Great start-up ideas that don't cost the earth..

As the economy slips and a recession looms there are other ways that you can earn a good income from home provided you are prepared to do some leg work and a bit of research.  

Using your skills or earning from a hobby is a great start.

With more and more people having to work, people are looking to save time and have other people prepare meals, and do  the ironing plus there is a growing trend  to buy home made goodies so you have a perfect opportunity to brush  up some skills, get creative and earn an income.

Here are some great ideas of things you can do from home that you can earn money from that wont cost the earth...

We've listed below tons of ideas to get you thinking on small businesses you can do from home that won't cost the earth and you can set up quickly.

LEARN FROM HOME:

Home learning is ideal if you have a family and cannot get out to local colleges.  We have found a great site that offers short courses at reasonable prices that will get the ball rolling for you. UKopen college has one of the largest selections of home study courses available and are continually looking to add courses that will be of value.  With over 600 courses to choose from the majority of which will lead to fully recognised awards and qualifications.  

www.ukopencollege.co.uk

MAKE MONEY ON THE INTERNET

Thousands of people are selling stuff  on e-bay and it's not difficult.

Turn out all your old clutter and you could make a fortune – unwanted gifts, clothes that are nearly new, all can be sold in cyberspace.

Alternatively, if you want the bigger picture and want to make a good income from e bay , get yourself up to the NEC trade fairs scattered throughout the year from clothing, to travel, gardening to interior design, gift ware to four legged friends and you will be in heaven shopping for things to sell at retail and make a profit on the internet – you will however need to set yourself up in business however small and get yourself a company name and some business cards to get your foot in the door.   You'll find the trade fairs at: www.thenec.co.uk  or in London look under www.eco.co.uk 

www.peopleperhour.com if you are looking for extra work - rates range from £15 - £25 per hour

sell old mobile handsets on line: www.findyourgooseberry.com buys handsets and refurbishes them before selling them on.  It will buy a handset providing it turns on and has an undamaged screen.

Sell your unwanted CDs and music:

If you have a stack of unwanted music lying around rather than throw them away sell them on the internet.  Visit: www.musicmagpie.com.  The website will pay between 25p and £3 each for CDs that users send in via its free trade in service.  You type in the barcode number of the CD you want to sell and the site makes a cash offer on each one.  A cheque is issued within 7 days of receipt.

On line bargains:

Many businesses are now turning to the internet to sell their surplus goods.  www.flogit.com is an auction site that helps businesses achieve top prices on eBay.