The Five Second Commute: This Year’s Latest and Greatest Home Business Ideas

Are you interested in the flexibility and profit potential of working for yourself? Working from home provides not only the shortest commute on the globe, but also an opportunity to build a small business without the pressure of an immense overhead. If you are interested in starting a home business, here are five fresh ideas that your community needs.

Eco-consultant. Many people are interested in living a cleaner, greener life, but they don’t know where to start. This has led to a whole new field for home businesses: eco-consultancy. Armed with knowledge of green home cleaners, appliances, and habits, you can step into homes and teach their residents how to reduce their carbon footprint by at least a sneaker size or two. Not only do eco-consultants get compensated well, they also have the great karma of doing something positive for their planet. There are a variety of ways to begin your career in this field; if you aren’t comfortable performing this job without back-up there are franchises and even direct sales positions in this field.

Party planner. These aren’t just for weddings and bar mitzvahs anymore. People are hiring party planners for occasions ranging from their dog’s birthday to their child’s baptism. The duties include basically managing the details of a medium or large gathering, which is not difficult so much as it is complicated. Best of all, there is almost no overhead because you only buy supplies as they are needed, and if you are good at your job you will be able to get by on word-of-mouth advertising.

Professional organizer. If you have flipped through the cable line-up lately, you surely have noticed that organization is a topic almost every American is interested in. Most people have the vague idea that they could do something more with their space and belongings if only they knew what to do. Many of these people hire professional organizers to step in and bring order to their home. However, not every area has these in-demand professionals, so you just might be the only contractor in your field. Home organization does require a certain amount of skills and knowledge, but if you are relatively organized yourself you are already halfway there.

Official pooper scooper. There is one nasty little chore that every pet owner would like to hire out, and that is picking up after Fido in the yard. For this reason, pooper scooper businesses are a huge and still growing field. Best of all, unlike the above options, there is no talent needed. A bucket, a shovel, and a good supply of plastic bags will get you started in this profitable home business.

Personal concierge. Do you know everybody who’s anybody in your area? Are you a master at finagling a reservation from a haughty maître d’? You may have what it takes to be a personal concierge. Basically, for a moderate fee you plan evenings and weekends out, even vacations. You find out what the client’s dream is and make it into reality. Many people with active social lives don’t have nearly enough time to manage them—but one thing they do have is money. You may just find that you have a ready, willing customer base from day one!