THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME!

75 great home-run businesses you can start for less than $500.

1. CHIMNEY SWEEP:
   Do you know how to clean a chimney? If you do, it's money in the bank for you. If you don't, you can learn. The equipment is available at hardware stores. You'll need a long brush with a telescopic handle, gloves and other few items. Wood burning stoves are experiencing a great rise in popularity and sales. Wood burners can produce a substance called creosote that sticks to the chimney walls. It needs to be cleaned or it can produce a chimney fire. Chimney sweeps earn anywhere from $35 to $100 for cleaning a chimney.
   
   
2. VENDING VENTURES: Look into the possibility of owning your own vending machine. Candy, soda, fruit juice, personal products-you-name-it. One of our favorites is a sock vending machine at the bowling alley! You'll have to find resources. Read business opportunity magazines like this one and scan the ads for potential suppliers of vending machines. You'll have to find your own locations, you might have to give the location owner a cut of your take, and you might have to buy machines in bulk. You'll have to visit your machines once or twice a week (hopefully they'll be that busy) to re-stock them--and oh, yes, remove the money.
   
   
3. PERSONAL SHOPPER: Do you like to go shopping? Can you imagine how much fun it would be to get paid to do this?! You can, as a personal shopper. Lots of busy people and harried single parents don't have time to shop for gifts and other events and need a shopper to handle the task. You meet with your client and see what they want--or discuss it over the phone. Work out a budget for the gift. Buy it and perhaps even wrap it. When you start your service, don't forget to send you flier or direct mail letter to corporations based in your area. Print up a letter on your company letterhead and send it to companies and universities, hospitals, etc. in your area. Heavily populated areas are naturally able to generate more customers for this service. Charge by the hour, and try to come up with a fee that clients in your region can afford. In New York City, personal shoppers can make anywhere from $50 to $100 per hour. In smaller towns, $10 to $15 an hour. Make sure you hook up an answering machine to your home phone to take all those calls from potential clients while you are out shopping.
   
   
4. GARAGE CLEANING: In just about every garage in the United States there is some degree of cleaning that could be done. Some garages need a complete overhaul. You can offer this service to homeowners in your community and by the time you get all the garages cleaned and straightened up, it will be time to start all over again. You can paint the walls, the floors, hang shelves, put away the debris that's all over the floor, hang up tools and gardening supplies.
   
   
5. GARAGE SALE: It is possible to host a garage sale every weekend. You don't have to come up with all of the merchandise, you can sell things on consignment or buy up the contents of a home for sale and then re-sell them at a whopping profit. You'll need to advertise your weekly garage sale to generate a steady flow of customers. Try to come up with unique items to put on display--such as a horse from a carousel. These crowd grabbers will help attract people to your garage sale.
   
   
6. BLIND CLEANING: Everyone loves mini or micro blinds and everyone hates cleaning them. You can get it down to a science and make a lot of money in the process. Charge by the blind or by the hour. If you rack up a couple of clients in the local industrial park, you will be building a steady income and steady profits in the bank. Word of mouth should get you more customers with this business.
   
   
7. WINDOW WASHING: Window washing is a business that, while you don't actually work at home, you do run the business from home (sending out fliers, making calls to place ads, calling customers to get business). There is almost no one out there that doesn't refer to the task of window cleaning as a disagreeable necessity. You come to the rescue and make some money for it. Think of all the potential customers in your neighborhood. Consider businesses, too. You will be booking clients on a steady basis if you do a good job. You won't need much in the way of supplies, just a bucket, a cleaning product, a good squeegee, elbow grease and water. You might have to add on some helpers. Or begin with helpers and you act as their agent.
   
   
8. PET SITTING: Do you love animals? Then, this could be a dream business for you. There are plenty of humans out there who hate leaving their precious pups and kitties alone all day. Or maybe there are people in your community who travel a great deal for the job he or she holds and would prefer to leave their pet in their own home or in yours, rather than in a kennel. You might call a local insurance company and ask them what it takes to become "bonded." This way, should a vase break or something else get damaged when you are in someone's home, they'll be a means by which it will be paid for or replaced.
   
   
9. PET PHOTOGRAPHER: If you like animals and enjoy taking pictures consider starting a business in which you photograph people's pets. Ask local pet shops if you can display a flier offering your service. If you own a pet, drop by your vet's office and ask if you can hang a flier there, too. If you have patience and a knack in handling animals, this could be a great business for you.
   
   
10. HANDYMAN: Are you handy around your house? Wouldn't it be nice to get paid for it! There are probably plenty of folks right in your own town who would love to avail themselves of your handyman services. You might think it's simple to install a light socket, put up molding, change a doorknob, patch a screen, repair a broken door hinge or put up some bookshelves, but most people do not. Promote your business via word of mouth, fliers or a small advertisement in the local newspaper.
    
    
11. WORD PROCESSING SERVICE: Do you love your computer that you use at work but are not crazy about your boss or you job? Then take the best of your job--your love of the computer--and start your own business providing word processing tasks. You can start a service that writes and prints resumes, invitations, school papers, menus for restaurants, fliers, brochures, etc. The more you know on the computer the more you can offer. You can take on tasks for other small businesses and produce their letters, labels for a mailing list to customers, special promotional fliers, menus for restaurants, and more.
    
    
12. INSTALLATION SERVICE: If you are handy at putting items together, or if you have a knack for installing VCRs, laser disc players and whathaveyou, then this could be a great and fun business for you. Many people don't have the time nor the inclination to put together that new bookshelf or cabinet, or hook up that stereo TV and VCR. Here's where you come in: you do it for them and charge a fee. You can advertise your local services in the local newspapers, put up a flier on town bulletin boards and drop into stores that sell appliances and furniture that have to be assembled. If they don't offer this service at the store, perhaps they will help promote your service--it's a nice option for them, too. The local stores and shops might sell more put-together tables, bookcases, etc. if they have a person available--you--to put them together.
    
    
13. KNIFE SHARPENING: This is a skill you can learn by picking up a few books at the library and then stopping into a local True Value or ACE Hardware store to pick up the necessary equipment. You can run this one from home or operate a pick up and delivery service. As you get more into the job, you might add lawnmower blades and other items to your roster of service offerings.
    
    
14. SPECIAL EVENTS VIDEOS: Do you enjoy making videos for your family and friends of special gatherings? Why not get paid for it? Take your video camera and start a business recording special events around town for your neighbors and business associates. Your jobs could range from a corporate retirement dinner, a school picnic, a wedding, a graduation party, a marathon runner's party for coming across the finish line, a local band's gig, you-name-it. You might need to pick up a tripod or some special lights to start this business, so save the receipts as they are tax deductible for your business.
    
    
15. TOOL RENTAL: Do you have a basement full of tools that you are not using all the time? If you do, why not start a business renting them to people who need them for a limited time and limited use? Do you really need that sander hanging around all day? How about that dry/wet vacuum? Or that giant wheel barrow you used only twice to mix concrete?
    
    
16. PROFITS IN PASTRIES: You don't have to cook everything to start a profitable home-based food preparation service. You can zero in on just one item. How about pastries? Are you a great pastry chef? Then turn your talents into money. There are plenty of individuals and businesses--such as catering companies--who could benefit from your talents.
    
    
17. BICYCLE REPAIR: You can turn your love of bicycling into a money-making enterprise by advertising that you repair bikes. This type of business can translate into any hobby or love. If you ski, you can offer to wax skis, if you surf, you can repair dings and breaks in boards--if you know how. Take a look at your hobbies and see if there is one with similar marketable potential.
    
    
18. OLD BOOK AND MAGAZINE DEALER: You buy up old books and magazines and resell them for a profit. You should be able to haggle to run this business because you'll be buying up old books and magazines in bulk at garage sales, house sales, flea markets. You'll probably spend around $100 to get this business started and pick up some inventory. Go to a bookstore and buy a book on collectible books and magazines. You can also take on assignments from clients and find old books or particular issues of magazines. Perhaps you'll want to subscribe to a newsletter for old book dealers that will help you become alerted to what's hot in the field. If you become a book detective, you should contact the local newspaper. They just might want to do a feature story on you. This would be good publicity for your home based business.
    
    
19. CLOSET RENOVATION: You can make anywhere from $100 to $1500--and more--remodeling closets. You'll have to brush up on some of the new organizer systems that are available, and if you have a knack for installing things, you'll be good at fixing up closets and giving people more of what everyone wants: more closet space. You don't have to be a design genius to be good at this very practical business.
    
    
20. AQUARIUM MAINTENANCE: When people buy tropical fish and put the fish in that gleaming tank with the special lighting and the little plastic diver, it really does look great. But, who wants to maintain the beauty of the tank on a regular basis. This is where tropical fish tank maintenance comes in handy. You drop by once or twice a week and take care of the fish. You feed them and clean out the take when necessary. If you maintain the tanks in say an industrial park that has 20 offices and half of them have your fish tanks, you can make a nice business for yourself without running all over town.
    
    
21. HORSE BOARDING: Some areas across the United States are known for having a lot of horses. If you live in or near a region that qualifies, you might consider building a stable on your property and renting it out to people who own horses but who don't have anywhere to keep them. City dwellers who own a horse could really use your stable facility. Once again, call your insurance company and inquire about the possibility of beefing up your liability coverage. You wouldn't want one of your boarders to stumble in the stable at any rate, but particularly not if you don't have the proper coverage to protect yourself.
    
    
22. GIFT BASKET BIZ: The gift basket business is still booming as Americans have discovered a tried and true solution to the "what should I give?" blues. Gift baskets aren't just for those get well times anymore. They come in all shapes and in all sizes. They can be customized for a wide variety of recipients from the golfer who finally hit par to the newlyweds or the mother-to-be. To start a gift basket business, it's key to develop a good list of resources from where you can purchase the items at wholesale rates. Look into getting a "resell" number. Your local county clerk's office will tell you how. This will enable you to purchase goods at wholesale prices. it will also help you get into trade only shows and see wares directly from the manufacturers. You can start a gift basket business out of your home or tie in with a local retailer such as a local gift store, a florist, a card store, sports shop and just about any other type of business you can think of.
    
    
23. JUNK REMOVAL: Many landfills across the country are closing, and giving way to recycling centers. It's a great thing, bit it has made it a bit more difficult to get rid of a lot of junk. You can start a business removing items from people's home that they can't get rid of themselves for a variety of reasons. Maybe there is no way to haul it to the dump. Maybe it's too heavy to carry or too bulky for the car. You might not take all the stuff you pick up to the dump, either. What people discard is a treasure to others. Before you make that trip to the dump, check out the back of the truck. You might be able to fix that lamp and sell it or get that old blanket chest refinished and re-sell it yourself.
    
    
24. SPECIAL EFFECTS DECORATING: You don't have to be Leonardo Da Vinci to achieve great special and artistic effects. Look at all of the stenciling kits that are on the market today. What about those marbleizing kits, too. There is something for everyone. You can brush up on your skills on some of your items and use them to create a photographic portfolio. Take out a few newspaper ads and show the portfolio to potential customers. You can do the work on their premises, or take the goods back to your home for the refinishing magic.
    
    
25. AUDIO-VIDEO CASSETTE DUPLICATION: The home entertainment boom is on and there are plenty of people out there who own video cameras and would love for someone to come along and make copies of their favorite home videos for them so that they could distribute them to friends and family. There are plenty of wanna-be rock star bands in every neighborhood across America. They need their audio cassette demo tapes copies to be sent to record company moguls. You can buy a couple of cassette decks and VCRs and start a nice business in your home offering this duplication service. We are not advocating the duplication of tapes protected by copyright. You should buy your blank tapes in bulk from a wholesaler. You should be able to find them in the phone book.
    
    
26. VINTAGE CLOTHING STORE: You can set-up a vintage clothing store in your backyard or attic. Check with the local zoning board and make sure this is all right in your neighborhood. Hang the goods--they can be yours, you could have bought them, or they could belong to friends and neighbors--on a few garment racks. Host nostalgic weekends such as Return To the 1960s or a Seventies: Disco Inferno Party and display all of your beads, accessories and hats. Plays the greatest hits of the time and serve TAB.
    
    
27. BALLOON DELIVERY SERVICE: Everyone loves balloons and they are gaining on flowers in terms of items to be delivered to home or office. Balloons are festive and fun and you don't need to be an artist to learn how to arrange them. Blow them up or do it with a tank. Take out an ad in the local newspaper and get set for success.
    
    
28. MEAL DELIVERY: You purchase sandwiches at a local deli and resell them at the roadside or at a busy intersection or in a corporation parking lot or industrial parks. Some meal delivery businesses started on a shoestring and have grown into franchised ventures with vans and uniforms and the works. You can also make arrangements with several local restaurants and deliver their dinners or lunches to corporation or individuals who are too busy to cook at night. You charge a 15% service charge on all orders to make your profit. You might be able to get the food at a cheaper rate from your restaurant/deli suppliers who are eager to have your business. You won't need to get a food handler's license to start this type of meal service because you are not preparing the food yourself.
    
    
29. TELEMARKETING SERVICE: Like to talk on the phone? Start a telemarketing service. Your clients can be small business owners in your community who probably have thought of launching a telemarketing campaign but who don't have the time to run it or any idea on how to set it up. You can handle it all. Telemarketing uses the phone to market a product or a service or to learn more about the consumer for a local manufacturer or supplier of a particular product or service. Telemarketing companies use the telephone and a combination of telephone lists (similar to a mailing list) and cold calls to sell anything from magazines to car mufflers and vacations for a local travel agent. To get your business rolling: place an ad in the local paper offering your services as a telemarketer. Place your ad in the business section. Also contact local businesses directly. Prepare a sales pitch and deliver it to them in person or send over an audio cassette to demonstrate your selling techniques. You charge a commission on all of the sales you make. For example, if you call customers about a ski trip weekend for the fall and they sign up you get a cut of the trip. You might also be hired by a company to contact individuals in a particular demographic group about a product or service they are selling. It's important to be the type of person who can deal with rejection, because telemarketers do get plenty of hang-ups. If you set up a separate telephone line for your telemarketing service, all expenses connected with the phone should be tax deductible. Consult your accountant.
    
    
30. HOMETOWN GUIDE: If your hometown features some unique historical monument or water mill or windmill or lighthouse, or if your town is steeped in history that others would find fascinating, then why don't you put together a tour and offer it as an option whenever tourists come to town. You can dress up like a character from that period o make the tour more accessible, amusing, fun for you and your guests. Contact the local chamber of commerce and ask them if you could give them the tour. It could be a great way to get them to mention your tour whenever they speak to out-of-towners getting ready to plan a visit to your area. You could also print up a brochure and ask the chamber of commerce to send it out with their mailings on your fair town.
    
    
31. DIAPER SERVICE: Become an eco-preneur. Help the environment while you make money. Parents are turning more and more to diaper services. These services pick up soiled diapers and drop off new ones. They wash the diapers and get them ready for the next customer. If you live in an area that is experiencing a baby boom, then a diaper service might be a good business to look into. You could also tie in with a local laundromat that already handles diapers and ask them if they'd do your supply. Oh, and feel free to charge a premium for this service. It's a lot of work.
    
    
32. 900 # ENTREPRENEUR: Lots of folks say they have made a bundle on 900 numbers. Go to your local bookstores and check out some new books on the topic. Also, look up Service Providers in your local phone books to see how to get started.
    
    
33. COMPUTER BIZ WIZ: If you own a computer or are contemplating buying one, you might want to brush up on software programs that could help small businesses in your area. Many entrepreneurs should put all of their business files on a computer disk along with their bookkeeping and accounting needs. Often, a small business owner started out right from the kitchen table just like you are doing. They never took the time to translate many of their important documents and paperwork onto a computer disc. You can start a service where you provide this set-up. You can also pick up these entrepreneurs as steady clients performing a variety of task for them on your computer.
    
    
34. COMPUTER TUTOR: If you have a knack for working on your computer, then you might want to start a business that enables you to earn money while helping folks learn how to operate a computer. Take out a few ads in local newspapers or distribute fliers on bulletin boards around town. Don't forget schools and local corporations. Charge by the hour or charge by the class.
    
    
35. DIRECT SELLING: Direct selling means that you sell your products directly to the customer without a store or shop. It's the Fuller Brush or the Avon type way of earning extra money. Today there are direct selling opportunities galore. There's a direct selling venture for just about any type of product you would want to sell.
    
    
36. DISH RENTAL BUSINESS: Ever throw a party and not have enough dishes to go around? Or rather, dishes that matched? There are plenty of people who face this dilemma all the time and there are plenty of catering companies who are in this predicament quite often. You can start a business renting complete sets of dishes--that match--to these large ventures. You'll have to buy a few sets of dishes that can accommodate 100 or more guests. You'll also have to have a van to deliver and pick up the dishes at the end of the event. Make sure you have a heavy duty dishwasher or two or invest in a restaurant styled dishwasher if you expect to be doing a lot of giant jobs. These cost about $1400.
    
    
37. RESUME SERVICE: There are lots of unemployed people out there who don't know how to work a computer or who don't have access to one. Your resume service can help them to land a new job. Entrepreneurs who already have a computer at home can really get rolling quickly. You can place ads and post fliers on your new service. Go to your local bookstore or library and examine the resume style books. Contact local companies in your area that are laying people off. Maybe the personnel department would consider hiring you to help their employees find new jobs. It's the least they can do. Drop off your fliers at local employment agencies, too.
    
    
38. COLLECTIBLES DEALER: Do you love old things and love collecting? Old toys, Barbie dolls, Charlies' Angels paraphernalia, snowglobes, lunch boxes? Collectors and dealers will pay a tidy sum to have these goods in their collections. Not all collectibles are that old, either. Look at the case of the watches by SWATCH. They are brand new and ready for collecting. You can start this business by developing a mailing list of individuals who are interested in a particular type of collectible. You'll probably have to buy or rent the list from a company that specializes in putting together mailing lists. Contact everyone on the list with a letter or a flier offering your service. Sit back and let them contact you. You can contact newsletters and ask them to run an item on what you are looking for. Then, collectors will contact you. You buy the goods and then re-sell them to other collectors.
    
    
39. ANTIQUE SHOP: You can turn your home into an antique store. Display all of the antiques you've collected in your home. Use them until they sell. Have folks walk around your home and sell as you take them on a room by room tour. You can also take on items from your friends, neighbors, others and sell them on consignment. This is an easy way to open your very own antique shop.
    
    
40. LAWN SERVICE: Cutting lawns is a task that everyone must do. Folks who have the means would rather pay someone to do this weekly task for them. You could also develop the business into light landscaping responsibilities also.
    
    
41. WEED REMOVAL SERVICE: You don't have to be a great gardener to know weeds! You can start a business removing weeds. This could develop into quite a lucrative enterprise. You'll need to brush up on the latest sprays that kill weeds and don't neglect herbal treatments. More and more homeowners are looking for a natural way to rid themselves of pesky weeds without using toxic chemicals that could creep into their ground water and contaminate the drinking water. If you love the great outdoors, this is a good business for you. Caution! Your clients could become so dependent on you that they start asking you to perform other landscaping and gardening tasks, so take care! Your business could really boom.
    
    
42. POOL CLEANING: Do you live in an area with a lot of swimming pools? You could start a pool maintenance business. Do some research to make sure your town or region could support one more such business. Pool cleaners drop by once a week to vacuum and treat the pool with chlorine. They charge about $40 a week for this service. It doesn't take that long to service each pool. There are plenty of motel owners who would like to have a steady and reliable person take care of their pool. Most pool owners already own some of the equipment you'll need like a skimming net and vacuum. But you'll have to survey the scene and see what you'll need to buy from the local pool shop.
    
    
43. NEWSLETTER: You don't have to be a genius or even a great writer to start your own newsletter. To newsletter readers, it is much more important to digest the information that's in the newsletter, rather than analyze the writing style. For example, choose something you're interested in as you'll have more fun this way, and uncover better information for your subscribers. Say you like scuba diving but there are already too many magazines and other newsletters that focus on scuba. What if you narrow your focus to Weekend Scuba Divers--those that don't have the time to take long vacations once a year, but want to go every weekend. If you're based in Atlanta, Georgia, there are probably plenty of places, one could fly to in a weekend and go scuba diving. O.K., maybe skin diving isn't for you. How about astronomy. start a newsletter focusing on something you are interested in and you'll make that newsletter interesting for your subscribers. You can start out by purchasing a mailing list from a mailing list company and sending everyone on it a free copy of your newsletter, or you can prepare a direct mail letter. Subscriptions to newsletters cost as much as $350 a year.
    
    
44. MAIL ORDER: All you need is a unique product and a place to advertise that you are selling this product mail order and you are on your way. There are companies that specialize in providing mail order products and then there are wholesalers who sell goods directly to you for re-sale. There are so many books on the market that specialize in offering advice on how to launch a mail order business. We recommend that one interested in this topic pick up a book and start making money.
    
    
45. RESIDENTIAL CLEANING SERVICE: We know of a woman who started this business with her husband and teenage daughter and who made $60,000 in 6 months working part-time only! Pick up a batch of cleaning supplies, load that vacuum in the car and get ready to make money. You can charge $50 to clean a one bedroom apartment and up to $150 for a house. Remember you are not doing the windows and other tasks that are only done occasionally. Your clients can hire you back just to take on those assignments. You are straightening up, making the beds, dusting, washing the floors and doing the dishes. Place an ad and watch your business grow. Word of mouth is an excellent way to build this business. By the way, that woman that we mentioned now runs her cleaning service on a full-time basis, year round. She and her husband quit their full time jobs.
    
    
46. CALLIGRAPHY SERVICE: Many feel this is a dying art and that is exactly what makes it a good potential business opportunity. Calligraphy is still used for wedding invitations, special events, documents, degrees, etc. There will always be a market for a good calligrapher. There are also computer programs available today that can be used to create calligraphy. If you have the inclination toward this type of business, drop into a local art store or craft shop and check out the various books and kits on the topic.
    
    
47. FAMILY TREES: Do you enjoy history? Do you like research? How about starting a business that traces family history? Advertise your service in the local newspaper, or even in a magazine that focused on regional history. There are software programs available today that help entrepreneurs trace family history. You'll have to do a lot of the initial questioning and plug in the data.
    
    
48. DISC JOCKEY: Do you love music and parties and people? Try starting your own disc jockey service. You'll need a good sound system and perhaps some lights to get the ball rolling. Look into a karaoke system so the party goers can get up and sing. Try and tie in with a local catering company so that they can turn you on to jobs. Don't forget local parties and local events, too.
    
    
49. CART VENDING: If you live in a busy area--near a bunch of outlets, for example, build a small cart and start selling. Sell pretzels, sell lemonade, sell sunglasses, sell suntan lotion, but do start. If you live en route to a busy beach, sell your goods to drivers sitting in traffic. Sell vegetables from the roadside. Sell ski wax. This is a four season business. Pick and choose your items to be merchandised according to the season.
    
    
50. SPORTS EQUIPMENT REFURBISHING BUSINESS: You can start a business sprucing up golf clubs in the spring time and waxing skis, for example, in the wintertime. Examine what your area has to offer in the way of sports and then figure out how you can cash in on this type of sport.
    
    
51. VEGETABLE GARDENS/PERENNIAL GARDENS: If you have a green thumb, then cash in on it. Start gardens--vegetable or flower gardens--for homeowners. You do all the designing and digging. Then pick up after you've established the garden. Add water gardens too, to your list of possibilities. They are increasingly popular.
    
    
52. HOME DELIVERY BIZ: Home delivery is predicted to be one of the hottest business opportunities of the decade. Why? Because people are busy, people are lazy, the population is getting older, and people want you to bring goods they need directly to their door. You can contact individuals directly or tie-in with existing businesses (drug store, grocery store, hardware store, etc.) and see if they could use your home delivery service. You might start out with a bicycle or a car, but you could need a fleet of trucks or vans very quickly.
    
    
53. HOT TUB MAINTENANCE: Hot tubs are still a big item when people build a new home. It takes less than 15 minutes a week to maintain a hot tub. You can start a business offering this service. It could be a great add on to a pool cleaning business. If you have a hot tub already, you know what to do. Drop into a hot tub shop or purchase a book on hot tub maintenance and get ready to distribute a flier to get your client list ready.
    
    
54. BED & BREAKFAST BIZ: Do you have an extra room or two that you could rent out? Congratulations, you're in the bed & breakfast business. This is a great business you can start without too much hassle. It pays to check your local zoning code as you might have to deal with a disgruntled neighbor who doesn't like to see others succeed. You don't necessarily have to provide a private bath, but it is a nice touch. You should call your insurance company and ask them to review your policy. Should you beef up your liability coverage? It just might be a good idea. If you live near a tourist attraction--the beach, a hall of fame, a college, a ski mountain, the site of a big event--it makes your bed and breakfast business easier to market. You don't have to serve a big breakfast, either. In fact, a bowl of cereal with some coffee, tea and juice is quite acceptable.
    
    
55. WEDDING PLANNER: Planning a wedding is tough for the harried couple who wants to ensure their big day is the equivalent of a Hollywood premiere. A wedding planner sits down with the bride and the groom and plans a wedding that they want. The wedding planner must work within the budget and should have good resources in the community to find locations, flowers, bands/DJs, invitations, etc. Patience is virtue for this business.
    
    
56. HOME INVENTORY BUSINESS: Devastating storms, floods and fires teach homeowners a painful lesson: it is very important to have a clear and careful audit of one's belongings. Insurance companies want to see documentation before they start writing their checks to help homeowners recover from tragic losses. You can do this by hand, or with the help of a laptop computer. Purchase a Polaroid camera or use another type of camera/video and you are ready to start creating a home inventory album for homeowners. You record everything they own along with serial numbers and a photographic or video record.
    
    
57. FURNITURE REFINISHING: Even if you've never done this before, there are dozens of books out now and plenty of magazines that can walk you through the processes. You can offer this as a service and do it at your place or at the home of your customer. You make anywhere from $20 to $75 an hour, depending on your location and on the project.
    
    
58. MONOGRAMMING: This is a fun business that doesn't require any special expertise. Go through your Yellow Pages and look up monogramming for sources on where to buy machines. Many are computerized and cost a bundle, but you can drop into local craft and fabric stores and see what you could do on a smaller level. You can save up for a computerized monogramming machine that does the work for you at the touch of a button.
    
    
59. CAR DETAILING: Car enthusiasts who spend $35,000 and more for their automobiles are very likely to pay a car cleaner $50 or $100 a pop to thoroughly wash and wax a car, plus clean the interior. Spend an afternoon in an automobile store and check out all of the products that are available to clean and enhance car interiors and exteriors. You'll need a vacuum, too.
    
    
60. HOWDY NEIGHBOR SERVICE: Is the area in which you live booming? If so, consider starting a welcoming service. You make your money from the local merchants who pay you to include them in your "welcome to the neighborhood" package. You drop in or make appointments with new neighbors and tell them where the local video rental store is, how late the hardware store stays open, whether or not the local deli delivers, and the best place to get pizza. The merchants often give you coupons to present to these newcomers to help generate business. To round out all of this commercialism, you can also give the new neighbors tips on where the bus routes go, how late the library stays open, and directions to the new post office.
    
    
61. PARTY ENTERTAINING: Rent a gorilla suit or a bear costume and offer your services as an entertainer at parties for kids or for adults. You'll need a fairly good rapport with people. You can probably think of a lot of get-ups to wear as a party entertainer. You can also use your costume to establish a "gram" service as in Teddy Bear Gram or Gorilla Gram in which you deliver messages while dressed up in your costume.
    
    
62. PLANT SERVICE: If you have a green thumb or luck with plants consider starting a plant service that's similar to a pet sitting service. You'll care for plants when folks are away on vacation--in your home or theirs. Don't forget to include businesses on your list. You can also start a business visiting local businesses and doctor's offices once a week to water their plants, prune the plants, spruce up, wax or whatever else the plants might need.
    
    
63. PARTY PLANNER: Do you enjoy people and parties? If you answered 'yes' and have a good skill for organizing events, then consider becoming a party planner. You get to throw great parties spending other people's money. You'll have to develop a very good file of resources for music, catering, places to hold events, florists, invitation printing, and just about any other aspect of hosting an event.
    
    
64. SERVICES FOR SENIORS: There are plenty of senior citizens out there who could use some help in getting chores done, answering mail, helping out with seasonal duties around the house (exchanging summer wardrobe for the winter one from the attic), and much, much more. You can start a service for seniors where you help them do all of these things. Post notices around town and ask the local newspaper if they would consider putting your flier in every paper. You might have to pay a little for this type of distribution, but you will be reaching senior citizens as well as the sons and daughters of many seniors who could use a break from all the work they take on for their aging parents.
    
    
65. FLOWERS TO GO: If you live on a busy street on which harried executives travel on their way home, consider growing flowers and selling them from a little stand in the front of your house. It's an easy business to start and once you reel in a few customers it will attract more and more. You should have some attractive wrap handy to wrap up the flowers. At some point you might consider branching out and selling potted plants and vases.
    
    
66. HOLIDAY DECORATING: There are plenty of people who own homes or businesses who are too busy and would gladly pay someone to come in and decorate for the holidays. This is especially true for the winter holiday season, but could expand to a year-round business with a little bit of creativity. You'll be handling holiday lights (and perhaps even purchasing them at wholesale rates and reselling them at retail prices making a great profit) and putting up other decorative items. You could conceivably start this business all by yourself and wind up hiring others to work for you.
    
    
67. TEACH YOUR CRAFT: Do you engage in a hobby or craft that people have told you they would love to learn? Then why don't you teach it? Do you make quilts or build small sailboats? There is probably a market to teach this service in your community. If you don't want to teach at home, call your local high school. You might be able to teach this class at a local high school adult education class.
    
    
68. CRAFTS CO-OP: Do you have the space to invite 50-100 craftmakers to set up tables and sell their wares? If you do, and if your property is so zoned, or you could obtain permission from the local zoning authorities, you have the makings of an exciting crafts fair. You don't sell anything but table or booth space. You are providing local crafters with a venue in which they can sell their wares. You collect anywhere from $15 to $50 a weekend or a day for rent for the space. You can also make money selling hot-dogs or other food products and snacks. (Check out the requirements of getting a food handler's license if you plan to do this, or rent out the space to a food vendor). You have 50 tenants and charge them $10 a day, that's $500 a day, sitting back and really doing nothing. Of course, you'll be the one to promote the fair to make sure it is a success. Take out an ad in the local newspaper, hang up fliers and posters. You will have to make sure there is adequate parking space and bathroom facilities for all.
    
    
69. SEWING ENTREPRENEUR: If you know how to take up a hem or alter a jacket, it might not be a big deal to you. But, for the millions of American who don't know how, it is well worth whatever it costs to get the job done. There are many potential sewing entrepreneurs out there who right now offer their sewing expertise for free. You can get paid for it. If you can make slipcovers and drapes, that's a whole other market and it is one that is likely to boom with all of the cocooning that's going on in fixing up homes across the country.
    
    
70. KIDPROOF HOMES: You can set up a business going into homes and conducting troubleshooting for parents with young kids. Are the outlets exposed? Is there bleach and other harmful chemicals under the sink or otherwise accessible? Could a child fall down a staircase, or from a deck? These are the types of situations you'll be looking to uncover as you help parents childproof their home from potential disaster. You'll need to get into the troubleshooting aspects of this business. Talk to parents and find out what works and what doesn't work. After you conduct your troublespotting mission, you can offer to fix what's wrong, for a fee, of course.
    
    
71. CHILD CARE CENTER: You care for children during the day while their parents are at work or otherwise occupied. You can start a day care center right in your own home. You'll need to purchase some basic equipment: tables and chairs, toys, games, and other play items. Perhaps you already have a lot of these goods from having children of your own. There are about 75,000 child care centers that are licensed in the U.S. The price per week ranges from $50 to $500 a child. You'll only need half a dozen kids to make this a high profit business. Most states require that one has a license to run a day care center. There are several steps involved to get a license: call your local state department of health and human resources in your state to determine what the specific requirements are. It does vary state to state. Call the office that governs the licensing and ask for a copy of the regulations and guidelines. Arrange a meeting with a licensing specialist to review the procedures to obtain your license. Make sure your home is safe: fire, sanitation, building codes must all be met. Call your insurance company to discuss beefing up your liability coverage.
    
    
72. ART GALLERY: You can set up your very own art gallery right in your own home. Hang the art of local artists on your walls and host a party once a month to show the work to potential buyers. Getting together a group of artists for these shows should not be a problem. There are plenty of folks out there who are making art but who have no place to show their work. You will make a percentage of whatever the paintings sell for to the customer. For example, perhaps you'll give the artist 60% of the sale price and you'll keep 40%. You'll have to spend time developing a good mailing list for your gallery openings and you'll have to print up attractive announcement invitations for the shows. Contact the local media for possible mentions to help generate a crowd at the shows. Hang the art in your living room and you're ready to sell.
    
    
73. MOVE IN SERVICE: How many times have you or someone you know moved into an apartment to find the refrigerator in need of cleaning, the stove a mess and the bathroom grout full of mildew?! Don't even mention the painting job that's so desperately needed! Well, you can make some money by starting a move in service, whereby you get everything ready for the folks before they move in. It is well worth the $250 to $1000 (or more depending on the job) you'll be charging for this service. Many individuals--especially single parents who often are the ones who move into a new apartment after a divorce) don't have the time to get everything in shipshape order. They would gladly pay someone to take care of all the cleaning and shaping up. This service could also be offered to people who buy a home. Be cautious about charging one set rate. You don't know how bad a job will be or how long it might take until you see it. Either charge by the hour or visit the site and then set a price.
    
    
74. FIREWOOD DELIVERY: A few years ago, we interviewed three friends who started a firewood delivery service and ran it from October through March. They make enough money that season to buy a building in New York City! Not an easy--or cheap--thing to do. They bought the wood in upstate New York for $85 a cord. They re-sold the wood for as much as $300 a cord, and even more when you consider that they often sold the wood for $10 a bundle that consisted of just 5 or 6 pieces of wood. The customers they picked up were restaurant, bar and tavern owners who wanted to give their places a cozy look during the winter months. They also distributed fliers in buildings and took orders from customers over the phone for a wood delivery for their residential fireplaces or wood burning stoves. While this is not a business that could be run all year long, it is one that could produce quite a nice profit during the winter months.
    
    
75. WOOD CUTTING SERVICE: If you have a few jig saws, a router, a good circular saw and a miter box, you could start a part-time business cutting wood and other items for your customers. How about those louver bi-fold doors that someone bought. They were just a hair too wide, but couldn't be hung on a Sunday afternoon because the lumber yard was closed. Your small business could come in handy here. You might eventually start a business building bookcases and pine dining tables, TV stands, etc., now that you're hanging around your tools so much.