So, you’re ready to join the ranks of the self-employed and start your own business. You’re tired of corporate instability and employment uncertainty, and you’re ready to control your own financial destiny. Terrific. But wait just a minute, have you really considered some of the critical factors before taking the plunge into the home based business market?Many eager entrepreneurs, especially those unfortunate souls who have recently (or even not so recently) joined the unemployed, drive into the home based business industry without truly considering whether the decision to start up a new business is a wise decision.As a result, much time, money and eventually heartache is spent trying to launch and build a business that, with a little preparation and research could have been avoided. So, let’s get started with some basic factors to consider when determining whether should start your own home based business.First, determine whether the home based business you are considering is legitimate. Home based business scams abound and unfortunately in today’s climate, many individuals fall prey to unscrupulous operators looking to make a quick dollar on the unsuspecting potential business owner.When evaluating work from home opportunities, try a quick Google search by entering the business type and the word “scam” in the search bar. Generally, reviews for that business or product will appear, which will provide you with a good indication of whether your business opportunity is legitimate. Additionally, perusing online forums are a great way to see what others are saying about various home based business offerings.Second, make sure that you can truly afford any start-up costs associated with launching your new business. It’s important to understand the start up costs associated with launching and maintaining the business for the first year, and to ensure that you have the funding necessary to weather any slow cycles or seasons. Trying to scrimp and squeeze out the funding to launch, especially if you’re taking from other critical expenses such as your household budget, can place a strain on you both financially and emotionally.And finally, ask yourself whether you have the basic experience, knowledge and passion necessary for that particular business. It’s oftentimes much more difficult to start a business in an area in which you have little or no experience, knowledge or expertise. And, while it can be done, the most successful home based businesses are those where the owner has some level of understanding about the business opportunity or product offering. Thus, it’s best to try and ensure that your skills match the prospective business.Remember, regardless of the type of business you ultimately choose, any successful operation will require many hours of your time to manage and work the overall business. Initially, there will likely even be a period of hard work for very little results, as is the case with any new business venture. Therefore, the more passion you have for the business, the more willing you will be to put in the long hours required to build and maintain a successful home based business. For more information about home based businesses, visit http://www.thehomebasedbusinessreview.com

Hi, my name is Walt. I’m an auctioneer with 25 years of experience in the auction business and licensed in the state of MA. I own Quick Auction Service, a company that specializes in building and running custom auctions, I’m also the webmaster of my own site and have been on eBay for 8 years. Besides eBay, the types of auctions I run most frequently are antiques and on-site estate auctions, although I’ve run everything from business overstock auctions to charity & special event auctions.

I enjoy sharing my knowledge and stories of the auction business. My goal for article is to help folks get the absolute most out of their auction experience.

Whether your fresh out of the package or a seasoned dealer I think I can offer something in this article to help you with your auciton adventures.

There may be as many reasons to attend auctions as there are types of auctions to attend. Maybe you want to attend an auction to buy items for re-sale on eBay, or some other market. Maybe you want to furnish your home with wonderful antiques, or you want to furnish your home as inexpensively without sacrificing quality.Some folks are just looking for a fun night out. With a little perseverance all these things are possible.

There are antiques and estate auctions, auto auctions, overstock auctions, absolute and no reserve auctions, real estate auctions, specialty auctions where only one genre of items are sold, tailgate auctions, live auctions, online auctions, sealed bid auctions, silent auctions, charity and fund raising auctions and many more.

Can you really buy for pennies on the dollar at an auction? You bet! Many times I’ve seen folks buy and re-sell at the same auction on the same night for a good profit, although be advised, this should only be done after the auction is over.

There are a lot of ways to find an auction, but here are some tips on how to find and attend the best ones.

Visit the genre of shops in the area that apply to the type of auction you want to attend. IE: If your looking for a good antique auction to attend, stop in the local antiques shops and ask for what there are for good auctions in the area. Sounds obvious right? But listen to what they don’t say as well as what they do say. Oftentimes when a dealer speaks poorly about an auction he or she attends, it may be likely that they are trying to keep a good thing secret. Think for a moment, why would a dealer keep attending a lousy auction?

Newspaper ads: I personally like to find ads in the classified ad section rather than flashy display ads. Flashy ads are usually indicative of an auction that will be high priced, may have reserves, (a set price on an item), and usually an enormous crowd. While any auction can be profitable to attend, it is usually best to steer clear of the glitzy ones, at least for the beginner.

Here’s the minimum you want to find out before you go. If there is a phone number in the ad, call and ask for the terms of the sale. What forms of payment do they accept? Is it an absolute auction? An absolute auction is one that has no minimum or reserve bids on items. These are the best auctions to attend! Is there a buyers premium? A buyers premium is like a tax that everyone who makes purchases at that auction must pay above the winning bid price. Most auctions these days do charge a buyers premium, 10% is not unreasonable but I feel much more than that is greedy, and the auctioneer that charges over 10% is counting on most bidders not doing the extra math as the bids quicken in pace.

A fair auction will have ample time to inspect the merchandise, usually at least 2 or 3 hours. Find out when inspection starts and make sure to attend! Never attend an auction if you can’t make the inspection, not unless your prepared to gamble. Most auctioneers sell at a rate of about 100 items per hour, which is why they sell “as is”. They simply don’t have the time to give a detailed description of all the items. Since almost all items at auction are sold AS IS, there are sure to be some damaged, refinished, fake and incomplete items at any given auction. Beware of any auctions that offer very little or no inspection time.

Good auctions will usually have 150 to 400 lots. A lot may be one item or a group of items. The exception to this are specialty auctions, auto auctions, real estate auctions etc.

When you attend your first sale, take note of the 1/2 dozen or so dealers that buy the most often. See if you can find out about other area auctions they attend.

When you do find an excellent auction, attend it as often as possible. By frequenting good sales, you help increase the bottom line of that business. It’s difficult for many auctioneers to keep the quality of merchandise consistent, so good attendance certainly helps. And when an auctioneer gets to know you as a buyer, he/she will go out of the way to accommodate you, to keep you coming back.