Grow your own drugs shocker

A DEVOTED gardener was shocked to find that rogues had planted illegal drugs in his allotment.

The disgruntled plot holder arrived at his patch to find a letter in his tool shed claiming to be from the "Bulgarian Buddhists on Benefits in England".
It explained that the people who wrote it were gypsies and wanted to move back home to their homeland but could not afford the airfare.
To raise funds, the crafty visitors planted a cannabis plant on the allotment which they hoped would be cultivated to sell around Slough to raise money for their journey.
The letter explained that they had seen a Buddhist flag that the gardener was flying as his wife is a Buddhist and thought he might help them in their plan.
It stated: "Hello sirs, we liking your flag very nice. You see we thinking you help very nice.
"Want you grow special smokey veggie for us with cabbages, so we sell, make money - we get plane home - everybody happy.
"So what we do, put pot smoky veg hiding already - we come in night and takeaway droogy."
Not wanting to be involved in the illegal drug trade, the plot holder, who wishes to remain anonymous, uprooted the plant and took the flag down.
He said: "They've got a cheek. If they're illegal immigrants and want to go home to Bulgaria, they shouldn't just presume they can get money for their flight by breaking the law and growing drugs on a vegetable plot.
"They probably saw the Buddhist flag, so I suppose they reckoned that if they're really Buddhists themselves, I'd be tolerant of what they were doing.
"On one side I see it could be a joke but it would be a joke with something illegal. If it was a joke it could have been at my expense if the police prosecuted, but luckily I nipped it in the bud.
"I'll certainly be keeping my eyes peeled for anything else strange."
Source http://www.sloughobserver.co.uk/

The Muslimah And Business

Strange subject. Especially when you're putting it alongside a Muslim woman. Business. Work. Or maybe all the words it denotes - making money, leaving the home, disrespect for the home, a failing in her duties..... Disrespect for the husband and in some sense, her Creator. None of these, however, is true about the Musilimah and business.
The most basic duty which the Muslimah must attend to is to obtain knowledge of her Lord and worship Him in the exact way that He demands that He be worshiped. After this, she must fulfill the basic roles for which she has been specifically chosen above her male counterpart. These are the role of tending the home, nursing the children, obeying her husband, beautifying herself for him, protecting the home from foreign intrusion in her husband's absence, and much more. In fulfilling these roles, she must package them as an act of worship for onward presentation to her Lord and Creator. These are the most basic acts that Allah has asked of His female slaves and they are the very deeds that the foremost of women, presented in the time of the Prophet (SAW).
After obtaining the capacity to carry out the tasks above, some of the women of virtue in the time of the Prophet, went a step further. They would engage themselves in business transactions, earn a decent and halal income, pay Zakkat, offer sadaqa and spend on their children and family. They went further to support their husbands with their wealth even when male dignity prevented their husbands from asking. In the tide and hails of wealth, they remained humble to their Lord and their husbands. They were blessed to know, that all their endeavours were acts of worship and did not spend of their wealth without their husband's consent. I think the most important thing to note about this subject is NOT HARAM or forbidden in anyway by the only deen of mankind, Islam.
It is to this post-basic extra mile of excellence that we call our womenfolk. It is a non-compulsory but permissible exercise in pursuit of excellence in the sight of Allah. What better creature than a wealthy Muslimah who obeys her Lord, is subservient to her husband, stays within the comfort of her home; exiting with her veil, only when necessity demands!
That said, I am a strong advocate of the Muslimah to make some money of her own for many reasons. I will mention the ones that have come to the fore in my few years of existence in this world:
1) Opportunity to do many acts of 'ibadah; creating business ideas that make living and worship easy for Muslims, using the wealth gathered for sadaqa, Zakat, Hajj, Umrah, etc.
2) A safety net against undesired but real events e.g the death or incapacitation of her husband, divorce, etc.
3) A means of keeping focused and chaste when single and waiting for the right man.
The world of business is demanding and distractive. To remain focused, the Muslimah must follow the texts of the Qur'an and Hadeeth, upon the understanding of the pious predecessor on her conduct as a Muslimah in business. She must act under such texts as:
"O Prophet! Tell your wives and daughters, and the believing women that they should cast (Yudnina 'Alaihinna) their outer garments (Jalabib) over them; so that it is likelier that they will be known and not harmed; and Allah is All-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Surah Ahzab, v. 59)"
"Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that will make for greater purity for them; and Allah is well acquainted with all that they do. And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands, their fathers, their fathers-in-law, their sons, their step sons, their brothers or their brothers' sons, or their sisters sons, or their women, or the slaves whom their right hands possess, or male servants free of physical needs, or small children who have no sense of the shame of sex; and that they should not strike their feet in order to draw attention to their hidden ornaments. And O' you believers! Turn you all together towards Allah, that you may attain bliss. (Surah Nur, v. 30-31).
Umar ibn al-Khattab (Allah be pleased with him) said: "No one may trade in our markets unless they have learned their fiqh, for otherwise they will eat unlawfully interest (riba) whether they like it or not." [Zabidi, Sharh Ihya 'Ulum al-Din, 1.130].
She must seek and be well grounded in knowledge about the rulings of Islam on business. When all this is done she may proceed to trade and take from contemporary knowledge of business, that which is permitted in Islam.
To start Muslimah, know who you are. Please do not attempt to start business without asking yourself that all important question. One of such pieces of information culled from the internet is as follows:
Starting a business is not about just making money, no matter how dire your financial situation or shaky your job. It is about solving a problem, giving service, adding value and making the life of others better. By its very nature, a business is a platform for you to give of yourself.
A business is propelled by a mission and a vision that is why companies have them (even if they don't mean it). How many of us with a business have a mission and vision and this can be translated into what we do? How many of us have a personal mission statement?
Before you start that business, know who you are, what you are good at, where your skills and passion lie, where you are now and where you are heading to. Answering these questions will give you the right focus and appreciation of what you are getting yourself into, and will help attract like minds as you for your dream team and attract resource towards fulfilling your mission.
Here are some questions you have to ponder on:
* Is this something you really want to do or you got talked into it?
* Why do you choose that line of business (what is your motive)?
* What is your passion?
* What skills do you have, where does your talents lie?
* Does your passion, talent and skills align with this business?
* What is unique in your offering (what are you adding to the marketplace)? Are you willing to stick with it even if you make no profit in the first 1 - 2 years or more?
* Are you happy doing this (or you are in it for the money)?
* Where do you see this business in 5 - 10 years?
* How will your business contribute to the larger society?
If you are in for the money, you will not go far. Profit is the byproduct of business fulfilling its mission.
So, a business idea is forming? What do I do next? Make Istikharah. Write it down, think it through, plan, discuss with your husband, family or friends who know you better. They would see the light in your eyes, the tremor in your voice and know that you are ready to begin and give you the courage to start.
There's a lot to do in starting a business, there are the decisions to make on learning the trade if you have no previous skills, registering, branding, marketing, getting staff (if need be), customer services, costs, costs and more costs but, there are also time-worn tricks of the trade in starting, people you can talk to, that can help you get going. Cost can be brought down by businesses coming together, leveraging on others' strengths and most of all starting small. Do not be afraid of new waters or competition. That's where the real grit of a business starts from. Make dua, more dua and even more dua.
Sisters are doing business from the privacy of their homes, over the internet, having delivery boys take orders around while they are on the phone, writing for magazines, writing books, selling jewellery, cooking, setting up libraries, opening crèches, the list is enormous and unending and each person can come up with something different and unique in her own idea once it's her own, her passion, her 'thing'...!
In summary, our exhortation is for our Muslim women to engage in halal business activities, after having tended to their primary roles as Muslim women. It is a call for our women to do that which is permissible of business, just like it was done by the female companions, and to do so in ways that neither distract from their primary duties nor bring them to sin.
May Allah guide and protect us all. Amin.
Source http://allafrica.com/

Solar Sister wants to light up rural Africa

Rugged, intuitive to use, affordable solar lamps that women can sell door-to-door change lives.

 By Esha Chhabra, Dowser.org
One-year-old start up Solar Sister is using cosmetics company AVON's model to distribute solar energy in Uganda, Sudan, and Rwanda. To learn more about the “business in a bag” model that's giving rural African women an income and a renewable light source, Dowser spoke to Katherine Lucey, Solar Sister's founder.

What was the problem you saw and how could you fill that need in a unique way?
Lucey: Problem: Gender-based technology gap in rural Africa. When I was doing work for a nonprofit that was installing solar energy in schools, clinics, and rural homes, the maintenance of the project, the adaptation of the solar wasn’t very good because we’d return a year later and find that 50 percent of the systems were not functioning. It was a very high fail rate. 

In rural Uganda, where 95 percent of the homes don’t have electricity, solar technology is a distributable energy source; so, it’s a very good solution to clean rural energy or actually, rural energy period. It just happens to be clean as well.
Also, the technology that we were using – the solar panel, the PVC, etc., was very "techie" and we were in homes where there was no technology. So, the women didn’t have a comfort zone with the technology that we were bringing into their home.
We realized that the women are responsible for the solar panel – it’s a household utility. So, there’s a gender gap there for technology. And that’s not specific to Uganda. It’s an issue here at home as well when you look at the gender ratio in science and math. It leans towards men.
That’s how I started thinking about how we can close that gap.

And the solution?
The AVON model for solar energy.
At the time that I was developing this idea, the design of the solar lamps became micro-solar. These are designed specifically for BoP [Base of the Pyramid] application. They’re rugged, very intuitive to use, affordable, and readily available. And it’s not as "techie;" it’s really just a light. So, the gap bridged. All of a sudden it’s a lot easier for women to use. You stick it out during the day; you bring it in at night; you flip a switch and you have light to read, cook, and even a source to charge your phone.
It’s also 1/10th the cost of a home solar system so it’s within the price point of these homes. They can range from $15 to $50, and when you’re already paying $2 a week for kerosene, it’s an investment that will pay off in a few months because you’ll no longer have to pay for an energy source. They use those extra funds then for better food, health care, and schooling fees.
And the price continues to drop as the technology evolves.
Did Solar Sisters pair with a micro-finance institution (MFI) to provide women entrepreneurs the initial capital needed for this "business in a bag" model?
No. Rather Solar Sister uses a "micro consignment" model versus micro franchise. These women don’t have to pay the franchise cost up front and we don’t work with MFIs.
For example, we had a lady, Viola, who signed up to be an entrepreneur. But she had just had a baby so was not able to sell immediately. If she had taken out a loan then she would have had to start paying back within a week or so. That would have been difficult in her situation and put her collateral at risk – her home.
Rather, we want them to sell and our intent is not to make money off the interest rates. So, we extend a loan ourselves by providing them the inventory.

Marylanders Still See Home Ownership as Sign They’ve ‘Made It’

Despite fallout from the mortgage crisis, home ownership is still seen as important.
By Nikki Gamer

 
At 22, Carrie Looney is already thinking ahead to purchasing a home to have as a legacy for the family she and her fiancée are planning. Like the majority of Americans in a recent national poll, she still sees home ownership as the pinnacle of the American dream.
According to The New York Times/CBS News poll released this week, nearly nine in 10 Americans believe home ownership is key to well-being and success in life despite the downturn in the economy and the housing market.
“We want kids, dogs. We definitely want to own and not rent,” said Looney, of Savage. “It will be something to pass on to the kids.”
Because of one of the worst declines in the housing market in decades, many Americans are wavering on their opinion of whether buying is financially advantageous, according to the poll.
But Rachel Berman, 32, a new mother and Columbia homeowner since 2008, remains committed to home ownership, and not just based on emotion.
“In the grand scheme of things, the benefits of renting don’t add up,” she said. “We tried very hard to stay within what we could afford and what we predicted we could afford.”
Owning property, in fact, seems to be at the core of the American identity.
“When you own a house I feel like you’ve made it,” said Erin Armstrong, 24, a native of Columbia.
A long-time realtor in the area agreed.
“I think people very much want to own homes,” said Lois Leahy of Columbia-based Keller Williams Realty Center. She’s been in the business 17 years. “I haven’t talked to anyone who has decided to rent because of what’s going on in the economy,” she said.
Leahy said that area buyers are looking at the mortgage crisis, with its accompanying lower interest rates and lower home prices, as an opportunity, while sellers are becoming more realistic about expectations due to the economic situation.
According to the national poll, nearly 25 percent of homeowners say their home is now worth less than what they owe on their mortgage.  Leahy added that it’s taken a long time for sellers to adjust their realities to the current market.
Statistically speaking, while the mortgage crisis has had an effect on housing in the area, Howard County has maintained relative stability. Single-family home prices and sales have dropped off only slightly.
In 2007, the price of a median single-family home was $435,000. To date in 2011, the median single-family home is priced at $390,000, a change of about 10 percent. Meanwhile home sales seem to be holding steady.
Leahy said she’s optimistic about the future of the Howard County housing market.
“I think our housing will continue to appreciate but it will be at a very slow and steady rate of appreciation,” Leahy said.
Bob Chew, a realtor with Ellicott City-based Long & Foster, was more cautious.
“I do think that we are on the right track,” Chew said. “But I think that we are subject to how the government handles the overall economy in terms of job creation. If the economy continues to falter then we could see a much longer time frame to get into a solid housing market.”
But Chew concurred that Howard County, which had an unemployment rate of 5.2 percent in May compared to the national average of 8.7 percent, has weathered the housing storm better than most.
Montgomery County is the only other county in the state with such low unemployment.
On the whole, the poll showed that more than half of Americans feel the country is going in the wrong direction economically.
“I think it’s going to get worse,” said Elkridge resident Opal Barnes. In the last five years, she said, she has had to face both family unemployment and foreclosure.
“The same thing that’s happening now will happen again,” Barnes said. “Who cares about the middle class anymore? I’m not motivated to buy another house. Once you miss that payment your life dissolves.”
Columbia resident Tricia Hayes, 49, said her views on home ownership have changed since the economy went southward. Hayes moved to Maryland from Indiana for a job and is now renting in Columbia.
She said she has had trouble selling her house in Indiana, which means she has had double the financial burden. She said she’s doubtful she will buy another home.
Overall, the poll showed, Americans are wary of the country’s economic future. Thirty-nine percent of those polled said they think the downturn is permanent.
Chew said he’s seen people’s ideas on the housing question do a turnaround since the beginning of the housing crisis.
“Before, people looked at it much more so as an investment, and a quick way to make money, rather than looking at housing for the long term,” Chew said.
He said the change is not necessarily bad.
“There is much more of an appropriate view now,” he said. “There is the joy of home ownership, and looking at is as a longer term investment.”
Click here to read The New York Times story on the poll. According to The Times, the poll was conducted by phone from June 24-28 with 979 adults. The poll has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points.

There are many ways to ease the financial pain

by Iain Laing, The Journal
As more big name store chains disappear from our high streets it seems the economy is showing little sign of revival. But ALOK DHANDA explains why we should be thinking positively
IT’S been another week of doom and gloom in the headlines, with big high-street names like Jane Norman, Habitat and Carpetright being badly hit by the ongoing lack of consumer confidence. UK retail sales fell 1.4% in May and the outlook looks far from rosy in the coming months.
When it comes to your own financial matters though, don’t let the negative press affect your mindset – the key is to stay positive. If you’re facing financial difficulties, don’t bury your head in the sand. You should seek financial advice as soon as you can, before things spiral out of control.
For many of us, the problem is that we spend more than we earn. By relying on overdrafts, loans and credit cards, we have created a lifestyle for ourselves and our families that we simply cannot afford. Realising that this is a problem is an important step in addressing our financial difficulties, or indeed, preventing any from happening in the future.
Start by drawing up a personal budget to assess your income and outgoings each month. This helps you to plan your spending more effectively. Alternatively, why not keep a diary of your spending habits. This will highlight where your disposable cash goes every month and it will also help you to identify where savings could be made.
It’s not just about number crunching though – you need to change your attitude towards money too. If you rely on your overdraft facility or credit card to help pay for your purchases on a month-by-month basis, then you need to scrutinise your lifestyle more closely. For example, if you buy lunch every day and spend around £3.50 each time, you’ll end up spending over £870 a year just on lunch. Make your lunch instead, it’s far cheaper.
Try to save money where you can and every time you pull out your purse or wallet, consider whether you really do need to buy a particular item.

There are lots of other ways to save, and make, money. Clear out your wardrobes and take a look in the attic for unused items, then hold a car boot sale or sell items on eBay to make some extra cash. Get creative with your money-making tactics and supplement your income by tutoring or let out one of your rooms – financial support is available via the Rent a Room scheme.
Simple changes to your daily routine, such as making a shopping list before venturing to the supermarket and then sticking to it, or taking up a free hobby that prevents you from spending money elsewhere, are easy to adopt.
Other useful tips include carrying just cash in your purse or wallet and leaving the credit cards at home. Or why not sleep on it before making a purchase. Chances are, you’ll realise that you don’t need to part with your cash after all, or you might find the item cheaper elsewhere.
As well as tackling your personal spending habits, you should also take a look at regular outgoings like insurance, gas and electricity. Shop around for the cheapest utility supplier in your area by taking a look at websites like www.uswitch.com and make sure you get the best deals for home, car and travel insurance by visiting price comparison websites like www.gocompare.com and www.moneysupermarket.com.
For those with mounting credit card debt, look out for 0% balance transfer offers which will give you the opportunity to clear off some of the balance, as opposed to covering just the interest charges every month.
The extra pounds you save from making these changes could then be put to use in areas of essential financial protection such as a life policy, a critical illness policy, or to top up your pension. Make sure you review all your policies regularly and make an appointment with your independent financial adviser.
An IFA can offer financial help for your business as well as your personal life, and can help you to assess all your options. For example, you might be able to free up equity in your home or access a policy you took out some years ago to help ease the current financial strain.
If on the other hand, you’re fortunate enough not to be experiencing problems with your money at the moment, don’t be complacent. You have to plan for the unexpected and advice can help you to prepare for all eventualities, as well as achieve your financial goals and protect your assets.
Remember that whatever your circumstances, options are available to improve your finances in both the short and long term.
Alok Dhanda runs Dhanda Financial, 52 Dean Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 1PG. Telephone 0191 255 8960, email alok@dhandafinancial.com or visit www.dhandafinancial.com.
Source http://www.nebusiness.co.uk/

Get the Most Bang for Your Real Estate Buck

By Claudia Chang

 When looking for a home, be sure to get the home with the most equity already in it. 

Purchasing a home is important for many reasons. First, we need a place for our families to live. Second, if you’re able to purchase, it’s a smarter financial decision than renting. Most homeowners know that’s true at tax time.
Purchasing a home is an investment. The idea is to hold onto the property for years so that you can gain equity through market growth and your own updates. Then, when you sell, you make money off of your investment. This is the same basic principal as putting money into a mutual fund.
In this market, where there’s a deal on every corner, it’s easier to purchase the home with some equity already in it. This would mean you would purchase the home for less than what it is worth, having a jumpstart on your equity accrual. Brilliant.
A good starting point to know if the value is good (but certainly not set in stone) is to look at the tax assessment. This is public information that can be viewed on the county website. It will give you an idea of what the home is worth but the appraisal is the real indicator.
When I show homes, I consistently notice a big difference in square footage when looking in the same price range. For example, I was showing Severn townhomes to a buyer last week in the $180,000-$210,000 price range.
Let’s compare a few of these properties.
First, we saw a 1,600 square-foot split foyer with some updates for $209,900.This home had three bedrooms and one and a half bathrooms and was built in 1978. The tax assessment is $185,100.
Next, we saw a 2,200 square foot, three level town home (also with updates) for $210,000. This town home had four bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms and was built in 1995. The tax assessment is $236,200.
Finally, we saw a 1,700 square foot, three level town home with updates for $180,000. This home featured three bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms and was built in 2003. The tax assessment is $180,700.
This is just an example of how drastic the difference is between square footage, bedrooms/bathrooms and price. It also shows you how the tax assessment is sometimes on point with the list price and other times, very different.
Searching for a home is about getting what your family needs and wants. It’s also an opportunity to make a smart investment so when you cash out in the future your payout is big.
Be sure to work closely with your real estate professional so you can get the best house, with the most square footage and most value for the least amount of money.
That’s a smart investment.

7 On Your Side: Home value confusion

NEW YORK (WABC) -- It looks like a 2 family house, complete with a separate basement apartment, with all the amenities. But looks can be deceiving.

"I freaked out. I gotta tell you. I really did," said Elizabeth Jorge, the homeowner.
That's because Elizabeth Jorge found out she really owns a one-family house in the eyes of the Bronx Department of Buildings and the certificate of occupancy on file there. The former bus driver bought her home 6 years ago and now found she paid tens of thousands more than she should have.
"I paid too much, over $80,000 more than the house was worth, I paid for it was a two-family house," Jorge said.
Her Morris Park house has a rental property downstairs, and the rental income helped the former bus driver and her husband qualify for a mortgage program when they bought the house back in 2004.
But this year when they tried to sell the house, their realtor unearthed city records going back to 1939 showing the house as a one-family.
"I have to sell it as a short sale, meaning it would ruin her credit and she's going to lose money, she s not gonna make money," said Maria Rosario, a realtor.
It's a mystery to her how the previous realtors missed the major discrepancy when the Jorges bought the home.
"I was screwed, not only by them, but the previous owners, the lawyer that was supposed to be protecting me, by NACA that was supposed to protect me, by Citibank, no one saw this, no one!" Jorge exclaimed.
The city has conflicting information on the house, while the DOB has it as a two-family, the Finance Department lists the Bogart Avenue house as a one-family.
After contacting all the parties involved when Elizabeth bought her house, the real estate attorney who represented her, agreed to pay a third of the architect's fee who's new blueprints will be necessary to change the status of the home.
Citibank says two city agencies had it down as a two-family house and that she should work with the city to resolve it. The nonprofit NACA agreed to give her any additional legal help but stopped short of helping to pay for to make this right.
Source http://abclocal.go.com/

Cuba plans limited housing and auto market

By Marc Frank

(Reuters) - Cuba will authorize limited housing and car markets by 2012, the Communist party newspaper Granma said on Friday, a move awaited by local residents since the early 1960s when home and most auto sales were banned.
  Granma, reporting on a recent meeting of top level party, government and other officials, said Cubans would still be prohibited from owning more than one home. But for the first time, they could buy and sell the dwellings with minimal government interference.
A ban on the buying and selling of cars registered after the 1959 Revolution will be completely lifted, Granma said, as will the prohibition on owning more than one vehicle.
The measures will not apply to foreigners unless they are permanent residents.
Cubans will have to pay a still undefined tax on the transactions and, in the case of homes, carry sales out through a state bank.
Regulations restricting inheritance and donations of a home will also be significantly loosened, Granma said. The changes would make it easier to sell property or pass it on to relatives upon death or before moving to another country, avoiding the now frequent confiscations by the state.
While there is legal home ownership in socialist Cuba, property owners cannot lawfully sell their houses. They can only do a swap, or "permuta," for another home, supposedly of equal value.
A thriving "permuta" market exists, and it is not unusual for money to be exchanged, but only under the table.
Car ownership in Cuba is permitted for a relatively privileged few, among them artists and athletes who have worked abroad, and doctors who have served overseas medical missions.
There is an exception for cars that predate the 1959 Revolution, mostly vintage American models that can be bought and sold freely by anyone. Long gone from roads in the rest of the world, they are still widely used as taxis in Cuba.
Plans to liberalize the sale of personal property were announced at a Communist Party Congress earlier this year upon the adoption of economic reforms. But they were moving ahead slowly due to the mountain of laws and regulations that existed, Granma said. The new deadline is the close of 2011, Granma said.
The news was music to the ears of most local residents who have bought and sold their homes and cars under the table for years and have complained about the bureaucracy and corruption that has grown up around the restrictions.
"It's great, and now all those people who have made our lives miserable and turned the regulations into a way to make money might have to earn a living," Marlen, a Havana nurse, quipped. She asked that her last name not be used.
Granma said authorization for buying and selling property would be performed by licensed notaries in the future, avoiding months and years of waiting for approval from various ministries and other government bodies.

Program to raise home values loses money

By Jessica Heffner, Staff Writer
A federal rehabilitation program meant to stabilize area home prices has cities losing thousands of dollars per project in an effort to make vacant homes “the best on the block.”
The city of Hamilton received $2.3 million and Middletown received $2.1 million in Neighborhood Stabilization Program funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in 2009.
Of those funds, 25 percent were used for the acquisition and rehabilitation of foreclosed properties. Another quarter of that must be used for housing with households with incomes less than 50 percent of the area median income. All other properties can only be sold to households making less than 120 percent of the median income, according to the guidelines.
This is no money-making venture for the cities. While HUD regulations mandate cities acquire the homes at a minimum of 1 percent below the market-appraised value, it specifies that a profit cannot be made upon resale.
The guidelines do not specifically indicate cities should lose money in the transaction, 
but HUD does encourage rehabilitation make the homes “the nicest and highest value on the block,” according to a feasibility analysis of the program made in conjunction with the Ohio Department of Development in 2009.
The funds are meant to fill the vacant housing stock and boost property values — thereby protecting existing homeowners in struggling neighborhoods, said Jim Cunningham, the Cincinnati HUD field office director
“It’s meant what it is called. It is meant to stabilize the neighborhood,” Cunningham said.
“We want them to renovate the homes with comparable amenities to the area as well as make it cost-reasonable and modest in design.”
Both cities certainly have an influx of vacant homes. There are 3,220 vacant housing units in Hamilton and 3,058 vacant housing units in Middletown, according to the 2010 U.S. Census.
Sale vs. resale
Using NSP funds, 10 homes were purchased in Middletown for a total of $444,150. Some of the homes are still under construction, but based on the city’s estimated rehab, closing costs and other miscellaneous expenses, the city will have lost $530,730 after selling the properties— more than what the homes cost.
“It’s being utilized the way HUD wants it to be utilized,” said Kyle Fuchs, HUD program administrator for MIddletown, of the money lost in the renovations. “It’s meant to stabilize the home values in the neighborhood.”
As to whether the work — and the amount of money lost in the venture — accomplished that goal has yet to be determined by Middletown or HUD.
“If there has been a significant impact to home values, I think from an economic standpoint it’s too soon to say,” Fuchs said.
It’s more difficult to calculate any loss in Hamilton because the city has left the future of the properties in the hands of Neighborhood Housing Services. That entity will be renting and selling properties — a practice allowed by HUD.
Due to internal policies, Eugene Scharf, administrator for Hamilton’s neighborhood development division, said the city will not allow a significant financial loss as a result of rehabilitating and selling NSP homes.
“We have strict guidelines from HUD for what we can and cannot do,” Scharf said. “But in the city of Hamilton, we do not rehab a house that will exceed 120 percent of the appraised value when finished.”
No homes in Hamilton have a final sale price listed on the Butler County auditor’s website. Drive-bys indicate most are still vacant or under construction.
Once completed, the homes will certainly be better than what the city started with, said Rick Karpowitz, a contractor who was working on an NSP property on South Fourth Street Thursday.
“It was a mess,” Karpowitz said of the three-story property built in 1901. It now sports new appliances, windows, HVAC and plumbing. A once unusable attic space has been remodeled into a master suite.
The homes are always repainted and usually receive new flooring and an exterior face-lift, but the end result is “more than lipstick,” said Kyle Fuchs, HUD program administrator for MIddletown.
Energy-efficiency is “encouraged” by HUD in the program’s regulations. In both Hamilton and Middletown, homes included in the project usually receive new appliances, plumbing systems, HVAC and new windows if necessary.
“These are almost brand-new houses when you get into them,” Fuchs said.
Those updates were certainly a draw for Kellie and Steve Metzger, who purchased an NSP home on Arlington Avenue in April.
“We’ll never have to think of the big item purchases,” Steve Metzger said.
The two-story home gleams from the street with its fresh paint job, new roof and professional landscaping.
“If everyone who got an NSP home is as happy as we are, then it’s a good program,” Kellie Metzger said. “We’re tickled pink.”
Their new home was vacant for three years prior to them moving in. The way Steve Metzger sees it, the city has increased area property values while offering an affordable home that will now be “getting paying taxpayers into it.”
“It’s a win-win for everybody,” he said.
Both Hamilton and Middletown received funding in the third round of NSP grants thanks to a distribution of funds received by Butler County. Neither city received funding in the second round. The cities will split about $1.3 million to be used for home rehabilitations as well as the demolition of blighted homes.
Since the national NSP program began — the first round of funding was given during the Bush administration — $258.1 million have been distributed in Ohio.

Oneupweb : Leveling-Up in the World of SEO

Like the World of Warcraft and Foursquare’s latest Risk-like incarnation, ruling the internet requires skill, luck and hours of persistence. And like these hyper-competitive realms, the internet is full of webmasters and companies grouping-up to battle the competition for a chance at riches, notoriety, as well as the favor of customers.

In online gaming, ‘leveling-up’ provides access to more formidable foes and powerful armor, weapons and spells to fall in love with—only to replace them the next day. Leveling-up your avatar in these games provides fleeting glory that quickly gets replaced with the reality that you’re not actually progressing, just getting a step closer to reaching the ‘level cap’—at which point you get sick of killing goblins and start worrying about battling bill collectors.
There’s a component in online marketing that works similar to levels. In the World of SEO, ‘PageRank‘ is a mystical relic that rates page relevancy according to Google. And like the dreaded eye of Sauron , its disapproving gaze haunts many sites while rewarding others. So when Google lowered its search homepage to 9 out of 10, SEO gurus immediately began prognosticating the ramifications; instead of focusing on what actually matters, “what can I do for my client’s site?”
It’s a similar story that plays-out whenever the latest rumor of a Google updates spreads. (think Panda) While it is human nature to get hung-up on the vanity of PageRank, keyword rankings and other performance indicators—importance still rests in how these factors translate into sales and your company’s success.
Like leveling-up your Dwarven cleric so he can use that 2-handed BattleHammer of Penultimate Infamy, customers don’t care about increasing your PageRank. They are looking to your site’s content and usability with the hopes that it leads to products and services that improve their livelihood.
Google proved that a perfect 10 PageRank isn’t the end-all, so don’t get caught-up in the leveling-up game; instead, get search engine optimization services that are focused on communicating the unique advantages of what you have to offer. Leave the guessing to the radio personalities and forum trolls.
Source http://www.straightupsearch.com/

Big Agencies Ink BrightEdge Deal

by Laurie Sullivan,

 As search engine optimization marketers earn a seat at the table, three of the top ad agencies have signed separate agreements with BrightEdge to offer clients automated SEO services globally.

The agencies include Performics, a performance marketing agency owned by Publicis Groupe; Resolution Media, an Omnicom Media Group digital marketing agency; and Rosetta, named one of the top 10 U.S. interactive agencies.
Jim Yu, BrightEdge CEO, said the agencies are not the first to sign up with the company, but they are the largest, with an estimated 200 marketers across the three companies worldwide. All can access the BrightEdge platform, which supports everything from desktop to social to local to mobile search. "All these variations of SEO make it important for companies and agencies to have technology to support the changes," he said.
The Web-based system, accessible through the cloud, gives marketers access to make quick changes to campaigns. BrightEdge's platform is done via an open API.
Yu points to the changes Google made in social earlier this week with the launch of Google+, and eight weeks prior with +1. Then there's Google's Panda algorithm update that aims to rid the Internet of duplicate copy and spam.
Search engines continue to accelerate the rate at which they make changes to the structure of search, requiring brands to become more vigilant in the way they build and run SEO campaigns.
Earlier this year, brands focused on "safe" SEO practices. For instance, the J.C. Penny paid link fiasco. Global, local and mobile SEO will become important, too.
"Seven of the top 10 retailers are BrightEdge customers," Yu said, quoting industry numbers that suggest mobile is 15% of the search queries today. "In the last six months, mobile has begun to drive purchase volume in ecommerce. First you see the volume, where traffic comes from the channel, and then you start to see revenue."

Brand New SEO and Website Design Service Offering Massively Reduced Rates With Mention of Press Release

For a limited time Top of the Burg is offering massively discounted prices on their SEO services.

(EMAILWIRE.COM, July 01, 2011 ) Fredericksburg, VA -- In response to the recent demand for highly effective SEO and web design services, Top of the Burg is announcing the release of their new website that users are calling: “The best small business SEO and website design services in Virginia.”

According to a recent report by Google, over 15 million new websites were registered in 2010 alone. What this means for website owners is more competition in an increasingly saturated market. For those who have set up their website and simply “hoped for the best,” they quickly learned that a focused SEO campaign is absolutely essential for online success. Having a great looking website at the back of Google is like having a professionally created billboard in the middle of the desert; it would work great if anyone were there to see it.

Answering the need for effective SEO packages at highly competitive rates, Top of the Burg is proud to announce their SEO service that cuts through all the over-used and under-effective “black hat” techniques and gets results in the fastest, most effective way possible.

They offer a variety of packages that can be customized according to each individual website’s needs. Attacking the best avenues for SEO such as backlinking, social media marketing, article marketing, press release marketing and RSS Aggregates, they can provide highly targeted SEO results without prompting any red flags from Google.

In addition to their SEO services, Top of the Burg is also announcing their Virginia web design services. Anyone who has ever surfed the internet knows that a website’s design can either make or break its success. A poorly designed website will increase bounce rates exponentially, and since the look and feel of a website is a direct representation of the company’s products and services, it’s essential to make a great first impression with a well designed interface.

According to Top of the Burg’s owners, “Our design services range from website design and redesign, web graphics, logo design and print graphics to search engine optimization (SEO), submissions, PHP programming and Flash for all types of businesses.”

For a limited time Top of the Burg is offering massively discounted prices on their SEO services. For clients who mention their press release in either an email or through the website’s “quick quote” feature, they receive $247 worth of SEO services for just $199. They’re professionally crafted websites are also being offered for the low price of $497.

To learn more about Top of the Burg, or to receive a free quote for their web design or business SEO plans, please visit: http://www.topoftheburg.com/

State of Search

By caiolae

Google, et al. are changing their algorithms – are you changing yours?

The rules for search have changed.

Since a February 2011 New York Times article alleged that J.C. Penney used a link scheme that violated Google’s Webmaster guidelines, major search engines Yahoo, Google and Bing have changed their algorithms to make them less vulnerable to manipulation.

According to the Times investigation, J.C. Penney had thousands of unrelated websites linking to its pages. J.C. Penney fired back, calling the investigation “misleading and unwarranted” and stating that it does not tolerate violations of its natural search policies — which, it said, reflect Google’s guidelines.

Whatever happened, one thing is certain: The article changed search strategies, says Mark Smith, founding partner of KeywordFirst, a search-engine marketing consultancy.

“There’s probably been more change and turmoil this year than there has for the last several years,” Smith says. “A lot of people have lost positions and rankings. That’s caused a lot of angst from retailers.”

Starting search fresh
Retailers are coming to firms like KeywordFirst to learn how to increase inbound links. But SEO experts can’t just wave a magic wand and bring the links back.

“It’s not an easy process,” Smith says. “They have to do it the old-fashioned way and that’s time consuming.”

 

KeywordFirst finds high-ranking websites that are relevant to retailers and has them link back to clients’ websites. “You have to be persistent and aggressive in getting those links, because that’s really going to move the dial,” Smith says.

It takes a lot more than just scraping some keywords off a suggestion tool to make paid search pay, and KeywordFirst has developed comprehensive, customized paid campaigns relevant to a client’s business.

“It’s understanding the business, understanding the language that their end users use when they search for products or services,” Smith says. It sounds awfully simple, but actually knowing your industry’s specific keywords goes a long way.

“Too often people try and win on general terms, but they miss the opportunity with niche keywords that could provide them with the most realistic opportunity to win in the SEO game,” Smith says.

Mobile search
Meanwhile, all trends toward search indicate it’s a mobile frenzy at the moment. According to a report from Forrester Research, retailers will spend some $220.9 million to capture these mobile search consumers this year.

That research complements a recent Oracle study, which found that 48 percent of consumers use their mobile devices to research or browse products and services. According to the report, this is up from 37 percent in an ATG consumer benchmark survey in July 2010 and from 27 percent in an ATG consumer cross-channel survey in November 2009.

Smith estimates that, by the end of the year, approximately 10 percent of all search queries will originate from a smartphone.

“We’re focusing on SEO, but the paid searches have become very important if you think about the real estate on a smartphone vs. a desktop,” he says. “You have six inches of space there and the combination of the natural search and the paid [search] is very critical.”

Facebook and Twitter feeds have also been de-emphasized within the algorithm, Smith says.
“That was a quick and easy way to get a number of links out there, but Google, Bing and Yahoo understood that possibly the system was being gamed a little bit,” he says. “This is the normal evolution of search-engine optimization. It’s been a cat-and-mouse game since this has started.”

It's Official: Salt Lake City is an SEO Hot Spot

Some have called Utah's technology industry "Silicon Slopes," because the tech sector is situated so close to the Wasatch Range. Adobe and Microsoft have offices in the state so it shouldn't surprise anyone that many search engine optimization firms call Utah home.
Because search engine optimization is a newer field, many working in SEO are only in their 20s. Some of the top SEO minds are college dropouts while others are still working on degrees. Some wear shorts and flip-flops to the office, but one thing remains constant: SEOs are passionate about getting their clients' websites to rank at the top of the search engines.
On Wednesday, rock stars in the industry, Seattle-based SEOmoz, visited Salt Lake City during the first stop on this summer's Family MozCation tour. SEOmoz is a leading provider of search engine optimization tools.
SEO.com attended the event. Because Utah has so many SEO professionals, SEOmoz CEO Rand Fishkin said Salt Lake City was an obvious choice for a tour stop.
"The Salt Lake City SEO community is absolutely phenomenal," Fishkin said. "If you are a website that wants to rank on the Internet you should come to Salt Lake City."
The couple hundred people who attended MozCation in Utah would compare with a crowd of 50,000 at a New York City SEO event, he said.
"In terms of population, it's a substantive number," Fishkin explained in between signing autographs and appearing in photos with fans.
Some employed in the industry said one reason so many SEO firms have opened in Utah is because of the friendly business climate in the state. Low taxes and few health care mandates make Utah a popular place for startups.
"There are a bunch of entrepreneurial minded people in Utah," said Tyson Hymas, an SEO manager at Utah-based SEO.com.
Colleges in Utah also churn out SEOs.
"Schools like the University of Utah and [Brigham Young University] pump out fairly technologically savvy students ready to make an impact," said Jordan Kasteler, a managing partner at BlueGlass in Salt Lake City. "Salt Lake and Utah County people tend to be well-educated and youthful thus an interest in the Internet and technology."
In May, SEOmoz requested nominations from cities interested in hosting a MozCation stop. Submissions from Utah poured in.
"I've been participating in local events in Utah for about six years, and have seen interest increase during that time. We have a great search community in Utah that heavily supports these local events," SEO.com President Ash Buckles said.
Fishkin was the main presenter. He spoke about social media and whether Facebook and Twitter posts influence search engine rankings.
Other MozCation meetups are planned this summer in Brazil, Peru and Spain.
"The fact that Salt Lake City is the only English-speaking destination on the MozCation tour speaks volumes about our SEO professionals, and our excitement about the industry," said Claye Stokes, an SEO director at SEO.com.
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For the original version on PRWeb visit: www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2011/7/prweb8616030.htm

Care home residents’ grand effort for charity

Paul Wadsworth, from Cancer Research UK, displays the Race For Life medals to Sheraton Court Care Home resident
KIND-HEARTED pensioners with a combined age of 955 turned back the years and took part in a charity event – raising almost £1,000 in the process.
The generous residents at Sheraton Court Care Home, in Hartlepool, helped to turn the town pink when they took part in this year’s Race For Life.
Four of the 11 pensioners who took part, including 90-year old Marie Smith, even managed to walk the 5km course along Seaton Carew seafront.
Marie was one of four residents in their 90s to complete the event and helped the home, in Warren Road, Hartlepool, to raise more than £900 for Cancer Research UK.
Marjorie Hard, 96, Janet Holmes, 94, and Peggy Swan, 90, all took their wheelchairs along to the mass event, which attracted more than 1,500 people, and were pushed around the course by care home staff.
Fellow residents Sarah Oliver, 89, Betty Macklam, 88, Elise Linton, 86 and Myra Hill, 79, also completed the course in their wheelchairs.
Sprightly pensioners Gladys Dolan, 84, Marion Moon, 80 and Margaret Lancaster, 79, joined Marie in lacing up their trainers and walking the distance.
Betty Macklam, one of the residents who took part, said: “It’s a great way of raising funds.”
Carole Thompson, Sheraton Court Care Home manager, was very proud of all of the residents who took part.
Carole said: “We decided to take part because most of our staff have a friend or family member who have some form of cancer.
“Also some of our residents who have lived with us have had cancer and some current residents have also been affected.” The event earlier this month was hailed a huge success by event organisers.
But representatives for Cancer Research UK are now asking participants to ensure they return the money they raised in sponsorship.
Holly Howey, Race For Life event manager for Hartlepool, said: “I would like to thank the team from Sheraton Court for the fantastic amount raised in support of Cancer Research UK.
“Race For Life in Hartlepool was a fantastic event and we are so very grateful to everyone who took part or supported our participants, as well as the wonderful volunteers who helped make the event happen.
“Now we are asking our supporters to return the money they have raised.”
For information visit the charity’s website by logging onto www.hartlepoolmail.co.uk and selecting the link at the bottom of this story.
Source http://www.hartlepoolmail.co.uk/

The Only Way to Buy an Investment Property

by Kris Sayce
Welcome to the first day of your pay cut.
From today, if you earn more than $50,000 a year, you’ll get less in your pay packet than you did last week… thanks to the Federal Government’s Flood Levy.
Of course, you know our opinion on that. The Flood Levy is merely a warm up to get you used to the Carbon Tax that will start next year. But we won’t bang on about that. We’ll leave that to our resident Carbon critic, Aaron Tyrrell – see below.
Yesterday one of our old broking pals asked why we hadn’t much to say on the Aussie housing market recently:
“Why haven’t you said much on the housing market recently”, he asked!
The simple answer is this: we’d become bored with it.
There’s only so much you can blow a trumpet before you get out of puff. We’ve been proved right, so enough said.
We warned the Aussie housing market was poised to crash…
We advised if you were thinking of buying a house with a big mortgage you should hold off.
And we advised if you already had a big mortgage and were worried about keeping up repayments you should seriously consider selling.
All up, it was sound advice…
House prices keep falling
Because as our pals at RPData show, house prices keep taking a beating:

 

Source RPData 

Not surprisingly, the two best performing Aussie cities are the home of the parasitic federal public service, and the home of the parasitic finance industry.
But here’s one word of warning. You should take all housing indices with a grain of salt.
For instance, Melbourne shows a 2.9% price drop. The fact is individual house prices have dropped much further. Anyone who thinks they’ll sell their home for 2.9% less than they could have a year ago is kidding themselves.
That works out as just a $15,000 discount on a $500,000 house.
In reality, if you want to sell now you’ve got to cut 10% – or $50,000 – off last year’s prices. Even then you’ll be lucky to get an offer.
And that price discount is only likely to grow.
For those in Perth, try taking 20-30% off last year’s prices and you’re closer to the mark.
Rental yields are gross
And as for the idea that rental yields are soaring. Take this quote from today’s The Age:
“While investors nationally have seen strong growth in rental yields, in Melbourne they declined to 3.8 per cent from a previous high in early 2009 of 4.5 per cent.”
Here’s how bad the yields are on housing:

 Source RPData

Note these are gross yields. And we mean that in two ways: it’s before costs… and it’s horrible.
We have no idea why anyone on the face of the Earth would take a 3.6% gross yield on a supposed asset. After all, it costs an arm and a leg to maintain and service, and you can get almost double that by sticking cash in the bank.
And forget about growth… you won’t get any in the housing market.
Let’s be honest, housing investment is as big a joke today as it was last year and the year before. If you’re thinking of buying an investment property today because you think it’ll double then let us be blunt…
After all the warnings we’ve given, you must be a mug.
We can’t put it any plainer than that. It’s not meant to offend, but there’s no point beating about the bush.
However, not all property investment is bad…
The only way to buy investment property
If you’re after a cheap deal because you want to buy a holiday home to use now or you want an investment property because you plan on living in it in the future (but you’ll rent it out in the meantime) – then sure that could work.
But only if you do it with no or low debt.
If you can pay cash, then we’ll say this: if you can find a bargain, go for it.
You’ll probably come out ahead on the deal. And even if you don’t, who cares? You’ll have gotten some enjoyment from it as either a holiday home or a future home. And you’ll have a positive cash flow if you rent it out.
And if you need to borrow for the same purpose, we’d say don’t take out a loan for more than 50%…
Plus, you should plan on paying the loan out within five years. That way you’ve kept the interest costs to an absolute minimum.
The key to property investing today is to forget everything the spruikers have told you.
They talk about taking out big loans and using equity (debt) in one home to buy another… being blunt again, that’s the road to financial poverty… don’t do it.
But if you treat housing as a consumption item, and you don’t care if you make a penny from it or not… amazing as it sounds, you’ll actually do well.
Simply because you won’t spend too much buying the property – you know it won’t double in price, therefore you won’t pay over the odds. You won’t take out a big mortgage. And because you know your return will be low you’ll be keen to pay off the mortgage quick to cut down on financing costs.
We’ve said it all along and we’ll say it again: housing is a bad investment, so don’t expect to make money from it.
Ignore the baby-boomers who think they’re geniuses for having the good fortune to buy property just as the biggest credit boom in living memory took hold.
What worked for them in the 1980s through to the early 2000s won’t work for you now.
The strategy of investing in property using excessive credit and equity (debt) from other properties is dead. The only way to invest in property today is with cash, or with as small a loan as possible.

Home Energy Assistance Program coming to Healy Senior Center on July 6

Are you struggling to pay for your utilities? Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) can help. On Wednesday, July 6, at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. the Redwood Community Action Agency will provide outreach and intake services for three utility programs that benefit low-to-moderate income households:
HEAP
You may qualify for a once a year energy rebate on your PG&E bill, or with the purchase of firewood or propane.
CARE
RCAA staff can enroll eligible households in the CARE program, which provides 20% discount on your PG&E bill every month.
California Lifeline Telephone Service
You may qualify for a program that provides basic local home telephone service at half the cost of normal basic telephone rates.
Last year, HEAP was able to help 62 people with their energy bills. The majority of the recipients received help purchasing firewood or propane.
In 2010, HEAP’s budget for the entire county was $1.1 million. This amount was spent helping people who couldn’t pay their utility bills and were in danger of having their utilities shut off as well as buying firewood, propane and fuel oil for heating.
HEAP Administrator Val Martinez says that the allocation is part of the federal budget and comes to the state in the form of a block grant that is allocated among the counties and administered through the Redwood Community Action Agency. Any low-income household is eligible for the assistance and can apply anytime during the year. Once a year, the HEAP staff do a concentrated outreach to the outlying areas, visiting Hoopa and Willow Creek as well as Redway in an effort to make sure that rural households have access to the program. They also use part of the money to hire local contractors to do small weatherization and fix-up projects for low income home owners.
Martinez says that the program took a big cut last year. The $1.1 million figure is about half of their previous allocation and anticipates another 50% cut for next year.
Information to bring
You must bring all of the following required documentation. Bring a photocopy of these items in addition to the original, it will make this process much faster.
1. Your most current PG&E bill (all pages) and a shut off notice if you have one.
2. Your most current propane bill, even if you are not applying for propane.
3. Proof of your entire households’ June 2011 income, such as bank statements or award letters: whatever income was received in June 2011 by everyone in your household.
We cannot help people who do not bring the required documentation with them. No exceptions
Be on time
You can pre-register by calling 923-2399. The first group of thirty people will be helped at 10 a.m. sharp and the second group will be at 1 p.m. Once they begin at the above mentioned times, no one will be able to enter the group.
Please understand that RCAA will be making copies of the documentation -- this takes a long time and keeps everyone waiting. The process will go quicker and smoother if you bring your own photocopies.
In order to qualify, you must fall within these income guidelines:
No. in household Maximum income allowed:
1 $2,072.28
2 $2,709.91
3 $3,347.54
4 $3,985.16
5 $4,622.79
6 $5,260.42
7 $5,379.97
For people who are 70 or older or anyone in a wheelchair, RCAA also offers this service over the phone. It is too late to take advantage of that service this year, but for 2012 you can get on the list by calling 444-3831, extension 202 between January 1 and March 31, 2012.
Source http://www.redwoodtimes.com

by Shelley Perry

I think when asked, most of us would say we like to travel. I mean, who doesn’t like the adventure and intrigue of seeing new places, experiencing different cultures or simply getting away from our daily lives for a bit of rest and relaxation?
Traveling is great, and it’s even better when you can make some money doing it. Most of us drag a camera along on our trips, taking those snapshots for posterity and bragging rights when we return home. But what if those same photos could actually help pay for your trip?
Once you get home, selling your trip photos online is a fun way to do just that but it’s also a fun way to make some money before you travel, too.
Take this shot of my niece and nephew for instance:
It has earned over $1,700, which has more then paid for my entire trip to see them, and then some; all from this one shot.
Or this photo, taken in my San Francisco hotel room:
It’s been downloaded (bought) over 600 times, bringing in more than enough for a flight to Paris or some other great destination.
You see, taking pictures while you travel can be both fun and lucrative too.
Like this shot of the Eiffel tower:
Nothing too spectacular…but it’s sold over 250 times.
Or this one from Charleston, South Carolina:

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Home » Expat-Advice » Travel » Four Photos That Might Shock You

Four Photos That Might Shock You

Posted on July 1, 2011 by Shelley Perry

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Your travel photos could help pay for your trip overseas

I think when asked, most of us would say we like to travel. I mean, who doesn’t like the adventure and intrigue of seeing new places, experiencing different cultures or simply getting away from our daily lives for a bit of rest and relaxation?
Traveling is great, and it’s even better when you can make some money doing it. Most of us drag a camera along on our trips, taking those snapshots for posterity and bragging rights when we return home. But what if those same photos could actually help pay for your trip?
Once you get home, selling your trip photos online is a fun way to do just that but it’s also a fun way to make some money before you travel, too.
Take this shot of my niece and nephew for instance:


It has earned over $1,700, which has more then paid for my entire trip to see them, and then some; all from this one shot.
Or this photo, taken in my San Francisco hotel room:

It’s been downloaded (bought) over 600 times, bringing in more than enough for a flight to Paris or some other great destination.
You see, taking pictures while you travel can be both fun and lucrative too.
Like this shot of the Eiffel tower:

Nothing too spectacular…but it’s sold over 250 times.
Or this one from Charleston, South Carolina:

It’s brought in over $900. Again, more than enough for a flight somewhere fantastic (where there are more photos to be taken I might add.)
Here are four tips I recommend to get you started:
1) First and foremost, you need a decent camera. Most online agencies have basic minimum standards for quality and while you don’t have to have the latest and greatest device with all the bells and whistles—you should have a camera with a proven track record.
(You generally can’t go wrong with Canon or Nikon for instance.) DSLR’s have better quality then point and shoots; however if you’re going the point and shoot route you may want to consider that “latest greatest” version. Shoot with the best quality, largest size options available for your camera. Quality is not something you want to scrimp on here, so bring along plenty of memory cards (memory is cheap nowadays) to get you through your trip. And don’t forget extra batteries and/or chargers.
2) Take better then average shots. I encourage people all the time to study composition as I believe this is one of the most critical aspects of photography that begins to set your shots apart from the pack and makes them more salable when you return home.
By all means take your memory snapshots—this is your vacation after all—but then also think about how a shot might be used by a designer; look at photos you see in magazines and advertisements and consider how you can mimic this type of composition. Show your surroundings, from the scenic view off your balcony to the nitty gritty details of the spa stones at the spa.
3) Take lots and lots of pictures. When you get home you can weed out the best shots; the more you take the more possible good shots you have to work with. Keep in mind that not every shot is a winner or salable and that’s alright, that’s why you want to take a lot while you’re there. Try, of course, to make each shot interesting. Looking at your subject from a variety of angles might give you a new idea or a fresh perspective … taking several shots will help ensure you get the right one.
4) Once you have had your glorious trip, taken all those photos and returned home, you will have to weed through your photos looking for the best ones. This might be one of the more daunting tasks of this whole process, but it’s also fun since you get to see and revisit all that you have experienced. It’s best to use a software program (like Adobe Lightroom) that can help make this less of a chore.
There are a few key things to look for when sorting out your best shots. First, look for the one with the best overall appeal. Then look for good, sharp focus and nice lighting. (Be forewarned: pop-up flash is not nice lighting). Once you have narrowed it down to the best shots you will want to do a little post-processing work (again with a software program like Lightroom) to make the photo the finished product that you will present for sale online.
There is a bit more involved to getting your photos from point a to b where they can start to pay for your travels, but having your trip and being paid for it too is not all that complicated and it really is a lot of fun.
Editor’s Note: If you like the idea of working or making money overseas, you may be interested in a free e-mail newsletter we recently launched. It’s called Fund Your Life