10 REAL work at home jobs you didn’t know about (and they’re hiring now)

Writer

What you do
You write articles either based on topics given to you or topics you suggest and have approved. Articles are submitted through the site and if they are approved, the money is deposited in your account. Since these companies act as middlemen between writers and clients, the pay is lower than if you were to go direct.

Pay
Often $10 – $15 per article but it varies by company.

Companies hiring right now
Demand Studios (also hiring Title Proofers, filmmakers, transcribers, and copyeditors)
Writers Research Group
Textbroker
Bright Hub
AssociatedContent.com
2.) Text Message Response Agent/Researcher

What you do
Using your computer, you respond to queries submitted via text message. Training is provided. There are very strict rules on accuracy and people have been dismissed very quickly for inaccuracies so that is something to know ahead of time.

Pay
You are paid per transaction so it will depend on the number of transactions but $3 – $12 per hour is common.

Companies hiring right now
kgb
AQA 63336
3.) Retail Merchandiser

What You Do
You work independently and go to grocery stores, drugstores and large discount stores that are part of your assigned route. You change out shopping cart ads, shelf ads, set up coupon machines, instal floor ads and other similar tasks. The job operates in a 4 week cycle. During ad-change week, you would work 20-35 hours and the other 3 weeks, you work 5-15 hours for the week. The hours are generally up to you as long as you complete them in the designated week. The work can be quite physical and lifting is required.

Pay
Around $8/hr. Many people make around $1000/month. 401(k) and insurance are sometimes available.

Companies hiring right now
SmartSource
Search the National Association for Retail Marketing Services job bank for current offerings
Other merchandising jobs also often found on Craigslist under Retail Jobs (or use this search from craiglook.com)
4.) Court Researcher

What you do
As a Court Researcher, you go to the courthouse to research items that have been assigned to you. You enter the information you find into a computer program such as Excel and then submit the information to the company.

Pay
You are paid per record but many make between $8 – $14/hr. depending on how fast you can work.

Companies hiring right now
Jellybean Services (Also search here to see if they have jobs in your area available. If a job is available in your area, there’s a good chance you will hear back.)
5.) Online Tutor or Teacher

What you do
Depending on the company, you may either create your own coursework and teach based on that or you may teach based on existing curriculum. Some teachers who have transitioned from the classroom to online teaching have been discouraged with how much administrative work is involved online and very little time with students. Some courses are based on commission so you may not be able to predict your pay.

Pay
Some positions are based on commission so you get paid according to the number of students. For non-commissioned teaching positions, pay is usually somewhat less than what teachers would get paid in the classroom.

Companies hiring right now
K12
Ed2Net Learning
A-1 Tutor
Berlitz (language instruction)
Coursebridge (opportunity to propose what you want to teach)
Creating Careers (sports, entrepreneurship, IT and employment skills tutors)
Educate Online (experience and teacher certificate required)
Kidspan
Onlinelearning
Thinkwell Corp. (instructors propose and write their own courses, paid by commission based on enrollment)
Tutor.com (math, science, social studies and English tutors)
Universalclass (4 year degree required and experience in your field)
6.) Scopist

What you do
A scopist is someone who edits the transcripts created by court reporters from their stenographic notes. Training is usually required. Of all the positions listed, this one seems to have of the higher satisfaction rates since the pay is good, the hours are flexible and if you can get hooked up with a court reporter long-term, the work is also steady. Getting the initial training and finding the court reporter to work with is likely the most difficult part.

Pay
Scopists are paid by the page but hourly rates can range between $15 and $35 depending on skill and the material.

Companies hiring right now
Positions can often be found by contacting court reporters and offering scoping services. A list can also be found here of current opportunties.
7.) Editor

What you do
Editors provide corrections and suggestions in reference to grammar, spelling, document flow, punctuation, and usage within strict deadlines ranging from 3 to 72 hours, depending upon the client’s request. He/She also must be skilled in Chicago, APA, AP, MLA, CSE, and other style manuals. Work is completed in 4 hour shifts.

Pay
You are paid 40 – 50% of what the client pays so editors make between $300 and $3000 every two weeks depending on how much work is done and the amount paid for the work.

Companies hiring right now
Papercheck
8.) Virtual Assistant

What you do
You provide administrative support which can include research, using software such as Microsoft Word or Excel and data entry.

Pay
Can range from $8 – $25/hr. depending on difficulty of job.

Companies hiring right now
There are some well-known VA companies that I won’t list here because they treat the VAs badly. Instead, search guru.com for “virtual assistant” and look at the jobs available there.
9.) Affiliate Marketer

What you do
You resell products and get paid for the sales. This is usually done by setting up a small website touting the benefits of the product and if somebody clicks on your affiliate link and buys the product, you earn money. Technical skills are a big plus but can be learned. Affiliate marketing is highly competitive and finding the right product is key. Learning curve can be steep if you have no technical background.

Pay
Totally dependent on the product you pick and the success you have in getting people to purchase.

Companies hiring right now
You don’t have to be hired by anyone to do this but there’s a fantastic step-by-step tutorial at http://www.hqhow.com/case-study-1/.
10.) Online Juror

What you do
You receive cases via email (often in the form of audio) and afterward, you answer questions with your thoughts on the case. Men have a better chance of getting an Online Juror position since there are so many females that sign-up and the companies need to try to maintain some balance between genders. People living near larger cities also report being given more cases.

Pay
Often as much as $25/hr. (or more, depending on complexity of the case) but you would usually work just a few hours sporadically.

Companies hiring now
JuryTest.Net
OnlineVerdict.com
Trial Practices Inc.
And 2 more bonus jobs on the list that you probably have heard about but continue to be popular choices for people who want to work at home…
11.) Telephone Agent

Nature of work
You answer calls that have been routed to your phone for various companies. Upselling is sometimes involved and hours can be hard to get. Experience varies between companies.

Pay
$8 – $10/hr is typical.

Companies hiring right now
There are dozens of companies that hire for this type of position. There’s an extensive list at http://www.ratracerebellion.com/CS_Comparison.html that should give you a list of companies though you will have to check to which ones are hiring right now.
12.) Transcriptionist

What you do
Transcriptionist take voice recordings (could be medical or non-medical) and transcribe the recordings into text. Training and transcription equipment are usually required. Jobs are becoming more difficult to find due to outsourcing to other countries and the use of voice recognition software. The pay can also be very low for the amount of work done, depending where you work.

Pay
Varies a lot between companies. Some pay by the page, many by the word. Obviously, the faster you type, the better.

Companies hiring right now
ANP Transcriptions (experience required)
American High-Tech Transcription, Inc.,
Caption Colorado (real-time captioning of local news)
ChaCha (transcribing questions from audio)
Cherry Lane Music Company (guitar transcribing)
SpeakWrite (general and legal)
eTranscription Solutions (experience required)
Fantastic Transcripts (work is flexible but in the office and you must be in Boston area)
Morningside Partners (news and financial)
Mountain West Processing (medical, legal, corporate for both entry-level and experienced)
Mulberry Studio
Neal R. Gross and Co., Inc. (court/legal transcription)
Net Transcripts (law enforcement, bilingual needed)
Quicktate
TASK Transcription (general/legal, 3 years experience required)
Tigerfish
TSI (experience required)
VITAC (transcription for deaf or hard-of-hearing)
Part-time professional option

And, finally, here’s a company that has part-time professional jobs. They aren’t work at home positions but part-time might work for some people.
10 til 2

If you want more information, the best source that I know of is the message boards at http://www.workplacelikehome.com. Free registration is required but the quality of the participants there is high. If you know of other reputable companies that are hiring right now, feel free to share in the comments. Good luck in your job search!