Making Money with eHow

This week, I am preparing to try my hand at writing an article for eHow.  I planned to write my first article this past weekend but got tied up with completing the painting of a room in my house.  I will work on writing my first article this week and let you know when I get it posted. 

So, instead, I only managed to set up my eHow account.  Here are the things I observed while setting up my profile.

Setting Up a Profile

I had created an eHow account a while ago but had never set up my profile.  I completed the setup this past Saturday. 

I started with the avatar for my profile.  An avatar is the image that you will use to identify yourself.  I am using this animated avatar, which I got from my account with Yahoo! Answers. 

I did a brief search online for an interesting avatar, but soon grew bored.  I didn’t want to use an actual photo, so I cheated and took the avatar that I made for my Yahoo account and pulled it over to eHow.  I simply saved the avatar as a file in my iPhoto library on my Mac and uploaded it to eHow.  Fast and simple. 

There was a time where I didn’t place much stock in animated avatars, but they have grown on me.  I think it is important to have an image that identifies you and provides a consistent visual reference for your audience.  I’m not sure at this stage whether a photo is better for building creditability on a site such as eHow.  I wouldn’t have a problem with using a real photo, I just don’t have one suitable for this forum at this time.  I may change my avatar later. 

I also enabled Twitter in my profile.  eHow will notify Twitter whenever I publish or comment on an article.  I will set this up initially.  Once I publish a few articles and/or comment on other articles, I will be able to gauge what, if any, value there is in having Twitter enabled on eHow.  If it looks too spammy then I will disable the Twitter notifier.  Although I am very interested in marketing my works eHow and on here, I am very sensitive to things that might be perceived as spam.  So, I will play this by ear. 

Lastly, I completed the remaining fields in the profile builder, which include inputting Interests, Expertise, Education, and Favorites.

Earning Compensation for Writing

In order to earn compensation for writing articles on eHow, you must enroll in the Writer Compensation Program.  Only legal residents of the United States are permitted to enroll or the opportunity to earn money for articles.  When setting up a payment account with eHow, the site asks for your taxpayer name and ID.  So, if you are like me and write under a pen name, you will be required to enter your real name and social security number or employer ID number under which you pay your taxes.  eHow indicates that all such information is kept confidential.   

The Supplemental Terms of Use applicable to your Writer Compensation Program include the considerations used to determine whether and how much the author will be paid for an article.  The criterion is rather subjective and is in the sole discretion of eHow.  They are:

• Popularity of the article;
• Number and quality of inbound links to the article;
• Topicality and newsworthiness of the article content;
• Usefulness and applicability of the article content;
• User response to your articles, such as positive reviews and comments;
• Degree of specialization of the article content; and
• Quality of the writing.

I would imagine that things like ‘quality of inbound links’ and ‘usefulness and applicability’ could be pretty nebulous as applied to your work.  In addition, eHow also does not disclose the percentage of your earnings that they are taking, which is a negative in my opinion.  That being said, there is some earning potential here.  Since eHow articles tend to be basic how-to references on subjects in which the author may be an expert or at least very knowledgeable, there may not need to be a lot of research and other preparatory work that goes into writing articles for eHow.  In that case, the somewhat small effort that may go into writing an eHow article may offset the negatives of nebulous criterion and vague percentage breakdowns. 

Arbitrary Termination Provisions

Although this may not be a deal-breaker, every author publishing an article on eHow should be aware of the biting arbitrariness of eHow’s discretion to terminate your account “for any reason or no reason.” 

So, technically, eHow could just decide one day, for example, that it does not like that you spell your username, Marianne, with an ‘i’ and not a ‘y’ and terminate your account while blocking your access to the site.  Once your account is closed, eHow may continue to publish the article(s) that you have written, subject to its own terms for the removal or modification of content by you. 

It is not clear from the terms whether eHow will continue to compensate you for content you have published on the site once your account is terminated or whether you are able to get a distribution of monies already accumulated to your eHow account. 

It is important to have at least a marginal understanding of eHow’s terms and conditions before using the site to avoid surprises later on and to better leverage your awareness of the existing terms against your participation on the site. 

I may write a follow up post once I publish an article to eHow if I make any additional interesting observations.  Have you published any articles on eHow?  What have you observed about using the site?

MAKE MONEY MONDAYS is a forum to discuss ways in which you can create additional sources of income.  I try to focus on particular ideas and steps you can take to create alternative income and passive income sources.  I have also begun a series of posts called “Rental Property Conversion.”  This series follows my husband and I as we turn our property into a rental property.  I will also research and post other useful information in this category. If you like what you see here, please use the orange icon at the top right to receive my content updates by email or RSS reader.  

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Rental Property Conversion Series: Real Estate Management Walk-Thru

My next step in converting our primary residential property to a rental property is to hire a property manager.  The management agent that I expect to use is with Long & Foster and came highly recommended by a friend.  

Although Long & Foster’s management division is on the higher end of management fees, they offer a comprehensive service.  Since my husband and I will not be in the same state as our rental property when all is said and done, I may be willing to pay a little more for the peace of mind in knowing that proper care will be given my property and my tenants. 

With Long & Foster, I would pay the first month’s rent as commission, with a monthly management fee of 10% of the monthly rent.  The management fee is in addition to other fees for actual services or repairs procured by Long & Foster for the benefit of my property. 

On Friday, the L&F management agent came by and provided a walk-thru of my property wherein she noted things that I am required to do by law in DC in order to rent my property. 

Security Gates

I have three doors on the house, which provide access to the outside.  All three doors have security gates that require a key to lock and unlock the gate.  Pursuant to DC law, this is a fire hazard.  Therefore, I am required to replace the locks on these doors with single cylinder locks – locks which can be locked and unlocked by hand, without a key.  Since it may defeat the security function of the gate if someone can just reach around and unlock the gate with their hands, I could also add a welding component to the lock to hinder access from outside.  I am also permitted to just remove the security doors as I do not have an obligation provide the security doors as long as all main doors are steel doors. 

I will explore which is the least costly option.  I will probably remove the security doors and will need to install one steel door, as the other two are already steel. 

Fire Extinguishers

In DC, I am required to have a fire extinguisher mounted on the wall in the kitchen and in the hallway on the upper level.  This will be a simple installation that I will most likely do myself. 

Ground Fault Interrupters (GFIs)

The agent informed me that, in DC, you are required to have GFIs at all faucets, which would be in the bathrooms and the kitchen.  The GFI is pretty recognizable as the outlet with the colored reset buttons.  What isn’t clear to me is whether  you must have a GFI outlet at each faucet or whether, if there is an outlet near the faucet, then it must be a GFI. 

Really, it doesn’t matter for me because my house already has GFI outlets at each faucet. 

Other Tips

In addition to these things that I am required to do, she also made suggestions in a few other areas.

Make the Dehumidifier Disappear

She took note of a dehumidifier that I kept stored in a room at the back of my house.  She suggested that I keep it out of site when I am showing the property.  Apparently, a dehumidifier may give the impression that there are moisture problems in the home. 

I had already planned to get rid of it.  I’d used it a couple of years ago when I had a leaky roof that caused some moisture problems in one of my rooms.  I have since replaced the roof and rectified this problem.  So, I no longer need it. 

But, apparently a lot of other people in this city do because I listed it on craigslist this afternoon around noon and by 1p I’d already had 4 inquiries about it. 

Hire an Accountant

 She suggested that I hire an accountant to help me sort out the differences in personal taxation when including a rental property business.  As a general overview, she added that I should expect to report rental income as passive income and depreciate certain renovations and capital improvements to the property. 

This suggestion is timely, since I’d already been thinking about hiring an accountant on some other tax issues.  Now I can kill two birds with one stone. 

Insurance

In anticipation of converting my primary residence to a rental property, I am already preparing to convert my homeowners insurance to landlord insurance, which will include coverage for the property building and landlord liability. 

She also suggested that, in the event that the property is initially vacant when I move to MS, that I wait to convert my insurance to ensure the property is covered during the vacancy.  I haven’t researched this yet, but it seems that under a landlord policy, the building may not be covered unless and until there is a tenant in the property.  Thus, if the building is vandalized or burglarized while vacant, the homeowner is not covered under a landlord insurance policy. 

If you are taking on a rental property, whether or not you will hire a property manager, you should research your state’s property requirements for rental properties.  I’ve only had an initial interview with my prospective property manager.  She gave me some very good information and suggestions.  But, before I sign my management contract, I intend to do a bit of my own research on these and other issues that will be important as I get down to crunch time. 

Have you ever dealt with property management for a rental property?  I’d love to hear your stories.  Please share in the comment section, or, you may email me at suprieta@gmail.com.

MAKE MONEY MONDAYS is a forum to discuss ways in which you can create additional sources of income.  I try to focus on particular ideas and steps you can take to create alternative income and passive income sources.  I have also begun a series of posts called “Rental Property Conversion.”  This series follows my husband and I as we turn our property into a rental property.  I will also research and post other useful information in this category. If you like what you see here, please use the orange icon at the top right to receive my content updates by email or RSS reader.  

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Monthly Dividend Stocks as Steady Passive Income Sources

 

Stock Market Crises Over by Wagner T. Cassimiro

I found this photo of a New York Daily 1929 issue declaring the stock market crises over because the number of trades had crushed a previous peak by 4 million.  Wouldn’t it be great to see this in print again this year?  Or, maybe not, because we all know that the stock crisis rebounded in 1932, three years later, to worst ever lows.  I don’t pretend to know when the current stock market crisis will end, but I don’t propose behaving as if it will crash again in the next three years.  While I am aware of the risks lurking in the stock market now, I tend to believe that, with good leveraging behavior, there is still some money to be made there, such as with dividend-paying stocks.  Some of the risk of market depreciation can be offset by the income paid by these companies.   

I first introduced the topic of dividend investing in this post about choosing dividend stocks.  I discussed ways to screen dividend stocks for further consideration as presented by Mr. Harry Domash in an article he published on MSN.com.   In that post, I looked at quarterly dividend stocks for investment at this stage in the stock market.  But, what about stocks that pay dividends on a monthly basis?   Do the same parameters apply?  How reliable a passive income source are such stocks? 

 

What are monthly dividend stocks?

Monthly dividend stocks are stocks that pay out a fixed amount of cash per share of the stock on a monthly basis, as opposed to the more traditional quarterly, semi-annual or annual dividend payment schedules of most companies.  A dividend is the total annual amount paid out by a publicly-traded company based on that company’s earnings.  A company that pays out monthly dividends pays out a twelfth of its annual total dividend amount each month.  Christian M. Archer wrote a great article about the characteristics of monthly dividend stocks.  His explanation is very comprehensive and easy to follow.   It also makes sense that one could apply Mr. Domash’s parameters for screening dividend stocks to monthly dividend stocks.  His parameters look at the fundamentals of a company, which wouldn’t change based on its dividend schedule. 

Building a Steady Passive Income Stream

In his article, Mr. Christian Archer tells us that monthly dividend stocks are a reliable income source because of payment schedules enforced by SEC regulation.  He also tells us that the dividends paid by these stocks can be liquidated to cash or can be reinvested to our stock portfolio for purchasing shares of these or other stocks.  If dividends are reinvested to acquire additional dividend paying stocks, over time, our passive dividend income will also increase. 

While there is inherent risk in investing in publicly-traded companies on the stock market, a well-diversified portfolio – one containing different types of companies from different industries – should operate to provide leverage against significant market depreciation or decreasing dividends.  The dividends themselves also provide some leverage against depreciation.

A great starting point for researching top monthly dividend stocks is at the Wall Street News Network.  There, you can download the list of approximately 300+ monthly dividend stocks having a yield range from around 0.4% to around 48.9%.  The list apparently updates pretty frequently so this information is based on the March 1, 2009 list. 

I plan to keep an eye on monthly dividend stocks, as it is my intention to boost the number of income-producing companies in my portfolio over the next year.  Even still, I take all market information with a grain of salt these days as market conditions stabilize. 

What is your experience with monthly dividend stocks?  Do you think this is a good investment at this time in the stock market? 

MAKE MONEY MONDAYS is a forum to discuss ways in which you can create additional sources of income.  I try to focus on particular ideas and steps you can take to create alternative income and passive income sources.  

Choosing Dividend Stocks

Its Make Money Monday and I’d like to share some information that I found helpful in seeking out and choosing dividend-paying stocks for investment.  

The tide of the markets will be changing soon. Maybe it is already changing.  I feel that now is the time for me to invest in the stock market for the longer term.  In keeping with my goal of creating passive and alternative forms of income, I have decided to begin using a longer-term strategy for investing in the stock market than I have previously used.  I will begin investing in high-performing companies that pay dividends.

 I went looking for information about investing in companies that pay dividends and ran across this article by Harry Domash on MSN Money’s website.  It had some very useful information about screening dividend-paying stocks for investment.  Mr. Domash’s formula seems to be a good tool for finding promising, low volatility stocks that will pay good dividend income for some time to come.   

Mr. Domash talks about the parameters he uses to find promising dividend-paying stocks.   I’d like to share his parameters with you and tell you which companies I concluded were worth further investigation.  I started with the S&P’s dividend aristocrats list.  This is a list of companies that have increased their dividends steadily over the last 25 consecutive years.  After all, investing in a company that has increased its dividend steadily over the last 25 years, even through this economic downturn, definitely sounds like a good place to start.

While any of these aristocrat companies may make a good investment, Mr. Domash’s parameters offer an additional level of scrutiny to apply in choosing companies for investment.  The parameters were easy to follow and made good sense to someone like me who is an elementary-level investor.  I was able to find this information about the stocks on the aristocrat list by simply researching the companies on Google Finance and Yahoo Finance.  Mr. Domash’s list of parameters consists of:

1.            Current Dividend Yield is between 2.25% and 5%

A stock’s dividend yield is the amount of its dividend for the next twelve-month period divided by its share price. 

2.            Five Year Average Dividend Growth is >5%

3.            Return on Equity (ROE) is > Industry Average ROE

A stock’s return on equity is a company’s net income divided by its shareholder’s equity.  Mr. Domash recommends gauging the company’s profitability based on whether the company’s return on equity is greater than or equal to the average of the company’s overall industry.  

4.            Leverage Ratio < 10

Mr. Domash recommends using the leverage ratio to filter out the strongest dividend-paying banks.  The leverage ratio is a measurement of debt by calculating the total assets of a company divided by the amount of its shareholder’s equity.

5.            Earnings Per Share (EPS) Five Year Growth > 10%

A company’s earnings per share are generally equal to the company’s total annual earnings divided by its outstanding shares. 

6.            Mean Analyst Recommendation = Buy or Hold

7.            Institutional Ownership > 40%

Mr. Domash’s discussion of these parameters can be found here.

Using the list of dividend aristocrats and applying Domash’s parameters, with the exception of # 4 because I am not ready to get back into banks, I chose Avery Dennison (AVY) and Bemis Co. Inc. (BMS).   This begins my journey into dividend-paying stocks.  

I read recently that BMS will be making its twenty-sixth consecutive annual increase in dividends this year.  As for AVY, with Q4 profits falling 46% and a workforce cut of 10%, the maker of pressure-sensitive materials and office consumer products has gotten off to a rocky start this year.  But, my longer-term investment strategy requires me to stay through these occurrences so far at the beginning of this year and look forward to the payment of dividend income over the next twelve months.  I will do periodic follow ups throughout this year to monitor the health of these companies. 

Are you ready to get back into the stock market?  Would you consider investing in dividend-paying stocks?