buy your old phones from you.

Comtech Phones has been in business since 1982 and offers a 2 year warranty on both phone sales and repair services.