Author Topic: Legitimate work-from-home employers?  (Read 8244 times)

dragnmastr85

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 10
Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« on: October 27, 2012, 08:20:59 PM »
Sorry if these questions have been asked before. Didn't see anything in my search results.

Looking for a way to have my wife make some money on the side since she is a stay at home mom. Are there any legitimate work-from-home things she could get into that won't sink us somehow?

In addition, I am capable of doing PC tech support remotely, does anyone have any suggestions or experience on how to get that rolling as a means of side income?

Thanks a ton!


Aloysius_Poutine

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 127
  • Age: 2019
  • Location: canada
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #1 on: October 27, 2012, 08:43:10 PM »
My wife's going to start actively playing the stock market. We just set up an account for her with an online discount brokerage and she's going to work with $1000 to start and see how she does. I know the odds of success are so small, but she has the time to devote to research, so who knows-- maybe she can pick individual stocks like a winner. This is all just for fun.

arebelspy

  • Administrator
  • Senior Mustachian
  • *****
  • Posts: 28444
  • Age: -997
  • Location: Seattle, WA
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #2 on: October 27, 2012, 09:04:57 PM »
My wife writes (fairly generic) articles for blogs (similar to Textbroker type stuff) in her spare time at a rate of $10/article.  Each article takes 20-30 minutes to write.

It used to be an editing job, then morphed into this as the job requirements changed over the last year and 1/2.  She initially found the job by searching craigslist for editing jobs.  So you might want to start there (assuming your wife has the inclination and abilities to do so).
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

jawisco

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 194
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #3 on: October 28, 2012, 07:58:57 PM »
If your idea of fun is to lose $1000, sounds like fun...

I have done transcription from home - doesn't pay much ($9-$12/hour) but the hours were flexible and it was how I taught myself to type.  When I first started, I was a one-finger typer.  I made less than $2/hour my first week...

igthebold

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 470
  • Age: 45
  • Location: NC Piedmont
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #4 on: October 29, 2012, 08:22:44 AM »
I think the key thing is to think in terms of flexibility, not hourly rate. The problem with higher hourly rate jobs is they typically require more commitment, which she might not want.

Transcription works well for this kind of jobs. You'd want to find a person to subcontract for, and that can be difficult.

A friend of mine also does some sanity-checking work on a catalog for an online retailer.

Being a virtual assistant on elance.com might be OK, but may require more commitment.

Poke around.. if you know local small business owners, some of them might have jobs that take up their time, wouldn't pay extremely well, but would be flexible. Some bloggers eventually hire someone as an assistant as they get more popular. There's all sorts of work out there.

jbhernandez

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 45
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #5 on: October 29, 2012, 09:29:28 AM »
I have a couple of friends who are moving to Bolivia. They'll be teaching English online for about $10-$12 an hour. Not sure what site, but that's an option.

Mr. Moneymustcash

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 19
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #6 on: October 29, 2012, 09:53:06 AM »
try Apple. They have several positions that are work from home that pay competitively

mindaugas

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 367
  • Location: Littleton, CO
    • Mike Says Meh
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #7 on: October 29, 2012, 12:01:55 PM »
I'm interested in any tested work at home that other mustachians have done as well. Eventually my wife is going to be home full time and any at home work she can do would certainly contribute to a faster FI for us.

Mr. Moneymustcash

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 19
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #8 on: October 29, 2012, 12:53:07 PM »
Currently, I work from home for Apple. It is manageable as long as you have a separate space for an office. Pay rates depend on position.

mindaugas

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 367
  • Location: Littleton, CO
    • Mike Says Meh
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #9 on: October 29, 2012, 01:17:43 PM »
Currently, I work from home for Apple. It is manageable as long as you have a separate space for an office. Pay rates depend on position.

If you don't mind answering, what is the position, did u have experience, did u need to go through some sort of not at home training?

jpwilliams

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 9
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #10 on: October 29, 2012, 01:33:37 PM »
Hi there. I made my living working at home for four years.

For two years, I worked for a very small consulting company that had no home office. Everyone was remote/from home. I was doing marketing consulting.

Then I started freelancing, eventually forming my own business (LLC). I found all of my work online, did all of my work out of home, and got a six figure salary. I also hired three people full time who all worked from home in different time zones. (To this day I haven't met one of them face to face!)

Some things to consider:
1. Think about if you want a full-time position from home, or if you are willing to do freelance/consulting work. There are tax implications as well as other considerations (health care, variable income). Depending on the situation, the freedom of freelancing can be liberating. Also, if you're freelancing, remember that your hourly rate doesn't equal your hourly take home rate, since you'll need to spend at least 50% actually getting business, not just delivering. (That's just an estimate, but verified by many other home workers).

2. If you will be working with a company (the current company I work for hires several people who work at home full time), how often will you be expected to travel? Many of those people at my company must travel at least 1 week every month.

3. Are you flexible with your work hours? Remote working means you'll be dealing with people in other time zones. Can you wake up at 7am to take a call? 5am? 10pm? If you're flexible, there are more opportunities.

Some resources:
Elance.com : I found the majority of my work on this site. It takes some time to build a positive profile with reviews, but once you do, it's easy to get work. They have a ton of different work on here.
odesk.com: Cheaper work, harder to get decent pay. Good if you're desperate.
craigslist.com: Worth a look, but I would avoid normally. Not worth the time, elance is much better.

Also job sites will list "remote" for full-time positions that can be done remotely.


One last thing: don't sell yourself short. Just because you're working at home doesn't mean you can't get great pay for your experience. If you look diligently, chances are you can find a position that uses your skillset. Three of our VPs work from home, and they get paid VP salaries.

Good luck. Working from home is awesome! As someone else said, it would be helpful to know your (or your wife's) background.

I would avoid day trading as a job ... not a reliable source of income for the majority of investors, mostly due to trade fees.

Mr. Moneymustcash

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 19
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #11 on: October 29, 2012, 02:02:13 PM »
@mindaugas

I do tier 1 technical support. The position requires only the willingness and ability to communicate with customers kindly. All the technical information is taught to you over the training period and throughout your career. Many people have very little experience with computers, but they excel in this role because of there interpersonal skills.

They offer part time and full time positions which will allow you to have other jobs. I work this one and a delivery job and make about 40k from both. The combination is easy on the stress levels since they are profoundly different roles. I highly recommend working from home, AGAIN, only if you have a separate space for work other than where you normall "live." This will prevent resentment for your ZEN space.

mindaugas

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 367
  • Location: Littleton, CO
    • Mike Says Meh
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #12 on: October 29, 2012, 02:18:28 PM »
@mindaugas

I do tier 1 technical support. The position requires only the willingness and ability to communicate with customers kindly. All the technical information is taught to you over the training period and throughout your career. Many people have very little experience with computers, but they excel in this role because of there interpersonal skills.

That's awesome, I started out doing A+ support and tier 1 help desk stuff. I know my wife has the interpersonal skills and most importantly can empathize with someone (the most important factor in tech support IMHO).

What company are you doing the tech support for? is it ticket based with a certain turn around time, or are you tethered to your desk at certain hours to speak on the phone/live chat?

Mr. Moneymustcash

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 19
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #13 on: October 29, 2012, 02:29:50 PM »
I work for Apple

I am tethered to my computer in 4 hour segments, usually 2 per day. It isn't difficult, and you get great benefits even if you are only part time. 1 hour lunches, 1 break per 4 hours. Sometimes it can get stressful, but nowhere near as bad as a similar role working in a corporate office, where you HAVE to wear pants.

burly

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 151
  • Location: East
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #14 on: October 29, 2012, 03:15:24 PM »
...nowhere near as bad as a similar role working in a corporate office, where you HAVE to wear pants.
+1

jpwilliams

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 9
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #15 on: October 29, 2012, 03:47:26 PM »
Needed, Techie with interpersonal skills to work from home.

Computer required, pants optional.

mindaugas

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 367
  • Location: Littleton, CO
    • Mike Says Meh
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #16 on: October 30, 2012, 08:50:21 AM »
Work in your underwear, an iMac, $10-$15 an hour, and benefits sounds pretty awesome. Unfortunately my wife would need something where she wasn't tethered to a phone since we've got a wee bairn. Lol, just watched Rick Steve's Europe - Scotland Highlands.

jpwilliams

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 9
Re: Legitimate work-from-home employers?
« Reply #17 on: October 31, 2012, 09:52:51 AM »
@mindaugas The work I did never required me to be on the phone. My typical process was:

1. Find open job
2. Write a Statement of Work, get the job
3. Finish the job on deadline
4. Send the materials, get paid.

Most of my clients and I never spoke on the phone.