As some of you know,I have come to a major road block while trying to start my own biz,It looks like it is going to take months to get this straightened out,so in the mean time,I need to find a way to support my family,I live out in the country,and the jobs that the local small towns offer are min wage,so to drive 25mi to work every day would eat up the paycheck.So that leads me to my question.Do any of you know if any of these e-mails that I get bombarded with every day are legit?I have looked into quite a few of them and they appear to be just another way to scam people.Who in their right mind would Buy a job?I could really use some input here,I had even attempted to open my own auto repair shop Bad idea.Too many"I will gladly pay you tuesday,,,"
and then tuesday never comes.I am open to all ideas so if you have one,please,throw it at me.I started WWIII when I mentioned moving to my family,so,I cant use that option.

 

I can't say for sure, K.T., but my first hunch is that they're just scams/spam. I bet a business of your own can work, such as the Auto Repair Shop, but you've gotta be firm and still friendly: a tough mix of attitudes to do right. My mom and stepdad have their own business that they started with just the two of them about ten years ago and it has now grown to about 15 employees. I hope you can work something out for you and your family!

Ryan

 

From everything I've read, any work from home deal that asks for you to send in money to get more info is one to not deal with.

 

How far out of town do you live?

I would look at your own repair shop again. Be nice, reasonable, & do one hell of a job & people will drive or get towed just to come & see you.

Don't let the car go unless you have the cash that the customer owes you. This is where you have to be firm. Don't worry if it is the little old grandma down the street who you did a oil change for or the punk kid that just had you put 650 hp under the hood. Don't let go of the collateral unless you feel you have been compensated.

 

Danger King Triton! Danger!! I haven't run across a legit e-mail that delivers a decent wage from home. If your really tech savvy many companies have 'distributed' help desks. This means their employees actually field calls from home via a VoIP or IP Telephoney setup... pays more than min wage and no commute!!! Or if the wife does crafts peddle 'em on eBay, or sell off your junk in a virtual garage sale.

Other idea - these "Mr Handyman" trucks are poppin up... it's a service that will pretty much do anything - fix a leaky faucet, clean gutters, patch some drywall.. whatever! In house service - get the money upfront and do the job!

I'm taking shots in the dark since I don't have a clue as to what your skill set is...

 

dzervit
You are right about the handyman trucks,everybody and their brother up here does it,I was hopeing to do specialty stuff that I have been told I am good at,such as ceramic tile,laminated counter tops,so I would be along the lines of kitchens and baths,What is funny,everybody up here says oh yeah I can build you a deck,or a barn,or garage.But if you ask them what a rat run is or what collar ties are used for,or even simple span questions they say hUh?That is like saying oh yeah I can fix your engine,whats that you say?what is dwell,thats where you get dwater.I am a Mich lic master mechanic and was a journeyman carpenter till I quit paying dues.There isnt much sense being in a union when there are no union jobs for 100mi around.I didn`t think these E-mail work at home offers were legit,but I figured hey what if Im wrong?

 

How about instead of a handyman truck, you try a mechanic truck. From past experience with my other vehicles, I can honestly say that it is a pain in the butt getting your vehicle to the shop, and managing to get to work too.
For example, I work at a very large company. Last year this smart guy decided to open up an auto repair shop across the street. This guy has to turn people away most of the time, because he is so busy just with business coming across the street. And this guy charges an arm and a leg too. My girlfriend just had her plug wires changed on her 95 Blazer, and he charged her 198.00 to change them. Oh, they were Napa plugs. I checked. People go to him because he is very convenient.

Just an idea.

Robin

 

There was a guy here who tried to do just that,He was charging a min of 1hr at $35 to drive to peoples house and if it took him less than the hour to get there,he would apply the rest of the time to his 1hr diag fee,Fair right?He goes to a guys house that is 35 miles away from his,charges the guy $106 total,parts labor and drive time,the guy doesnt pay,so the mechanic takes him to court.The judge rules in the owners favor and says "after all,nobody pays me to drive to work.The mechanic sold his truck and strongly advised me not to do it.I believe him.If all of the people that have cheated me in the last 1 1/2 years would pay me,I could go all summer without a problem.I guess people have gotten burned by mechanics so many times that they feel it is ok to burn someone who is trying to be fair.And the ironic thing about this is,I just talked to a Lic Builder today about a job.He is closing up his biz because of the same thing!All he is going to do from now on is install gutters because he has the machine that makes them.He demands payment in full,in cash as soon as the job is done because even a major gutter job can be done in one day.HE made me laugh when he told me one guy tried to scam him after he was done,so he tore the gutters back off,when the cops got there they said they couldn`t do anything because the guy never paid for them.Good!What happened to values,morals,and compasion for ones fellow man?Now people live by Cheat others so they cant cheat you.I better quit rambling now.I should have named this post.What kind of job can I get where I dont have to deal with the public!

 

All plumbers, locksmiths etc charge for a house call. He should have appealed that idi<! >ot judge's ruling.

Just take cash, credit cards are too expensive, and you get ripped over checks. If the people don't have cash send them to the ATM while you do the work. Let them know they have 15 minutes to get back. Some people run a scam where they get the job done then leave for the ATM and just wait around the corner for you to leave. Make sure you leave the vehicle in a disabled condition until you see the cash. If they don't come back don't finish the job and leave the disabled vehicle.

 

And remember you can legally put a mechanics lein on a vehicle it the repairs were not paid for.

Like I said, don't let the vehicle leave until paid for. Start charging storage for vehicles left over a week.

Apply for a mechanics lein & sell vehicle at auction if left over 90 days.


You seaid it best, everyone is out to screw everyone else so you really need to take measures to CYA just in case.

 

Its a sad world we live in today.
Chris

P.S. I'd like to say more but i'd be in trouble with ken and the mods.

 

I ran a business from home for over 10 years until I finally got burnt out. I was working full time at another job. Also managed to get a master's degree at the same time. I wish I had the same energy now.

 

Backwoods Home Magazine has lots of articles on making a living in the country. You can read em online and they have archived articles too.
http://www.backwoodshome.com/index.html

 

A lot of people in the trades go out on their own and fail - they aren't good in business, no matter how good their skills are. Working a very small business marketed to the general public is tough. You have to pay major advertising bills to the phone company, just so you can get calls at all hours. For every good customer you meet, you'll find a flake. You have to hustle to get work all the time. If you enjoy people, it's not a bad way to go.

A business plan is the best way to get started. I'd bet a majority of them have been written on napkins at the coffee shop. You need something on paper to help your mental processes. What skills do I have? Who is my market? Do I want to do the general public or would commercial accounts be better for me?

I've done both commercial and public and frankly, I like commercial. Little public advertising, no 11pm phone calls, checks clear, (most of the time..).

I did a little marketing research a few years ago when things got tight and I was thinking of doing the chimney sweep thing. Printed up about 100 fliers. Basically, wrote down who I was, said business was unbelieveable right now, but now was the time to set appointments for the summer scedule. Made it very friendly and personable. Had a list of things I would do. I set a basic price at $5 below what most were charging for the basics, with senior and veterans discount. I walked around on a Sunday afternoon for a couple hours and stuck them in peoples screen doors, bypassing the flakey looking houses. I got two chimney cap jobs that Sunday worth $500 per, just from people chasing me down on the steet.

Ironically, I got offered a position for a real job the next day and I took it. The phone calls started Tuesday and went on for a week or two. I spent about an hours time fielding calls. Off the 100 fliers I got about 20 responces worth a little over $4000 total. I felt stuck, because I was starting a job and couldn't do the work, so I called a chimney sweep buddy of mine and told him I would give him the referals for $5 per. Then I just told people I was too busy and to call this guy - give my name and he'll honor the price. For the 3 hours of walking and talking on the phone I made over $100 in referal money, (and I'm positive there should have been more).

 

A friend of mine started a chimney sweep buisiness about 10 yrs ago. Just him and his pick up truck. Before long he had 3 vans, his wife quit her job and answers the phone and does the paper work and he has more work than he can do.He's got 2 or 3 guys helping him full time. If people find out you'll show up when you say and do a good job they tell all their friends. If he gets a job to clean a chimney he almost always finds more work that needs to be done, fix the flashing, install a new cap or a whole new flue. When he started work was slack in the spring and summer but after awhile he was busy all year long. If you have access to firewood you can use your cleaning contacts to sell that too.