Year: 2015

Beware of These Mystery Shopping Fake Check Scams

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Even though it’s been a while since my car wrap scam posting of 2013, I see that fake check scammers are still going strong.

Yesterday was a “red letter” day for me; I received not one, not two, but three fake checks in my mail box.

Fake check scam #1: Mystery Shoppers Agent

The first fake check scam involves mystery shopping through the company website Mystery Shoppers Agent.

mystery shoppers agent2

At first, I wasn’t sure if this company was also a scam or just caught up in the cross hairs of the scammers’ ploys. You see, when it comes to fake checks, scammers don’t hesitate to “plug” legitimate businesses into the mix. Completely legitimate banks and retailers will appear to be sending cashier’s checks, and USPS or FedEx envelopes will feature actual return addresses.

In the case of Mystery Shoppers Agent, however, the stench of scam was almost immediately apparent. Aside from the site’s broken English, it states that it offers a “Minimum amount for each assignment is $600 USD, payable by check.” Also, on its application page, you find the following statement: “We would like to inform you that you will be handle two assignment per week and the minimum payment for the each assignment will be $600 which make it $1200 every week.”

I’ve been a mystery shopper since 2010; several of my friends have been mystery shoppers for 10+ years now. No one in my immediate group has ever heard of assignments paying $600.

Also, for high-paying assignments of $60 or more, mystery shop assignments came with pages upon pages of instructions. However, read the letter I received and posted below for an assignment that supposedly pays $300:

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For this “assignment,” you are requesting wire transfers to two individuals living in the Philippines. You are then generating a report about the “customer service professionalism.” No directions are provided on how to generate this report.

But it gets even better- I received not one such letter from Mystery Shoppers Agent, but two! In one day, I found the exact same letters addressed to me and sitting in two identical 2-Day Priority Mail USPS envelopes. Along with those two identical letters were these two identical $3,775 checks:

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The same day, I also received the following email from Jo.DanieLS@Kash.info. His questions and my replies are posted below.

> Subject: First Task
> From: Jo.DanieLS@Kash.info
>
> First task is to be delivered to your address today or Tuesday at the latest and your assignment info and instructions would come in the mail along with your salary,please kindly follow the instructions that came in the mail along with your Paycheck…Did you recieve the payment yet?please reply back…thanks

On Mon, Jun 22, 2015 at 4:23 PM, Halina Zakowicz wrote:
Yes I did.

From: jonathan.daniels1950@gmail.com
did you made the deposit yet and when would u send the funds?

On Mon, Jun 22, 2015 at 4:26 PM, Halina Zakowicz wrote:
I deposited the funds this afternoon.

From: jonathan.daniels1950@gmail.com
when would u send the funds?

On Mon, Jun 22, 2015 at 4:38 PM, Halina Zakowicz wrote:
I’m going to do it later this week. Probably Friday.

From: jonathan.daniels1950@gmail.com
why friday?the check would clear tomorrow…so you should send the funds tomorrow please…also,i have been calling you and you didnt pick your calls

What I found interesting was that never during our email interchange did “Jonathan” ask about the actual review that I was hired to complete. No, it was all about sending the money ASAP.

Two days later, Jonathan was texting me about the money. I’ve copied our conversation below and highlighted my answers in green:

Have you completed the assignment. Please reply now

Yes

Can I have the details for the assignment the ref no for each name

Hello Why did you stop replying

The first number 65189544

I got the first number. I hope you sent the funds to the new details I sent to your email please ?

I called moneygram. It says the first number is invalid

Sorry about that. Let me check

And why are you not picking up your calls? And what’s the ref no for the second one What’s goingon

Ok, I need to check with moneygram again about those numbers.

You are a liar. Why are you lieing ?

You can’t even pick your calls. You didn’t even send the second number. This is bad of you

Please check this link

Which link

Tinyurl.com/p77xuoy

Stupid woman

I’ve also filed this scam with the FTC

I should add that the phone number of this California-based operation is (657) 529-0008. If the “business” is based in California, why are the checks originating from Arkansas? And also, why are the USPS envelopes coming from New York & Company at 2655 Richmond Ave., #1070, NY, NY 10314?

mystery shoppers agent

Fake check scam #2: Walmart Money Transfer

The other fake check scam came to me courtesy of “Joshua Baumfeld” of Secret Shopper. The email that I first received from this Joshua went as follows:

Dear Secret shopper ,

This is an update on Your first secret Shopper assignment which has been mailed and will be delivered  today or latest tomorrow  via USPS.Your secret shopper assignment will be done at any nearest Walmart store close to you,which will include shopping and testing other services available at Walmart.

Instructions on how to proceed and email your first assignment report has  been included along in the packet.

Kindly notify and verify that you have received this email,and also notify via email as soon as you have received the assignment.

Regards,

Joshua Baumfeld
Head of Recruitment.

About a week later, I received an official-looking 2-Day Priority Mail USPS envelope containing a letter and a $1,680 cashiers check.

Joshua wanted me to deposit this check and then make a “Walmart to Walmart Money Transfer.” I was also supposed to report on such details as “smartness of the attendant(s),” “reaction of personnel under pressure,” and “rudeness and agents inefficiency to customers.”

There are many obvious red flags in this letter, including poor English, sketchy directions and a payment of $200 before I even do my job. Another point of concern is the state (Grenada) and city (Mississippi) names being reversed. Meanwhile, the address on the envelope states that the correspondence is originating from Joshua Baumfeld, 7072 Wnchester (typo included) Rd., Memphis, TN 38125.

Finally, Walmart has stated that it doesn’t engage in any Secret Shopper services.

The entire contents of my letter and check are provided below.

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What is the point of these fake check scams?

When you receive a fake check from scammers, the point is to have you deposit that money into your bank account- and then withdraw or wire most of it to the scammers (or their associates). The deposit and withdrawal must be completed within 1-2 days or ASAP.

By doing so, you and your bank won’t catch onto the fact that the check is actually fake and will bounce in roughly 3 days.

By the time your deposited check bounces, the scammers will be long gone, as will your withdrawn or wired funds.

If you don’t yet believe me, please click on the following list of complaints from duped secret shoppers.

The lesson to be (hopefully not) learned here: Don’t fall for these fake check scams.

Bonus: Halina’s fake check collage

I just wanted to show off my assembled collage of fake checks to all our I’ve Tried That readers. In total, I’ve received $21,835 now in fake check money. Woo! Also notice that some of these checks are made out to my cohort Hugh G. Rection. I’m sure my mail carrier was highly amused.

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Should You Trust Preston Ely’s Real Estate Mogul?

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If you haven’t heard of Preston Ely before, he is the name behind various real estate investment and other entrepreneurial products including Flip Your Way to Financial Freedom, REO Rockstar, Wake Up Wealthy and Instant Guru. He’s also authored several books including No B.S. Real Estate Investing, Instant Probate Profits, How to Steal Houses From Banks. The guy also has his fingers in fitness, Internet marketing, fantasy sports, gold investment, and personal development.

It goes without saying that this guy is everywhere. But for this review, I’m looking strictly at the real estate side of Preston Ely, and namely, his product called Real Estate Mogul.

What is Real Estate Mogul?

In a nutshell, Real Estate Mogul (REM) is a real estate “school” and member forum that offers daily lessons, spreadsheets, tools, scripts, listings, and member support for people looking to invest in real estate.

In essence, members are taught how to become real estate wholesalers, paying cash on-the-spot for foreclosed or otherwise distressed properties. The purchased properties are then renovated and either rented or sold. If sold, the properties are priced to make a significant profit for the seller.

The plans offered by REM are as follows and range from free to $197/month.

realestatemogul1

You get quite a bit of quality information even with the free REM plan. Since my signup on May 23rd, I’ve received (roughly) weekly emails like these:

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REM offers a large range of helpful products and tutorials in its paid plans. Within its elite plan, members gain access to a number of experts, including those on commercial and multi-family properties, foreclosures and REOs (real estate owned), private money, short sales, and marketing. The plan also offers life coaches and rehab specialists, plus two “market insiders” who have ties to lawmakers in Washington, DC.

These experts regularly publish posts and lessons in categories including deal-getting, funding, investing strategy, market news, etc. One example of an expert-authored post is “As a wholesaler, what’s the best way to handle HUD closings?” Another example is “Private money demystified Part 1: Targeting the right people.”

There are also weekly training calls that are offered through the REM platform.

Another feature of REM is its real estate listing area. Here, you can look up properties that other members own. You may wish to buy these properties, or you can use the area to list your own properties as well.

Finally, REM offers a ton of generated forms, contracts and scripts for members to copy and use. Some of these items include attorney letters, buyer scripts, commission agreements, invoices, and REO cancellation letters. These items help newbie investors ease into the world of real estate negotiating, purchasing, renting and selling without having to hire a lawyer to create every single required document.

forms

Within the REM area, members are awarded “Mogul points” for reading content, watching training videos, etc. These points help the members rise in the ranks of the REM social platform. When sufficient Mogul points have been earned, these new experts can now also create and post lessons and other content.

One such expert is Chris Bruce, who has posted numerous videos on both REM and YouTube about his experiences in real estate buying, selling, assessment, negotiation, etc.

Real Estate Mogul negatives

As with any product, there are some drawbacks with REM. To begin with, there are several concerns about the recommended tactics for buying/selling real estate at wholesale.

One example is REM’s recommendation to use bandit signs to advertise real estate buying intent. You’ve probably seen bandit signs at some point- they are the signs on poles that say “We Buy Houses!” or something to that effect.

The problem with using bandit signs is that they are illegal in many states and communities.

Another criticism of REM is that members receive extensive instruction on how to buy distressed properties but not enough information on how to rehab these properties after the sale. This is an issue because home renovations can quickly lead to mushrooming costs for the buyer. Furthermore, it’s not difficult to obtain a loan to purchase property- but it’s a huge hassle to convince a bank or other lender to finance the renovation of property that the buyer has no intention of living in.

Preston Ely, the figure behind REM, has actually bought only a handful of properties, according to other criticisms. One critique even points out that Preston Ely doesn’t like real estate investment!

Finally, REM does’t offer enough information on actual marketing. For example, what are the best tactics for purchasing a FSBO (for sale by owner) property- flyers, phone calls, business cards? While the REM platform provides many forms, it doesn’t clearly state which forms work best with a particular property sale and when they should be sent.

Should you invest in Real Estate Mogul?

REM is not the cheapest product around; the elite membership will cost you almost $200/month. However, you do get a lot of advice and support from a number of experts. You also get templates to use during your own negotiations with house sellers and buyers.

As a result, REM is a worthwhile product to purchase if you’ve been exploring real estate investment and require sage advice and information. While there are some kinks with the product, it appears that, overall, REM is a sound investment.

Is Paid2Save App the Business Opportunity It Claims to Be?

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Recently, I received the following email in my inbox from a person praising the Paid2Save app:

You recently filled out a request to be matched with a business opportunity and I am THRILLED to be able to share this information with you!!  You have come across an INCREDIBLE opportunity at the RIGHT time!!

Paid2Save is an incredible, innovative Mobile Technology Company.  There are fascinating things happening as we speak!  This is a HUGE opportunity to make money on your own terms and this is a ground floor opportunity!

I’m always leery of companies or associates advertising massive “opportunities,” complete with lots of exclamation points. So, I decided to dig further into the Paid2Save business opportunity.

What is Paid2Save?

Paid2Save is both the name of a company and a mobile app that has existed since 2012. The company is based in California and is owned by David Hart of Hart 2 Hart Marketing. The app is a downloadable piece of software that customers use to get discounts to local merchants. As such, the app works akin to the business structures of LivingSocial and Groupon.

p2s

Unlike LivingSocial and Groupon, however, Paid2Save has a grand total of one employee, which might be David Hart himself or Linda Hart (data derived from Hoover’s).

Where does the rest of the workforce originate from?

Welcome to the world of MLM

Paid2Save operates via a referral structure of brand associates who work to recruit new merchants as well as app users. In order to become a brand associate, you purchase either the Business Starter Pack for $199.90 or the Business Builders Pack for $399.90.

Both of these plans provide you with an Ultimate Club Membership, enabling you to qualify for discounts at local merchants like dentists, restaurants, movie theaters, etc. You also obtain one or more DreamShares, which is like timeshare ownership.

You also qualify to earn income via retail sales and recruitment of new members. In fact, if you fail to recruit others into the program, you will no longer receive bonus and residual income.

p2save

This means you’ll soon be bugging local businesses and your family and friends to download the Paid2Save app or sign up for its different membership plans.

These plans cost $14.95, $29.95, or $49.95 per month for the Travel, Premier or Ultimate Club subscriptions, respectively. There is also a one-time $9.95 application fee.

As you sign up new members, you will start to build what’s known as your “downline.” This downline will kick up some of their member subscription commissions to you once they recruit their own new members. You will then rise up in the ranks of the organization and earn a new title (e.g., Brand Partner, Brand Supervisor) plus additional bonuses and commissions.

Is the Paid2Save app worth it?

While I’m not a big fan of MLM-style businesses, my bigger hesitation with Paid2Save is the product itself and how it can realistically make money for the company and its brand associates.

Paid2Save is not a real product.

Companies make revenues on actual products, not access to discounts from third-party vendors. This is one big reason why Groupon has struggled for years to make actual revenue and maintain solvency.

Sure, the app does make money via merchant transactions- 10% of each merchant transaction is paid back to Paid2Save. But a merchant will typically run a promotional discount once or twice a year, not constantly. Also, many merchants will cancel their plans after they’ve promoted their business and/or found the app to be unprofitable.

Paid2Save faces stiff competition.

LivingSocial and Groupon are free to use for customers and it’s only the merchants who must pay for the services. Many online discount and daily deal sites are free to use. It’s going to be difficult to convince frugal shoppers to pay up to $50/month for discounts that they could otherwise find for free, even if those discounts are really good.

Paid2Save has MLM competitors.

Even in the world of MLM, the Paid2Save app is not alone. Similarly styled apps like FlexCom, Lyoness and BeepXtra also operate by recruiting members and offering access to discounts as their product. ZeekRewards is yet another such MLM-based app, which is now undergoing litigation for being an illegal Ponzi and pyramid scheme.

You must pay for a membership.

As you move up the Paid2Save ranks to brand manager, you must also pay for an Ultimate Club subscription. That’s a business cost of almost $50/month just for being able to recruit new associates and collect a portion of their commissions.

The deals just aren’t that good.

After I downloaded the Paid2Save app and checked out its deals, I saw the usual merchant discounts that I would also find via Ebates, TopCashBack, etc. For example, I found online deals for 1.2% cash back from 1-800-BASKETS and 4% cash back from 1-800-FLORALS.

In the local deals area, I found a Pay $20, Get $30 Worth of Food/Beverage deal at a golf center and a free evaluation offer at a chiropractic center. These are the same kinds of deals that I see in my mailbox circular.

The Paid2Save Bottom Line

The Paid2Save app might be a worthwhile app to have at your disposal when you are shopping or out on the town. However, because customers must pay to use this app’s bigger benefits (through paid Club subscription plans), there is going to be limited product interest even if the discounts are good.

My recommendation is to keep clear of this business opportunity and look elsewhere.

Need Money and Have a Rugrat? Consider Starting Your Own Daycare

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According to the National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies, parents in the United States pay an average of $11,666 per year for daycare. Nationally, daycare prices range from $300 to $1,564 per month, and can even be as high as $2,000 per month in expensive cities like Boston or San Francisco.

Cost alone is why many parents choose to start their own daycare at home. However, you need not be a parent in order to start a daycare; at-home daycare can also be a lucrative business.

How to Start Your at-Home Daycare

  1. Find out your state requirements.

Daycare licensing regulations vary greatly state-to-state, so don’t assume that what’s OK in one state is OK in another. The biggest difference between states has to do with required caregiver licensing as a function of the number of children in your care (that are not your own). In some states like South Dakota, you can care for as many of 12 children without needing a license, while in states like Texas, you must have a license to care for even one child.

  1. Get registered.

Even if you don’t need to be licensed in your state for the number of children in your care, all states do require that you at least register as a family daycare provider. Luckily, most state registration forms are easy to fill out and require not much more than your name and insurance company information. Speaking of which…

  1. Get insured.

Kids are prone to fall, get injured and generally get into trouble. Protect yourself, your business and your assets by buying daycare insurance early on. Most major insurance carriers offer daycare insurance, which is really just a form of business liability insurance.

  1. Get incorporated.

Along the lines of protecting yourself, you should become incorporated as an LLC to protect your personal assets from being seized in the event of a lawsuit. If you operate your at-home daycare as a DBA (doing business as) or sole proprietorship only, you risk losing your home and other personal assets to a court judgment made against you. By having an LLC in place, you only risk losing your business.

  1. Perform necessary home improvements/adjustments.

For a variety of reasons, you should childproof your home. Install gates in areas leading to stairs, cover all electrical outlets, and lock your firearms. You should also keep a fire extinguisher in your kitchen. If you have a backyard, it will probably need to be completely fenced in and safeguarded from physical dangers like a swimming pool and/or fire pit.

  1. Get CPR and first aid trained.

Despite your best intentions and preparations, kids are prone to choking on things as well as cutting and/or injuring themselves. To prevent a possible tragedy, you should get trained in lifesaving techniques like CPR and first aid.

  1. Prepare for a site inspection.

If you opt to become licensed, the state’s department of health will pay you a visit at your established daycare facility to make sure your environment is up to code with state safety and cleanliness requirements. Some states will periodically inspect your home even if you are only registered and not licensed.

Common inspection points are listed on your specific state’s inspection application, such as this one offered by the State of Connecticut. Keep in mind that staff and child immunization is also considered part of facility safety.

  1. Check your contractors and/or employees.

Most states require that hired employees pass a background check and not be felons and/or convicted sex offenders. This means that you will need to conduct background checks on anyone you hire and pay for services.

Additional at-home daycare considerations

While these are the most basic requirements for starting an at-home daycare, they are just the beginning. The following items should also be considered, especially if you wish to maintain your business for many years and be profitable.

Revenue. As with any business venture, you’ll want to calculate how much money you need to generate per month/year in order to make revenue and a decent profit from your venture. Knowing this amount before you start your business is ideal because it will help you plan for licensing (or not) and negotiate a fair price for your services.

Marketing. It’s easy to forget that your business should always be undergoing some kind of marketing. You can advertise your at-home daycare by buying an ad in the local newspaper, by putting up flyers in stores and other public buildings, or even by using email sign-ups to disseminate your services and messages.

Education. Although it’s not absolutely necessary, you could eventually consider taking early childhood classes. By having this education under your belt, you’ll be more qualified for your job and thus more justified in commanding a higher price per child. Likewise, knowing how young minds work will help you better manage your brood and keep everyone in line (as opposed to destroying your house).

Finally, education opens up additional career directions to you; for example, you might wish to apply your newfound skills and open up a preschool or an after-school structured study program. You might offer early education tutoring as well as daycare. All these added options help raise your daycare rate.

Summary

Home daycare businesses can be lucrative and allow you to take care of your own kids by staying at home. While there are some hurdles to overcome in getting started, at-home daycares actually don’t require a lot of startup capital. Furthermore, the business can be started by nearly anyone.

Roy Tribble of Scam Watchdog: The #1 Most UNtrusted Binary Options Review Site

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Question: What’s the easiest way you can make your latest binary options get-rich-quick scheme seem legit, especially when there are websites like RealScam exposing it for the scam that it is?

Answer: You generate the persona of a trusted retiree who now tests binary options trading platforms and can tell the scams from the legitimate ones. Furthermore, this “expert” is so outraged by other online scammers that he calls them out by name and attempts to debunk their “scams.”

Case in point: “Roy Tribble” of Scam Watchdog. Here’s Roy decrying how affiliate marketers (you know, scammers) push their wares on unsuspecting online consumers and use nefarious means to capture emails. By the way, please note the photo placed next to the name of Roy Tribble- you’ll see this same photo later on in my review.  tribble4

This character claims that he is testing binary options trading platforms and setting aside the ones that pay out at least 51% of the time. Furthermore, this financial expert not only reviews the platforms for you, he also integrates the “winners” with his own free trading software, so that the chances of you making money on your binary options are even better.

Roy claims that he is making no money whatsoever from promoting the decent binary options platforms. He also wags his finger at sites like One More Cup of Coffee for posting affiliate links and trying to capture reader emails. However, if you click on one of the binary options platforms that Roy recommends (where the text says ‘Click here to sign up’), such as the Artificial Intelligence App, you’ll see something intriguing about that link:

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The entire link, when clicked, appears as follows:

http://aiapp.co/?transaction_ id= 102d4d2404177637faffba77ff8963 &offer_id=138&affiliate_id=1&affiliate_sub=490227940 &affiliate_sub2=cubd1& affiliate_sub3=&affiliate_sub4=&affiliate_sub5=

Gee, this looks like an affiliate link to me!

On the above page, Roy claims that he is making good money using the AI App. I’ve Tried That recently published an AI App review and found it to be a complete scam full of fake testimonials and an imaginary Dr. John Clark, PhD.

Here’s another link that Roy posted to his other recommendation, Binary Matrix Pro: http://www.binarymatrixpro.com/?clickID=490653260&affname=cubd1&S1=

Yet another affiliate link. Just like with AI App, I’ve Tried That also published a Binary Matrix Pro review and found it to be a scam.

As for not capturing emails, Roy’s site eventually asks you to sign up for his newsletter through several different means, including this pop-up.

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What really drives Scam Watchdog?

If you listen to Roy’s Welcome Message to New Visitors, you’ll hear a supposedly 62-year old retiree tell you how he created his amazing binary options software after talking to a binary options expert. Of course, Roy “can’t name who he is yet” but “I may do that in the future.” This trading expert told Roy a big secret about binary options trading that then led Roy to create his own super signal software.

That’s the flowery introduction to Scam Watchdog. But what really drives the site is this: Roy reviews and recommends binary options trading platforms to his readers. The recommended trading platforms are all affiliate linked to Roy. He also recommends that his readers accumulate and open a minimum of 20 (or even 40) of his “Master List” of recommended platforms.

After his readers have opened up all these platforms, Roy promises to give them his free Super Signals software to link to those 20 or even 40 platforms. Supposedly, this free software will improve the readers’ odds of making the correct call on a binary option, resulting in them “winning” their yes/no calls more than 51% of the time.

Naturally, no binary options platform is going to operate without a cash infusion. Typical binary options platforms require at least a $250 minimum investment. Thus, a person who opens and funds even 20 of Roy’s recommended platforms needs to invest at least 20 x $250 = $5,000.

What Roy never states is that, when people open and fund those recommended trading platforms listed on his Master List, good ol’ Roy gets a big fat commission from every new account. Many binary options platforms pay as much as a 50% commission per subscriber. Thus, even if a person provides his trading software for free, he still earns money.

Then there is the matter of the recommended trading platforms. One such platform that Roy recommends is CTOption. This platform pays out only 50% of your initially placed sum if your option expires in the money (i.e., you make the correct call on an option). If your option expires out of the money (i.e., you make an incorrect call on an option), you lose your entire payout or 100%.  So, on average, your calls will result in a net loss for you.

Of course, Roy’s software is intended to improve your odds of having your options expire in the money. However, he doesn’t talk much about the software or how much it improves your odds. Roy mostly talks about the other binary options platforms you need to download and fund.

Who is Roy really?

Even if you’re willing to take the risk and use the binary options trading platforms that Roy recommends, consider the following troubling indicators about the individual who goes by the name of Roy Tribble. Here is a picture of the guy you are supposedly getting trading advice from:

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Roy looks fairly trustworthy, at least according to his photo (which also appears on his LinkedIn and Google+ accounts). However, a simple Google image search reveals the following truth about Roy:

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It looks like Roy is available for the low resolution price of $50.

Another troubling indicator with Roy is, when you go to his Google+ account, the following URL is displayed:

https:// plus.google.com/u/0/+drbillhweld/posts

Scam Watchdog also uses the URL of billhweld.blogspot.com after you click on any of its internal links.

Who is this Dr. Bill H. Weld? Luckily, the WayBack Machine provides a possible answer. If you use WaybackMachine and go to June 25, 2014, you find the following information displayed on the billhweld.blogspot.com website:

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Who is Justin Tribble?

If you search on his name via Google, you will eventually find several websites and YouTube videos that link Justin to a “Nano Domestic Quell” hoax involving a man named Dr. Bill H. Weld. The story behind Nano Domestic Quell is that the U.S. government is conspiring to infect all citizens with a deadly flu virus that can be triggered at a moment’s notice through cell phone towers.

On the Scam Watchdog website, there is a page where Roy Tribble explains the entire conspiracy that his “nephew,” Justin Tribble, had become involved in. Roy emphatically denies that Dr. Bill H. Weld is not a real person or a hoax. There’s just one problem with Roy’s denial- there is a YouTube video in which Justin is documented as confessing to the Bill H. Weld hoax. How is this explained away?

On Roy’s page, it’s noted that the U.S. government forced Justin to confess that the Dr. Bill H. Weld flu virus conspiracy was a hoax:

So, to recap, I had “admitted” the “hoax”.

However, just a year prior, that same Justin Tribble was the perpetrator of an actual hoax, which he did admit to on ABC news. This earlier hoax involved Justin tweeting that a well-known pastor (Joel Osteen) was going to resign from his ministry. The minister graciously chose to turn the other cheek (i.e., not sue Justin) regarding this prank.

The ABC news segment showed Justin’s Nevada driver’s license at one point. On that screen shot, the license shows the name of Justin Roy Tribble.

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So, according to these data, it appears that Roy is Justin. And if Roy is Justin, and Justin has pulled off at least one officially documented prank, then how believable is the entire Scam Watchdog site anyway?

The Bottom Line with Scam Watchdog

Would you entrust your investment decisions to someone who generates online hoaxes and posts stock photos of himself? I know I wouldn’t. Likewise, would you use software that is created by someone who can’t even name his secret source/expert and who provides no evidence of how this software looks or functions?

If you want to start engaging in binary options trading, there are plenty of registered platforms out there that have been examined by the SEC. Otherwise, you stand to lose your invested funds very easily.

Self-Employed? Forget About Getting a Mortgage

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Imagine having an 800+ credit rating and no debt (including no mortgage loan), making a decent yearly income from freelance work and stock investments….and yet still being declined for a mortgage. Yep, that’s what happened to me- even after I was pre-approved for my mortgage loan based on my last two years’ AGIs (adjusted gross incomes). What gives?

If you are a freelancer, and especially if you have recently become a freelancer, be aware that you will probably NOT qualify for a mortgage loan, home equity loan, or even a personal loan.

Why?

Self-employed = unemployed

Banks and other lending agencies are hard set to trust traditional employment as an assured source of future income- even if you get fired or laid off tomorrow. Self-employed individuals have taken a risk by starting their own businesses and finding their own clients, and this is often reflected in their wildly fluctuating income statements. As a whole, self-employed folks are more likely to fail and then become unemployed altogether.

Finally, although never openly stated, many bankers and loan officers associate the term “self-employed” as code for “I can’t find a job.”

Self-employed = low income

Another reason why self-employed individuals are denied for loans is because they don’t make enough money- at least on paper. Yet, according to data published by Zillow, self-employed individuals actually make a lot more money than employed individuals. Furthermore, self-employed individuals have seen a substantial increase in their earnings since 2012, while employed individuals have seen a decrease.

However, in an effort to save money on taxes, most self-employed people also write off their business expenses. This saves a bundle on income tax- but it also lowers net income.

Net income is critical because loan officers use it to calculate your debt-to-income (DTI) ratio, or your monthly housing costs and other debts compared to your net income. A loan applicant’s DTI ratio can be no higher than 43%.

Self-employed = always self-employed

Some freelancers transition gradually into self-employment, working with clients and for employers at the same time. They do this for several reasons, including insufficient client work, employer-based training/education, etc. Also, many employers nowadays will offer employees and independent contractors the option of working from home and/or setting their own work hours, making employment seem very much like self-employment.

You may not care whether your final earnings are reported on a W-2 or a 1099, but your loan officer will. In fact, once you declare yourself to be self-employed on your loan application, your employed earnings will not count towards your net income (unless you’re still employed with that employer).

In my case, because I was employed over a large portion of one of the years I reported to my loan officer, I was told that I made only $286/month for that year. If only the IRS believed that I made such a low figure!

Self-employed = no mortgage?

If you just started your own freelance business or have resigned from your employed job, it may seem like you’re doomed to not qualify for a loan until you earn mountains of cash each year (at which point, why would you even need a loan?). Luckily, it’s not impossible to get a mortgage loan- but it will be harder.

Understand that your ability to secure a mortgage loan, or any loan for that matter, depends on three factors:

Ability to repay + credit score + collateral

Ability to repay.

This is mostly based on your DTI ratio. For employed persons, DTI is calculated using the gross earnings from their last two years of pay stubs. Freelancers and the self-employed don’t receive pay stubs, so their last two years of tax returns are used to calculate the DTI ratio instead.

The problem with using tax returns is that net income after business deductions is calculated, not gross earnings. This is where freelance income is unfairly penalized compared with that of employed persons.

Credit score.

Most lending agencies are not going to approve your loan if you have a credit score below 680 as a self-employed freelancer. Call it discrimination, but that’s just how it works. As an employee, you stand a far better chance of securing a loan despite your low credit score, even if you do end up paying a higher APR.

Collateral.

This can consist of liquid assets, a pension or other regularly distributed income, and/or your home.

Given the variables used above to calculate your ability to secure a loan, here are the steps you should take at least six months to one year in advance of asking for money from a lending institution:

1. Improve your credit score.

While you have the time, ask for a copy of your credit report and find out how you can improve it. Try to achieve a credit score of at least 740, which will significantly improve your approval odds, as well as lower your loan APR.

2. Amend your taxes.

If you took significant deductions in one year on business expenses, consider amending your returns and spreading those costs out over several years- or even not reporting your expenses at all. This could cost you in extra tax, though.

3. Choose your tax years.

You can also, to some extent, choose which tax years your loan officer sees. Typically, you are required to show your last two years of tax returns. However, if you are applying for a loan early in the year, before you have filed your April taxes, you could go back two years before the current tax year. Then, if you find your net income from those years is too low, you could quickly do this year’s taxes and take the two more recent years into account.

Basically, applying for a loan early in the year means you can pick your two best earning years out of three.

4. Pony up a big down payment.

Even if your loan officer tells you to apply for 10% down payment loan, don’t. Save up enough cash so that you are putting down at least 30% on your mortgage loan. If you’re applying for any other type of loan, reduce how much you need to borrow as much as possible.

5. Work with an accountant now.

Get an accountant involved early on and have her calculate what your DTI ratio would be given your current and past net earnings. Discuss ways you can raise your net income or lower your current debts.

6. Obtain contract verification from all your clients.

Request contract verification from all your clients now, before you even set foot into a bank or apply for a loan online. Make sure your verification letters state how much you are earning with each client and how long you’ve been contracted with them. Having such letters ready to go and to supply to your loan officers will save you weeks of time (and aggravation) during the approval process.

7. Find a contractor-friendly lending institution.

With more and more individuals becoming self-employed or performing at least some freelance work, certain institutions are taking notice. Type “self-employed mortgage” into Google and you will locate online banks and other lenders that work with self-employed persons. Some cases in point are Vancity, a Vancouver-based credit union, and Freelancer Financials, based in the U.K.

8. Find a broker who specializes in self-employed loans.

A broker can go submit your income and other information to several lenders at a time. This saves you the hassle of constantly applying for loans and having multiple hard inquiries show up on your credit report- which ultimately lowers your credit score (I lost 0.9 points/hard inquiry). A broker can also provide you with advice on how to best submit your income and other variables.

However, you need to find a broker who regularly works with freelancers and the self-employed. Otherwise, you will be wasting your time with someone who knows about W-2’s….and not much else.

9. Apply at state banks and/or credit unions.

Traditional and national (i.e., “too big to fail”) banks typically work within Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac loan regulations, which are skewed in favor of W-2 applicants. State banks and credit unions are more independent and needn’t comply with such government-imposed restrictions.

10. Consider creating an annuity.

Annuities have long been touted as something for retirees who need a fixed income. However, if you have some liquid assets, you may wish to create an annuity with your bank and have it pay you on a monthly basis. This guaranteed monthly payout raises your net income. It does cost money to create an annuity account, however.

In summary

Being a self-employed freelancer is great in many respects, namely, choosing my own hours and clients and never getting bored with my work. But there are certain aspects to being self-employed that aren’t that great. It’s tough to secure a loan as a freelancer, and the mountain of documents you must supply is maddening. I now realize that I will need to track my income and expenses more closely. I will also need to invest much more time and effort into obtaining a loan in the future.

Still, what doesn’t kill me as a freelancer only makes me stronger. And then I get to write a blog post about it.

How to Start Your Own Local Affiliate Marketing Program

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Are you frustrated by Amazon’s low affiliate commissions or the fact that everyone and their uncle is selling what you are trying to sell? Affiliate marketing can be a tough field to make serious money in simply because lots of people are already doing it.

But what if you could knock out most of the competition, both in terms of similar products and even SEO? And what if you really could get a bigger piece of the affiliate marketing pie?

Enter local affiliate marketing.

What is local affiliate marketing?

Somewhat self-explanatory, local affiliate marketing is the marketing of local products and businesses in your neighborhood, city or (maybe) state. Basically, rather than scouring Clickbank or Amazon for would-be products and services to market on your website or blog, you go after area merchants and advertise their specific (and unique) merchandise, promotions, advantages, etc.

It’s a shame that many affiliate marketers overlook the money available right in their own backyard, assuming that local accounting firms, lawyers, restaurants, mechanic shops, etc. won’t want to deal with them. However, local merchants often need the most help of all when it comes to attracting customers and placing their wares online. Likewise, without a middle entity (i.e., affiliate network) taking a cut of the earnings, you could easily score a 25% or higher commission for every potential client/lead you refer to your select business.

Local affiliate marketing: Easier than you think

You might be thinking “I don’t want to be going door-to-door” or “I am not standing on a street corner holding up a billboard.” Here’s the thing: You don’t have to. Much or even all of your marketing can be remote and performed exclusively at home.

Also, given what you would typically expect with affiliate marketing, such as content optimization, backlink generation, guest posting, etc., there’s significantly less of it involved. Here’s why:

SEO is fairly easy.

Local SEO, especially in a small to medium town/city, is going to be much easier to do well than if you are trying to sell a world-famous brand. Simply put, the SEO will be easy because, aside from other local businesses that are in the same industry/field,  you won’t have much competition to worry about. Also, because your website is probably going to mirror your client’s to a good extent, it won’t look like the typical affiliate marketing website that is often overlooked by search engines.

AdWords is easy too.

Google Places loves local businesses and its AdWords ad program won’t knock out your keywords or charge you exorbitant fees for referring “real” local businesses. You’ll also be able to track your leads fairly easily because most of them will be local, so outliers in other states or countries will probably be false positives.

How do you find clients?

Depending on your personal style, there are several different ways to do local affiliate marketing.

If you build it, they may come.

If you know the field already, you could launch a website on the topic of personal finance, accounting, etc. Once you have sufficient traffic coming in, you could then approach prospective clients and ask them if they’d consider placing an ad on your website for a monthly/yearly fee. This approach works well if you want to work with several clients in the same profession. However, it also demands that you make a large investment of time and effort before you see any payoff.

Use AdWords only.

You could also contact individual businesses and offer to run AdWords ad campaigns for them. You could launch the ads and direct inquiries to a sales page, which would then provide those leads with additional sales material in exchange for their contact information. You would keep tabs on those ad clicks and collect an appropriate commission for each lead.

Alternately, you could also work with a third party call center and collect AdWords-based calls as your leads. Input the term “call centers” into Google and you’ll find lots of places- including local ones- that you can work with.

Do lead nurturing.

This requires a bit more trust from your clients, but if you know the industry fairly well, and they simply don’t have the time/patience to deal with inquiries, you could offer lead nurturing as part of your affiliate marketing deal. With lead nurturing, you’d be in charge of calling leads that had already clicked on your AdWords ads or sent an inquiry via your website. You’d then gauge how likely they’d be to try or buy your client’s products or services.

In time, your client could even give you entire lists of leads that she had collected over the years. By converting them, you’d be able to command a much high commission because they would be generating actual revenue for the business.

How do you track your leads?

It’s challenging to track leads when you aren’t relying strictly on Google Analytics or sales page conversions to provide you with definitive numbers. You’re also relying on the integrity of your clients to report their business dealings truthfully and not stiff you on (especially) converted leads.

However, most local businesses aren’t looking to rip you off, especially if you’re working hard to promote them. Of course, there will always be that one bad apple in the bunch, but you shouldn’t let the fear of untruthful reporting scare you away. If the hesitation is still there, stick to just generating and reporting your own sales leads via AdWords, for example, or through direct sales calls to your call center.

What kinds of businesses should you target?

It’s far better, and far less work for you, if you target local businesses that make high revenues on each converted lead. For example, consider how much a lawyer makes on every one of his clients. Or think about how much an event venue makes for each conference, wedding, etc. held there.

High revenue businesses are preferable because you’ll do less work for more money/lead. You also won’t need lots of leads, which can be especially difficult if you’re marketing in a small town.

Finally, it’s best if you can work with businesses that have recurring income from their clients, enabling you to re-market to these clients or charge a constant monthly or yearly commission. Also, you should not consider cyclic businesses like tax preparation because these industries will leave you with no leads for a good part of the year.

A Review of AmaSuite for Amazon Affiliates and Sellers

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Last May, I reviewed Amazing Selling Machine (ASM) and noted that its nearly $3500 price tag was a bit steep for some would-be Amazon sellers and affiliates. Luckily, some members of ASM have created their own Amazon training courses and mini-communities, and often with much lower entry costs. One such example is AmaSuite, which is offered through Chris Guthrie and Dave Guindon.

The AmaSuite software, which is now available in its fifth version, trains members to not only become successful Amazon affiliates, but Amazon sellers too. How? The name of the game is sourcing and selling private label, not brand name, products. In this way, you can say goodbye to two of the biggest obstacles with making a decent profit via Amazon:

  • Low affiliate commissions. Amazon offers its affiliates either a 4% or 6% commission on sales, which means you need to move hundreds of thousands of dollars of product each month to make a viable income as an Amazon affiliate.
  • High product license fees. If you purchase your own brand name products to sell on Amazon (or through your own website), you typically have razor-thin profit margins because of high manufacturer license fees.

Chris Guthrie is a well-noted Internet marketer and Amazon affiliate, and he has promoted the Fullfillment by Amazon (FBA) selling platform for some time now. He also referenced that he recently signed up for ASM. From there, his involvement with Amazon selling has deepened, from hosting a mastermind group to selling his own Amazon products, to now offering a bulked-up AmaSuite 5 that incorporates many of the principles of ASM.

Currently, the program is discounted to just $197. However, even at its regular price of $297, the software is still a bargain compared with the ~$3,500 charged for ASM.

What do you get with AmaSuite 5?

Lots of software:

  • Amazon research tools, including an Amazon keyword suggestion tool that helps you locate the best keywords for your product niche. Keep in mind that Amazon provides very little in the way of Analytics (like Google does), so this is valuable and saves you lots of time.
  • A Top 100 analyzer that provides you with data on the hottest Amazon products based on sales, reviews, etc., enabling you to obtain competitor information quickly.
  • A product inspector that helps you select low competition products that you can quickly rank well for and generate sales from. It’s essentially a niche marketing tool fitted for Amazon.
  • An AmaSync WordPress plugin and tutorials that help you quickly set up your product websites, generate content, and integrate your Amazon products into them. You also get free WordPress themes.
  • An Amazon reviewer finder for your product category. This software tool locates top reviewers on Amazon that you can contact and ask for help from, which is an absolute must if you are trying to sell private label products.
  • Social media tools and plugins that enable you to quickly post across numerous platforms, encourage Facebook Likes, implement pop-ups, show different ads, etc.
  • Educational courses on online/content marketing, SEO and website creation.

Amazon seller training:

  • Private label products are explained as well as how to pick one or several by using the software tools outlined above.
  • How find and contact candidate product suppliers using Google search or Alibaba (which Amazon is now also affiliated with).
  • How to generate sales of your Amazon products and reviews using the provided AmaSuite software tools.

What do you not get with AmaSuite 5?

  • Promotion tools and guidelines. Unless you already know how to generate website traffic and promote niche products, AmaSuite 5 won’t help you become a successful Amazon affiliate and/or seller. This software suite assumes that you already have an action plan for promoting your products on social media platforms, through your website(s), etc. Having said this, AmaSuite does offer a Video Traffic Guru, which instructs you on “how to drive traffic to your videos.”
  • Lots of hand-holding. ASM’s offerings include a yearly conference and community support, plus one-on-one support with Amazon veterans. With AmaSuite, you don’t get a lot of support and it is assumed you are somewhat adept at selling on Amazon. Even after emailing Chris or Dave, you might be waiting several days for a reply. To be fair, AmaSuite does offer a members area that you can log into and take advantage of.

Our Review: Is AmaSuite 5 worth it?

Success as an Amazon affiliate and/or seller depends on three key factors:

Sales + Reviews + Outside traffic

With AmaSuite 5, you can improve your chances of generating product sales because the keyword and niche product research tools will help you select products that have low competition and thus are more likely to be suggested to buyers by Amazon. Likewise, the software will help you find reviewers, and product reviews help improve product rankings on Amazon.

Regarding traffic generation, you’ll be spread out pretty thin. Even if you already know how to generate traffic to your websites and Amazon products, you won’t get much help if you encounter a problem with your methods. Additional help or tools may be necessary, especially if you don’t have the time to generate AdWords ads, grow social media audiences, involve other affiliates, guest post on outside blogs and websites, etc.

In summary, for its $200 or even $300 price tag, AmaSuite 5 offers a lot of bang for the buck. However, if you are a complete newbie to Amazon selling/promoting, you may still be better off with ASM.

Work at Home Paycheck Review- Fictional Characters, Fictional Earnings

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What do Jessica Marshall, Kelly Frazier, Alex Cooper and Mark Wilson all have in common?

Work at Home Paycheck: A production with many actors

Jessica, Kelly, Alex and Mark are all promoting a work-at-home system called Work at Home Paycheck, which also goes by WAH Paycheck. Each one of the aforementioned characters plays a unique role:

-Jessica Marshall is the down-on-her-luck single mom who creates a system for making money from home.

-Kelly Frazier is also a down-on-her-luck single mom who tries Jessica Marshall’s system and now makes money from home.

-Alex Cooper is the reporter who interviews Kelly for a big online news organization.

-Mark Wilson is the originator of this money-making system.

Jessica Marshall weaves a wonderful story about how she was freshly divorced, trying to raise her young daughter, and on the verge of a nervous breakdown thanks to a layoff. Here’s Jessica as she weaves her hard luck story:

workathomepaycheck1

Luckily, a mysterious (but friendly) guy named Mark Wilson saves the day. Jessica runs into Mark at a coffee shop and he tells Jessica exactly how she can make boatloads of money right at home.

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Next, we are shown her wealth growing in real-time in her Paypal account.

workathomepaycheck2

How do you make money with Work at Home Paycheck? The details are a bit murky, but Jessica states that, by posting links to products sold by large and well-known companies, you can earn referral commissions.

So, it’s really just affiliate marketing.

How much can you expect to pay to learn about affiliate marketing? The site initially prices the information at $397. However, if you hit your browser’s back button a few times, the system becomes available for the ultra-low price of just $47.

workathomepaycheck4

Is Work at Home Paycheck worth its $47 price tag? To answer this question, the system offers a third party testimonial from Kelly Frazier, another single mom who now also makes mountains of cash by working only 10-13 hours/week from home. Her interview is conducted by Alex Cooper and is posted on the news site Consumer Finance Guide.

wah

So far, everything looks legit- and who can argue with making over $7K/month for part-time work, right?

There’s just one problem…

There’s just one small wrinkle in this entire operation. When you scroll down every one of these “news” pages and read their terms of service and privacy statements posted below, you find the following disclaimer:

We are not affiliated in any way with any news organization. This is a advertisement for Work at Home Paycheck.

It is important to note that this site and the stories depicted above is to be used as an illustrative example of what some individuals have achieved with this/these products. This website, and any page on the website, is based loosely off a true story, but have been modified in multiple ways including, but not limited to: the story, the photos, and the comments. Thus, this blog, and any page on this website, are not to be taken literally or as a non-fiction story…I UNDERSTAND THIS WEBSITE IS ONLY ILLUSTRATIVE OF WHAT MIGHT BE ACHIEVABLE FROM USING THIS/THESE PRODUCTS, AND THAT THE STORY DEPICTED ABOVE IS NOT TO BE TAKEN LITERALLY…All photos images on this site are stock photography [my bolded emphasis added].

So, not only are these news pages not actually news pages, but the story, photos and even the comments themselves aren’t completely true. The website itself is “based loosely off a true story.” And all those news photos are stock photography.

In fact, all the “news” about this program is actually published on or through Consumers Finance Guide, a notorious fake news site that is well-known for promoting work-at-home scams.

OK, but what about Jessica Marshall herself? She’s got to be real, right?

Again, the privacy statement tells all. In brief, it runs as follows:

For purposes of privacy, the creator of Work At Home Paycheck is using the pen name Jessica Marshall. This story is based upon the real life adaptation of the parties involved. The Company reserves the rights to the name and any uses of it as affiliated with the product. Any improper uses by unauthorized parties is strictly prohibited.

So, nervous breakdown Jessica Marshall is also fictional. What else about Work at Home Paycheck is make-believe?

Fictional certification courses

When you try to sign up for Work at Home Paycheck, you are presented with the following program guarantees and trainings.

workathomepaycheck7

The program promises to make you an instant search engine agent, for starters. What does that even mean- that you know how to use Google?

Next, you are enrolled in a link posting certification program, for which you pay a fee. As far as I’m aware, there is no such certification program in existence.

Additional charges may apply

The next worrisome detail is (again) noted in the terms of service area. Specifically, we have the following statement:

Please Note: Additional Charges May Apply. As with any Internet Business you may need to pay for additional products or services. For example: Hosting costs, domain name costs, advertising costs, internet and broadband costs.

What this tells me is that the $47 enrollment fee into Work at Home Paycheck is just the tip of the iceberg as far as costs are concerned. You’ll end up paying more money down the line for “required” upsell and cross-sell products provided within the system.

In fact, one of the common tactics used by such programs is to reel you in by offering a super low introductory rate. Then, when you find out that the purchased material is insufficient to make you a decent income from home, you’ll call the site asking for a refund. Just before you are issued your refund, however, sales agents experienced in using  boiler room tactics will tell you how you just need to purchase additional coaching programs or software in order to start earning lots of cash. This is the standard practice for many work-at-home scams, and it can end up costing you thousands of dollars.

In brief, don’t get sucked into this program, even at its low rate of just $47.

15 Companies That Offer Court Researcher Jobs

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Ever sleuthed around to find out information about someone and succeeded? You may just have the research skills to get a court researcher job.

If digging around public records sounds like your jam, read on to find out what it takes to be a courthouse researcher and which companies are offering court researcher jobs, including ones that you can do from home.

What Does a Court Researcher Do?

Court researchers look up and report on all kinds of legal and civil records, including tax liens, deeds, marriage licenses, lawsuits, etc., for the businesses that hire them to gather this information.

Typically, these businesses are law firms, home lenders, marketing firms, or background information companies.

Thanks to many public records being stored electronically, much courthouse researching can be conducted from home while sitting at a computer.

However, in some cases, court researchers need to physically visit the County Clerk’s office or City Hall, or the city or county courthouse, in order to gather more detailed records.

After that information is found, the researcher enters it into a spreadsheet or database provided by the hiring company. When the information is verified, the researcher gets paid.

The workload can vary substantially depending on the size of the county; smaller counties mean fewer records.

Most companies that hire court researchers pay per researched item. Depending on the complexity of the assignment, pay rates can range from $0.25–$20 per inputted document or record.

In essence, courthouse researching is actually one of the few legitimate data entry jobs out there.

Aren’t These Records Confidential?

You might assume that information on a person’s mortgage or how much tax money he owes is confidential. It isn’t.

Because a person’s property is subject to city/county assessment and taxes, a lot of its fiscal information exists in the public domain.

Likewise, if someone is charged with a misdemeanor or felony, that information is viewed as belonging to the public because it is the public that has paid for the court service through their taxes.

It might feel intimidating or intrusive to go to courthouses and other city/county buildings and demand information on people and entities you don’t know. However, keep in mind that these buildings and their personnel exist because you, the taxpayer, are paying for them.

Essentially, you are their boss, and as their boss, should feel comfortable requesting help. Besides, city/county employees understand that public data is checked and recorded by reporters, marketing and research firms, and other businesses all the time. Your presence in a courthouse as a researcher should therefore not be a surprise.

What Skills And Qualifications Would a Court Researcher Need?

A court researcher needs to have research skills, customer service skills, time management skills, and attention to detail.

If you’re going to work from home, you’ll need to have a reliable internet connection. When you need to go into courthouses, you’ll need to have a trustworthy means of transportation.

There are no educational requirements for this job, but employers generally prefer applicants who hold bachelor’s degrees.

No experience is necessary, but experience in the legal or judicial field is definitely an advantage.

How Much Do a Court Researcher Jobs Pay?

The average hourly wage of a court researcher is around $25 per hour, but it can range from $10 to $30, depending on the difficulty of obtaining the information, how many pages of documents you would need to obtain, and many other factors.

15 Companies That Offer Court Researcher Jobs

Now that you know what a court researcher does and what skills it requires, here are the companies that are currently hiring court researchers.

1. Advanced Background Check

Advanced Background Check is an Ohio-based company that provides background checks as well as court and public records retrieval via their network of over 2,000 “boots-on-the-ground” court researchers.

Their three divisions include a wholesale pre-employment screening division, a retail pre-employment screening division, and a real estate division.

You can fill out a simple online application form to be considered for a post in a given geographic area.

2. Deed Collector

DeedCollector.com mainly collects information from mortgage documents, which are filed after a home is purchased or an equity line of credit is secured.

Your rate of pay is dependent on how many records you can collect and how fast you can collect them. As you get better and more efficient with your data collection, you can make between $12 to $18 per hour, which can even go up to $20 per hour.

Deed Collector is constantly looking for independent court researchers but in very specific geographic areas, so check their updated list of current locations available first before you start applying for a position with this company.

3. First National Acceptance Company

This site pays about $12/hour for locating owner-financed real estate documents and recording names and addresses. Research work is doled out on a per-county basis and researchers are expected to regularly visit area courthouses to keep the information current. The work is not too detailed or exhausting, but it may also be just a few hours per week or month.

To apply for a court researcher position, call their Researcher Hotline at 1-800-428-1319.

4. Information Technologies

Information Technologies prides itself on being one of the largest collectors and compilers of financial public records, such as tax liens and bankruptcies in the country for their “Financial Hardship” database.

As a court researcher with Information Technologies, you will probably do a lot of your research online by accessing city/county assessors’ sites. The occasional road trip may be required if you run into conflicting or missing records.

You can fill out an online form to apply as a court researcher.

5. Omni Data Retrieval

Omni Data Retrieval is a wholesale public record retrieval company specializing in providing criminal history, as well as civil history, bankruptcy history, and federal and state tax liens to business customers.

You can email your resume if you’re interested in working as a court researcher with them.

6. Sentinel Data Retrieval

Sentinel Data Retrieval is another wholesale data retrieval company specializing in criminal records research and hires “hands-on” courthouse researchers for its work.

Their many clients require this information for risk management, corporate compliance, network security, and operations management, so the workload here can be fairly high volume and steady.

As with most of the companies on this list, you can fill out an online application form through Sentinel’s site to apply for a court researcher job.

7. IT-Boss Research

Look past the old-school website design and you’ll find a tight operation ran by women.

IT-Boss Research is hiring court researchers as independent contractors to compile public records and encode information that is then sent to clients who are looking for leads.

Simply fill out their application form to apply for a court researcher job. If they approve your application, you’ll be sent an offer letter via email and invited to an online Virtual Interview. After this, you’ll be assigned to a client and you can expect to get your first assignment within 7 to 10 days.

8. HireRight

HireRight is a global company that specializes in doing background checks on applicants and employees of companies all over the world.

Locally, they periodically have openings for court researcher jobs. Bookmark the HireRight Careers page and check back for new opportunities.

9. Morse Genealogical Services

Morse Genealogical Services is a family business dating back to 1939. Their specialty is genealogical research for probate matters; that is, they’re dedicated to finding missing persons and missing heirs for the purpose of settling an estate.

The records they normally require researchers to obtain from court include recently filed cases in probate court to see if there are heirs missing or unknown. You might also be required to pull up marriage, birth, or obituary records.

If you think you are suited to this kind of work, you can apply for a court researcher job through this form.

10. Accurate

Accurate.com offers employee screening services, including criminal background checks, credit checks, driving history, social media searches, identity management, and many others.

Their clients range from small- to mid-size businesses to multinational companies.

Bookmark their Careers page to check for court researcher jobs, which are usually listed as Court Specialist.

You can also use the search keyword “researcher” to find any applicable jobs as well.

Duties involve contacting and visiting courts to obtain information on job applicants, as well as simple investigative tasks.

11. CORE Members Network

CORE is a network of court researchers that are mostly hired by realtors, investors, and debt and tax relief firms.

They are constantly on the lookout for independent contractors to research public court documents. Beginners are welcome; they provide free tools and training.

If this sounds like a good opportunity for you, go to this page, learn more about the requirements, and fill out the application form.

12. Jelly Bean Services

Jelly Bean Services are always looking for court researchers to find information regarding taxes, criminal background, legal information, and bankruptcy. JBS then sells this information to various clients who require it.

The company is open to part-time and full-time court researchers. When you become an independent contractor for JBS, you’ll receive flexible schedules. You even get to pick your own schedule.

What’s great about Jelly Bean Services is that the company allows you to work for another court research company. The only requirement is that you don’t share information about anything you’ve collected on behalf of JBS.

13. Inform Data

Inform Data began as a small court research company 20 years ago. Today, the company is the largest wholesale background screening research and data provider in the industry with over 1,500 team members…and is continuously hiring people to join the team.

Whether you are looking for a full-time job, need a part-time gig or a place to work while completing your degree, Inform Data has the perfect role for you.

14. LexisNexis Risk Solutions

LexisNexis Risk Solutions believes in the power of data and analytics to manage risk and uncover opportunity.

There are thousands of job opportunities available at the LexisNexis careers page, but if you’re looking for court researcher jobs, you can help the company with credit risk assessment, fraud management, financial crime compliance, and other similar business services.

The company needs data researchers for the court house document retrieval database used by those in the legal profession.

15. WRProfessionals

WRProfessionals are always looking to hire courthouse researchers. The site itself is quite outdated, but the job is legit.

To apply, fill out the form here, and wait for the WRProfessionals to call you back.

Apply For a Court Researcher Job Today!

Not everyone is cut out to be a court researcher, but if you think you’ve got what it takes, I hope the information above has been helpful.

If you love doing research, but you’re not qualified to be a court researcher or it sounds a bit overwhelming, here are some online research jobs you can apply for.

Or if you have a legal background, you may also be interested in sites to look for work as a legal writer and other work-from-home legal jobs.

Mobile Apps that Pay You To Submit Your Photos

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You may heard of Flickr and Dreamstime, photo websites that sell your photos and then pay you a commission from them. These sites pride themselves on offering professionally taken photos, and that typically means that you, the photographer, need to own an expensive DSLR-type camera. If you don’t, you’re going to be limited in selling your photos.

Luckily, a new wave of mobile apps have popped up that pay you for your mobile photography. These sites accept and sell mobile photography, for the most part, and share the proceeds with the respective mobile photographers. This is great if the only thing you can call your camera is your iPhone or Android-based smartphone.

Who’s buying these mobile photos? The customers vary, but they might include bloggers who are tired of using obvious stock photography on their posts and want to go with more “real-time” and original photos. Company execs and newspaper columnists are another bunch who might purchase your mobile pictures, especially if those pictures include cool visual effects (more on that later).

So, which mobile apps sell your photos? Here is a good starter list for you to peruse:

Foap

This mobile stock photo site sells open source photos for $10, with the photographer earning $5 per sale. You can sell the same photo as many times as you like, thus earning money on the same photo again and again.

When you sign up with Foap, you are first asked to review and rate five photos on a scale of one to five stars. Then, you are allowed to upload your own photos. Other “foapers” rate your photos, also on a scale of one to five stars. If the average rating of your photo is at least 2.5 stars, that photo gets included in the Foap marketplace.

If you’re not sure which photos to upload, Foap offers Missions and Contests sections that ask for photos of a given theme. The Contests section can be especially lucrative, paying $100 or more to the winning photo.

You can also promote your photos via Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, email and other broadcast platforms.

Instagram

This site does NOT pay you (at least not directly) for your photos. Yes, you read that correctly. Instagram is actually a social media platform for sharing photos, not a commercial app. However, there are three reasons why I’m still listing the Instagram app as a place to make money from your photos.

  • Sponsorships– You can make money from your mobile photos if you’re already on Instagram and have a lot of comments, likes or followers there. Companies (which also often have Instagram accounts) are likely to notice your social popularity and sponsor you to take photos of their products/services. This “discovery’ process is not guaranteed, however.
  • Instaprints– This website links to Instagram and enables you to sell your photos as physical prints (e.g., posters, greeting cards, mouse pads). You set your own rate for your photo, then Instaprints adds a flat fee for the physical product (which includes the Instaprints base fee). Upon purchase, Instaprints completes the printing and shipping of the physical image to the buyer. You are paid once a month via Paypal.
  • Twenty20– This site, previously called Instacanvas, also links to Instagram and maintains a gallery of your images, which buyers can peruse and purchase from for online download or for physical printing. Much like Instaprints, Twenty20 also handles the printing and shipping portions of the purchase. Unlike Instaprints, however, you cannot set your own rate. Twenty20 prices your images (a starting range is $2-$7/image) and gives you a 20% cut of each sale. Payments to your Paypal account are made once a month.

Snapwire

This app is a fusion between Foap and Twenty20 in terms of look-and-feel. Unlike the two aforementioned apps, however, Snapwire emphasizes the photographers, not their photos. As such, photographers get center stage here and their portfolios house their images. Snapwire also sets the image pay rate from $5 to $100, with photographers keeping 70% of the sale price.

Buyers can search by photographer and purchase their photos from the portfolios. However, Snapwire focuses more on contests (called Challenges) as a way to pay and reward photographers for their good work. Prize purses typically range from $25-$150, with the winning photos getting heavily promoted and thus having a good chance at making even more money.

This app also assigns point-based levels to photographers, with the scale ranging from Explorer>Shooter>Advanced>Expert>Elite>Pro. As you win Challenges or add more and better photos, you are assigned more points, which helps advance your status (and pay rate).

Stockimo

This app is offered by the biggest stock photo agency in the world, Alamy, and it was also one of the first paying apps to be offered for mobile photos. With Stockimo, you upload your photos and have the content “curated (i.e., rejected or accepted)” to fit the standards of the agency. Then, your content is priced according to the buyer’s usage intent. Example use rates include the following:

Advertisement: $500
Book use: $150
General/online use: $20

If you were an Alamy contributor prior to April 2014, you get 40% of all photo sales. After April 2014, new subscribers receive a 20% share of sales. Also, depending on the type of usage license you pick, your photos can be sold repeatedly.

Make even more money from your mobile photos

Learn to point and shoot.

Selling your mobile photos involves more than just snapping pictures of your dinner and uploading them. To make the really big bucks, you should first learn how to use all of the features on your smartphone camera, including its ISO, cropping/editing features, and (optional) effects. Also, take a basic photography course (such as through Coursera or Udacity) and learn how to compose your shots. While mobile apps don’t require that you have the latest and greatest DSLR on hand, they do require that you know a thing or two about taking pictures.

Tagging your photos is not an option.

If you wish for your mobile photos to be found by customers and companies, make sure you tag them. Excessively. In fact, there are even apps out there, such as TagsforLikes, that will help you create and store tags for social sites like Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. Akin to SEO, the easier you make it for people to find your photo content, the more likely it’ll be that your photos get viewed and purchased.

Special effects can help you.

Most professional stock photo sites turn away photos that are enhanced with special effects (e.g., stickers). However, mobile photos fit a wide variety of client needs including humor, real-time reporting, personal blogging, etc. Thus, investing a few bucks in a cool filter or photo effect tool like Aviary may actually open you up to new business opportunities.

If you do start enhancing your photos, create a special area for these images and keep them separate from the “normal” ones. This way, your customers won’t be bogged down by crazy purple landscapes or odd thought balloons while looking for basic stock photography. Meanwhile, those customers who are looking for such imagery will know where to go.

Follow (and duplicate) the trends.

Going back to SEO, you should follow what images are trending on your apps and add to that content as much as possible. For example, Foap frequently showcases and sells holiday and seasonal images. Thus, you could start shooting holiday/seasonal photos a few months ahead of time and have this content ready to go for the next upcoming holiday/season.

Likewise, news media networks often need stock photos to go along with a trending story, so keep your eye on the national news and tag your photos with keywords that would fall in line with a reporter’s topic search. In short, don’t keep your photos in a vacuum.