The desire to work from home can be so strong that it leads people right into the hands of a scammer.  Money and dreams get lost when this unfortunate thing happens.  Don’t become part of that statistic.  Be careful to do your preparation in order not to be tricked.  These steps include: carefully reading the terms of the opportunity and researching the Better Business Bureau, as well as investigating the source of income of the business.

The primary thing you must do to prevent a home business scam is investigate it by going to the Better Business Bureau.  This is a watchdog organization that keeps an eye on fraudulent business opportunities.  Their database holds all the information and you can gain access by either going online or calling them.  Regardless of the method that you use, they have a system in place to tell you how above board a home business is, or isn’t.

After doing that, you need to investigate the source of income of the home business.  Why should you do this?  Well, you want to ensure that the business is not a pyramid scheme.  How do we define a pyramid scheme?  It is a fraudulent business arrangement where monies from new members are used to pay old ones.  The scheme does not succeed when fresh members fail to join. 

In order to evade pyramid schemes, you must see if a home business is earning money from factors outside of membership.  Think about Avon, a home business where you sell makeup and additional products.  This is how both you and the company make your money.  Correct, you could earn money from signups, but that is not the only source of the opportunities income.  This is the reason behind their being considered a genuine home business opportunity. 

Anyway, once you have that information, you are ready for the final step: carefully reading the terms and conditions of the opportunity.  Be suspicious of offers that guarantee returns of huge amounts of money or that require the mailing of packages or brochures.  Either one of these might mean that this is a fraudulent mail order business.

Ensure that you are not deceived into a home business scam by carefully following the steps outlined in this article.  And, in the process, you can not only save your money but also preserve your dignity.

Carin Davis is the editor and webmaster of http://www.CarinDavis.net. A site dedicated to the development and training for Network Marketers and Home Business Owners.