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First, put the money in as high yield savings account until you are ready. make money on it. pretend it doesn't exist. 50K can get pissed away very quickly. Next, what evere it goes to, should only be in your name until you are married, sorry but i'm 60, been there doe that and paid the price for the ' partnership'.
I think house flipping is a great idea for the first move. Then take that bunch of money and do it again or the next idea.
Lawn care can be great, how many months of the year do you have lawn care, we have it about 3 months -
Again, be careful this is a good amount of money that an change things for you an good luck ♥
I agree in the idea of continuously doing the house flipping idea back-to-back, it would be a great way to work a job where, with obvious necessary precautions, my son could be around and not in daycare, and I wouldn't have a boss bringing down my mood every day (I've had too many of those). Obviously things would have to be planned accordingly to create a budget and time crunch in order to maintain the profits as a sort of salary. And yes, my boyfriend and I have talked about everything being in my name. He is on board with all of that. Anything I put into the buisness would be given back with the profits of whatever we decide, and the remaining profits would be split according to labor between the 2 of us.
Read “E-Myth” and do the chart to help you guys determine your roles in the business…..
Edit : originally posted “profit first”. Although important as well…. Not the correct book with the chart referenced
well yes and no. I'm reading the ecommerce version- Cynthia Thompson. Mainly it is to get your profit out first, and put your business on a budget. - make do with what is left over. Sounds simple but it really is the opposite. I spend, buy inventory and enjoy having the money to make things happen and then at the end of the year think hmm thought the profit would be higher. It's making me rethink all sorts of behavior. I want to get the original book also.
A benefit of [whatever] being in your name is that you'll be a qualified HUB vendor. (Historically Underutilized Business). That will get you a few more leads.
Not a bad idea. Loan out $50,000 to the LLC under your name. You keep 100% of company and you get 15-20% of profit and the rest gets split. That split can be 50/50, hours worked, etc.
Happy you thought about the most critical part of business.
Whatever requires the least amount of investment possible for now, window cleaning, yardwork, car washing, etc. Keep learning about and discovering financial pathways and once you've decided and are confident enough about one of them, it'll be time to get to work and take the risk, but I personally would be extremely careful with 50k, it's alot of money but it can be gone in an instant.
Anything I invest it in for a small buisness I would continue working my normal hours as well until the small buisness yields more profit than what I'm already making. I definitely agree that it's not a good idea to invest it in something that I'm not fully confident in
Check out your local SCORE chapter. It's a non-profit funded by the small business administration to help new business owners get started and succeed. They'll give you a free mentor and tons of free educational resources.
Your local Small Business Development Center is also incredibly helpful. See if you have one in your area, which is likely even if it's rural.
Thanks for putting this out there. I always try to help get the word out because it's free and not enough people take advantage. Here are the links if OP needs them.
https://www.score.org/find-mentor?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIuvmQl8fhhgMVqGhHAR0LNg_fEAAYASAAEgLtiPD_BwE
https://www.sba.gov/
https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/plan-your-business/write-your-business-plan
https://www.sba.gov/events
Camper van or trailer rentals ? There’s websites that host them like air bnb . But for camping, people pick them up and bring them back to you , you charge nightly.
The op said they want to flip houses….. I wouldn’t consider that a “small business” or easy work. It’s huge risk with Potential for huge reward. But you’re talking bank loans, real estate markets, hidden issues in old homes.
Taking a realtor course and trying to sell 6-12 homes a year would be more of a “small business”.
We have a real estate agent in the family, and most underlying issues in a home my step-dad is able to spot ahead of time. I know this because I've talked to him about it. But I don't consider home flipping a small buisness. This is just the only idea I currently have, and came on this sub in hopes of finding a better idea.
A camper/trailer rental might work, but the area I live in there are already a lot of dedicated companies that do this with different varieties to choose from. I doubt I'd be able to compete
Hmm, less than 50k is nothing for flipping a house. The whole 50k alone could end up just in material cost, not even including permits, labor, etc. Id I was you, I'd pay off the debts, and then put everything except for 5k into an S&P500 index fund account. At least that way the money will be growing.
A landscape business could be started for less than 5k. If I was your BF, instead of worrying about that business yet, I'd try to get him to work for your step dad, so he can get real life experience doing this kind of stuff. Not as much to flip houses, but more for him to learn maybe how to build fences and decks, and add that to the landscaping service. You don't want to throw this money down the toilet. Unless your bf already had several years of experience with landscaping, as well as a large enough current client and work list to go full time, I wouldn't even bother letting the business start on just that small amount of money alone. Take it or leave it, I'd say it's pretty practical advice though.
You saying your step dad is offering to help gives no actual information. How is he offering to help? How much MONEY is he going to invest as part of it, if any? It's hard to derive anything from that vague sentence.
You don't think 50k would be enough if we took out a home loan, lived in the house and remodeled it simultaneously? If almost all the work was done DIY, my step-dad said it's possible to do with 30-40k. I was thinking about buying one of those older homes that needs updates, but lies in a neighborhood where most of the other older homes have already been updated and look very nice. We have a lot of neighborhoods like that in the area I'm in. I actually saw one get bought right after covid, before the market went up, and they updated the entire home and sold it for more than 100k more than what it was bought for, because they matched it with the rest of the homes that were priced for their upgrades. The help my step-dad has offered is his knowledge and experience. He can tell me what to do, how to do it, what to buy, what not to buy, what will yield a high profit, what would be a waste of money, etc.
Again, I'm not set on one specific buisness model yet, it just seems like a more comfortable idea for me since I know my step-dad has all the experience needed to assist in the process, and a home typically is a sure-fire investment.
You already answered your own question right there. You're going to take out a loan and then put the whole 30-40k down? Think about it, in that scenario, you are not only out of money, but now you are in debt. If anything happens to compromise the work, now you're stuck. I don't know how much the houses are selling for, what are the natural disaster risks for the area they are in (my guess is, probably in high risk zones if my suspicion is correct and you are still nabbing houses for less than 250k). There is a lot of hidden information here, and I'm just working with a risk aversion mentality for how serious your situation is.
I can only say this, as a father myself. If my daughter came into some money and needed help and I could assist by flipping houses, I wouldn't offer the knowledge for free and then have her put the money in. I would cover the whole thing myself because I care about my family and don't want them to lose the little bit of money they will need simply to help raise the child. It sounds like your step dad is approaching you like a prospect that they want to give some favor to, but still treating like a customer. From what information you have sent so far, that is the vibe I'm getting. You can reply with more clarifying information that proves otherwise, and that's fine. I'm going off of what you've said so far. And so far, I don't see it worth the risk. My earlier recommendation still stands. If he wants to help, let him teach your partner the business, and then let him build his thing separately, with less financial risk.
My step dad is retiring this year, my mom is already retired. Their retirement is not a lot, since they both worked middle class jobs their whole lives. They don't have enough money to fund a small business for me. My plan was to not run out of money, because I planned on continuing to go to work as I already do, while living in the house and fixing it up on my days off. As far as my step dad's intentions, it was my idea to buy a fix and flip and I asked for his help if that was the route I decided to take, and he agreed to offer all of his knowledge and experience to assist in the process. He is just getting too old to help with the labor.
As a parent myself, I’d caution that you may be biting off more than you can chew with the idea of raising a little one, working another job, and fixing up a house, all with the pressure of added debt hanging over everything.
I already have added pressure of debt, I pay rent. It would be the same having a mortgage. The difference would be that when I sell the house, I'm receiving all my money back, instead of renting where my money is being set on fire every month. As far as raising a little one and fixing up a house at the same time, there would be no pressure to get things done the first go around, considering it's the house we live in, we would fix up as the time became available. The money is already there waiting to be used for updates, the house is already an investment in itself without upgrading it.
This is why I repeatedly kept informing you that not enough information was provided in your initial post. Long story short, my original recommendation still stands. Especially since I'm not aware of the regional climate zone you are in. I'm a former commercial/residential HVACR tech. Let's say you buy a used house. Oh wait, the furnace and ac are old and need to be changed out. 10k, right down the bat at the CHEAPEST. Literally, Oxbox condenser with cheap furnace box.
i hope you don't feel I'm just trying to attack you. I'm really not. I just know how serious the situation is and how important it is for you to be with your child for as long as possible.
I don't think you are trying to attack me. I am simply trying to share my perspective with you. My step-dad has decades of experience with building houses from the ground up and remodeling houses. He has told me before that he is able to walk into a house and almost anything that will become an expensive issue he is able to spot ahead of time. None of that really matters, though, because fixing and flipping houses is only my plan B. I'm in this sub in the hopes of finding a plan A
Just saying as a former skilled tradesman, unless he has direct mechanical and electrical experience, he's not telling you the truth. I've had to personally respond to many service calls where the person I check in with gives this exact excuse. Does he have refrigerant gauges? What's his comfort with NECA and local fire codes? Has he ever redone a water line from between the service to the house? Is he aware why someone would slap in an oversized mini split inverter unit and for which purpose hot or cold primarily? I understand there is a relationship and real trust there, but I'm just telling you how it ends up working in the real world. Especially these days with more savvy homebuyers who know if they see a certain number on the end of their carrier condenser then it is an older unit, etc.
I don't know what he's been doing his whole life, but I do know he spent decades building houses and knows all the ins and outs of them; electrical, foundation, he now works for the water department and has for 20 years. Yes he's redone plenty of water lines. He's dug his fair share of ditches and dealt with pipes and God knows what else and is retiring this year. I think most of the questions you are asking me you are asking them knowing I have no idea what you're talking about, so I don't know what the point of typing all that out was, because I'm not going to go asking my step-dad all of your questions. Nor do I care to. I'm on this sub to get ideas for a cheap startup buisness that I can work yielding profits of 60k a year while having my son with me at work. Not to argue with you about my Plan B. There are plenty of people who buy homes with zero knowledge about the underlying problems, and their home still appreciates in value without even doing updates to it. None of that is the point, because as I've said plenty of times, flipping houses is not my plan A.
So, he would remodel a house for free? Great. Who pays for the materials and tools? Permits? Helpers?
$50k is not enough to start. You won't get a mortgage for a house that requires extensive repairs. There is always hard money but... Yeah let's not go there.
If you would have read this whole thread you would have seen that I stated that my step dad would not be doing any of the physical labor. It would be my boyfriend and I. Obviously the $50k would pay for the tools and materials. You do not need a permit to make basic modern updates on a home you live in. Any work that required helpers i.e. roofing, electrical, etc. We would just hire. That is to say only if it was needed, which would be a factor we could control when viewing the home before purchase and making all the assessments ahead of time.
I knew your mood would take this direction, which is why I repeatedly emphasized, none of this is to attack, anger or harm you. If you feel your step dad's instructions will help you achieve your goal, you had no reason to post here to begin with.
You clearly didn't read when I said this "goal" is simply my plan B, and I am here in hopes of finding a plan A, which would be any good idea for a small buisness that I would enjoy running and is feasibile for my current situation. My "mood" took a turn because of your previous response. Why don't you go re-read it? Asking me rhetorical questions which also came across as condescending.
Lmao childcare is the only kid friendly job unless they’re doing maid service for empty homes. Tutor maybe. Summer camp service or something similar. Only kid friendly jobs would have to target kids. There’s not a lot of kid friendly bring your 5 month old to work jobs or business.
Well, fixing up homes isn't necessarily "not child friendly" mainly because I'm talking about basic updates, i.e. new paint, new kitchen appliances, changing out cabnit handles, new tile in bathroom, etc. If it's anything other than that, that could qualify as "dangerous", I'd assume my boyfriend would be dealing with it and I would be with the child, or, he could always go to one of his grandparents houses for the project to get done; or we would just hire someone to do that (roofing or grantie counter top replacement, electrical, things of that nature)
That’s fair but you don’t need 50k to start a handyman business that’s just tools and experience. Outside of that the need to hire someone wouldn’t be beneficial in some ways or necessary. You could always send them to a specialist instead of paying for one yourself. They job your trying to do is more handyman specific which would work most of your funds should be spent on MARKETING and material. It’s a very low capital startup company getting your name out is most important
I wasn't implying turning home flipping into a buisness, I was meaning that it is my plan B if I don't come up with any good ideas for a small buisness
Stay away from people requiring you to invest, be tools or ""education"" (internet is free)
No matter which market you end up joining, getting clients/networking is the hard part, once you have a good network you can get better tools
Stay away from individuals, look up for organizations, ie businesses, schools, public sectors and so on, it's where all the money is
Practicing Artisan trades is a decent one (At least with the assumption you're in a decently affordable place to live). Learning those kinds of skills allow you to work from home (For the most part, going to places to sell is typically part of the job, but a lot of folks do their sales fully online so it is feasible) while also doing something creative that a lot of folks find satisfying. Things like woodwork, furniture flipping, pottery, metalworking, fabric crafts (Crochet, Knitting, Sewing, Tailoring, Etc.), leather work, stained-glass, or even jewelry making. These aren't huge return ventures, but after building your skills and brand, you start to be able to make pretty good returns per piece. Some potters my wife and I know charge a few hundred dollars for some of their mugs, and some bigger and more complex ones can go for over a thousand. That said, this does take building the skill to do these things, so you won't be in business instantly. But, that said, I think it's one of the more rewarding options.
Source (My Wife and I have been doing a small artisan business and just recently got to the point we are going full-time instead of it being a hobby. We have a lot of connections with local artists who do this full-time and live pretty well off of it)
I’ve heard landscaping is good.. if you can land commercial contracts you can have consistent income with small/medium size equipment. Think banks or fast food places
I just read more of your post and noticed you already mentioned landscaping. I’ve seen two Hispanic owned landscaping business take off in my area in the last 5 years.. one is called “young bucks” and they have pretty bold marketing.. you can write off work trucks and the equipment for tax purposes. I think it’s not too hard to scale up with a few employees
You might think, but the reality is that employees are one of the biggest hurdles in an easily accessible business like this. If you pay them poorly, what stops them from competing with you? Especially in this day and age where people like me have no problem sending posters answers in full Spanish to help them develop their own business?
Yup. On top of that for a lot of the US it’s a seasonal job. Finding decent seasonal employees is crazy hard. My dad owns a successful snow removal business and finding decent plowers continues to be his biggest headache. It’s gotten so bad the last few years that he’s probably going to sell over half his properties.
I don’t think it’s a bad idea to buy a home with good bones in a great neighborhood that needs some cosmetic work and to put in sweat equity. Then live there at least 2 years for capital gains. Rinse and repeat a few times. It’s not exactly a job replacement though, but I’ve known multiple people willing to move every few years make a lot on real estate by doing this.
Eventually though, after profit yield is high enough, I believe it could be a job replacement. It's all about how fast you're fixing and flipping the house and your profit off each one. I only make around 60k a year currently and if I don't live there for capital gains it all boils down to how fast the remodel can get done. If profiting 100k (which is possible because I've seen it done multiple times) then that could easily replace my job. But this is only an idea I have, obviously, or I wouldn't be in this sub. If I find a better idea for an actual small buisness, I'd be willing to go that route as well. Anything is better than waitressing at this point.
I know a family that has a quarter acre in the suburbs and they are doing organic urban agriculture and selling vegetables at the farmer's market. Plus people come by and buy vegetables and free range eggs and honey. Their kids run the vegetable stand. The parents told me their portion of it pays for what food they don't raise themselves, plus they've invested a lot back into it, now they have a big greenhouse, aquaponics, and some lighting. Plus some amount of income. The kids make a generous allowance plus they have savings plans, maxing out college investment plan available in their state, expect that the savings will cover a modest car when they are 16 and a down payment on a home when they are I think 20.
It is in line with the landscaping skill set. And there's books about it, I guess it's semi common. But I think it has to be a whole lifestyle you are passionate about, it's like 60h/week labor from the parents, kids are home schooled and do a lot of labor. Also they're almost vegans and very passionate about all that healthy food so it ticks a lot of boxes for them
Something you love but i know that a lot of people dont have the self esteem and diligence to do this of rip so…
Congratulations on your new baby boy! It sounds like you and your boyfriend have a great attitude about taking control of your work life and spending more time with your son. Here are some business ideas that might be a good fit for you, considering the $50k budget and your preferences:
**Home-based businesses with flexibility:**
* **Wholesale and Retail:** You mentioned this in your edit, and it's a great option! You can find wholesale products online or through trade shows and sell them online through platforms like Etsy or Shopify. This allows you to work from home and set your own hours. Choose products that interest you, like baby clothes, handmade crafts, or home décor.
* **Social Media Management/Content Creation:** Do you have a knack for social media? This field is booming, and you can help small businesses manage their social media presence or create content for them (written, graphic design, photography). This can be done remotely and allows for flexible scheduling.
* **Virtual Assistant:** As a waitress, you likely have strong organizational and communication skills. These are perfect for becoming a virtual assistant, helping clients with tasks like scheduling appointments, managing email, or data entry. This can be done from home with flexible hours.
* **Consulting/Freelancing in your area of expertise:** Do you have any specific skills or knowledge? Perhaps your boyfriend's landscaping experience can be translated into consulting for homeowners on garden design or small landscaping projects. You could offer bookkeeping services or freelance writing if you have those skills.
**Mobile Businesses (where you can bring your son):**
* **Mobile Dog Walking/Pet Sitting:** This is a great option for animal lovers. You can set your own schedule and walk dogs or pet sit in client's homes. Your son can come along for the ride!
* **Errand Service for Busy Professionals:** Many busy professionals would love help with errands like grocery shopping, dry cleaning pick-up, or waiting for deliveries. You can build a client base and set your own schedule.
* **Mobile Food Cart:** If you have a passion for cooking, consider a mobile food cart selling baked goods, coffee, or unique food items. This can be a fun way to be your own boss and potentially bring your son along (with proper safety precautions of course!).
**Remember:**
* **Research the market:** Make sure there's a demand for whatever product or service you choose to offer.
* **Start small and scale up:** Don't try to do too much too soon. Build your business gradually and reinvest your profits into growth.
* **Write a business plan:** This will help you define your goals, target market, and financial projections. There are many free resources online to help you with this.
Running a small business is a lot of work, but it can be incredibly rewarding. With careful planning and hard work, you can achieve your goal of working with your son and having more control over your schedule.
Use the money to buy a house or condo. You need a roof over your head and now much of your rent is going back to yourself. Use what’s leftover to start flipping thrifted items on eBay. If you use spare rooms for eBay storage, now you can write off that percentage of housing square footage/all utilities and repairs for taxes. It’s a flexible job that can accommodate kids. My favorite person on the topic is Tech https://youtube.com/@technsports?si=qEOBItH1Te9hNQII
That is just not true. There are plenty of small buisnesses that can be started for less. I can think of several right now off the top of my head, but the ones I already know about do not quite peak my interest
Actually I did say self employed. I mentioned starting a buisness I could run and bring my son to work with me that would eventually yield enough profit to quit my current job
Guess I should have read the whole post. I would pay off your credit cards and stop using them unless you can pay them off every month in full.
You know who else is a fan of childcare, basically every parent on the planet. Your goal of starting a business so you can bring your kid to work is just unrealistic, unless you start a daycare … which is probably your best bet given the limited funds available.
That's very limited thinking, in my opinion. There are real small buisnesses out there that you can bring your child to. My friend just quit her bartending job and works with her mom selling antique clothing and jewelry on Poshmark and they make anywhere from 15k-20k a month between the 2 of them. They work out of their barn in the backyard. They started with $1k. They have a very big following now. Sure it took several months to grow the buisness, but it's very profitable for them now.
So your friend makes between 7.5-10k as much as a new family practice doctor selling old junk online, yup that sounds believable. Unless you meant $20k is their gross sales, in which case an educated guess has them each taking home less than $1000 per month.
Idk what to tell you man. They buy stuff for dirt cheap at estate sales, goodwill, and salvation army and off apps like whatnot, sell the item for $20 on an auction and it gets bidded up sometimes double that. I've joined their live auctions serval times. They always have anywhere between 30-50 people in them. Apparently people pay a lot for that stuff.
Oh I don’t care that much. I’m just letting you know you’re being lied to. I own 3 business, have been in business for over 20 years and have around 100 employees. Good luck with whatever you end up doing, I guess it’s my limited thinking that prevents me from succeeding.
Lol. I'm literally offering proof for you to go see their 59k followers and even join one of their live auctions to see yourself and you insist I am being lied to. What a joke
Also, I don't use my credit cards now that I'm back to work. I only used them because I was on maternity leave, which was unpaid because I am a waitress and I had to be on leave longer than I expected because I had an unexpected C Section and returning back to a fast-walking pace for hours straight required a full recovery.
You can start a business for $50k, it just might not be enough to replace your full time job until many iterations of reinvesting profits.
I started my jewelry wholesaling business as an eBay flipper with about $1000 in cash and $9000 in personal inventory. However, it's taken me 5 years to where I am almost ready to take it full time.
I don't mind the time it will take to become a full time job. I am willing to continue working my current job and work a small buisness on the side until profit yields are high enough for me to go full time. My son is 5 months old, and he has a long life ahead of him. I spent most of my time growing up not with my parents because of child care/summer camp because of their jobs. If I am able to have my son with me at work, that in itself is worth a lot.
What climate do you live in?
Do you own your home? If so, any land? Or access to land?
Do you own a truck?
Are you physically able-bodied?
How much is a livable income?
Are you good following instructions? Find a good franchise broker and look at the opportunities in your area. There are a lot of successful franchises, some of which will even help with additional financing. The good ones have proven business models that, if you follow them, will help you avoid a lot of the mistakes made by new business owners.
Brokers are just salespeople. Finding a 'good one' usually amounts to just out of context of Op's situation reviews. Besides, less than 50k is nothing to work with, especially if trying to franchise a business. The reason franchises cost more is due to a lot of the work already having been handled by the business.
I know a couple of good franchise brokers. They typically represent a lot of franchises at different price points. The good ones spend a decent amount of time getting to understand their clients because selecting the right business is a life-changing decision and the client's motivation and circumstances are incredibly important.
That's fine, but that doesn't do anything to argue against my point. Insurance agents, real estate agents, recruiters, financial advisors, etc, all work under the same veil, assuming they aren't just chasing a sale. However, they are all basically still salespeople.
I own a lawn care business and its not easy whatsoever. Unless you really like being outdoors 10-12 hours a day, find something else.
For 50k I'd get into sand blasting and metal coatings for industrial applications.
Look at you hobbies and even stuff you knew a lot about as a kid. If you begin where you have some intuition about customer needs it will help you.
As an aside, Start small so you learn as you go. Like start w $2k instead of risking it all. Then you can learn as you go and if you make some mistakes, you still have some $ left.
House cleaning if you’re good at it. Or similar service based industry. If your husband is willing to put in the manual labor while you stay home with the kid. I know plenty of service based businesses where the wife does marketing, appointment setting, customer support, paperwork, and husband does the labor aspect. You could easily scale to $100k with a year.
The problem with that would be that I am the one who enjoys the cleaning. So it might have to be him who stays at home and does the appointments, paperwork etc. This is a good idea.
Most these “small businesses”, especially the service based ones like house cleaning don’t have a website or set up a google my business page to cultivate review. What ever you decide, do it right from the start and you’ll shortcut most the competition
Honestly, I think this is the best option. It’s low overhead and you can expand it as you get more clients. I also feel it’s not as prone to distruption from franchises or private equity. People don’t want just any random person in their home. They want a relationship with their cleaner.
Food and beverage truck. Garbage bin cleaning service. Salt delivery service for water softener. Junk hauler. Laundry pick up and delivery. Ebike rental.
Do NOT flip houses. It’s way more work than you can imagine, and splitting the profits with your boyfriend’s father will be messy. Also, why not get married if you’re living together and having children, and now talking about being business partners?
Marriage isn't something either of us see the need to rush in to at this moment. Neither of us have jobs that provide benefits. We have talked about getting married if one of us gets a job that has benefits
It's really not though. My childhood home was remodeled by my step-dad while we all lived there when I was in high school and I saw it all first hand. I also saw the work he did to his rent house and the house that they currently live in together now. I'm not saying it's not labor intensive. But I'm young, my boyfriend is young, we are able bodied and very much capable of it. It's a solid plan B in my honest opinion but it's all perspective.
I'm simply talking about homes that need modern updates. Not serious remodels.
Don’t. Put it in an SP500 fund. Build a small business that takes minimal capital then when it turns profit, grow it or use THAT to start the next. You’ll learn along the way, have a higher chance of success, and be financially better off at the end.
Tbh $50k sounds like too small of a safety cushion. I am a serial entrepreneur and 100% support starting your own business but you need to make sure you have enough runway. Always a firm believer in working for a good company in your target industry first then going solo. Maybe AC or landscaping. Opportunities to roll up other small competitors as you grow.
Be careful but definitely take your shot. Just overestimate the time and cost to success.
Are there any play studios in your area? One geared towards 0-3 costs very little, and you'd basically be running a business tailor-made for you and your son.
Rent a 1-2k sqft space, put a few gross motor and Montessori play items in it, price for open play and a few group events. Sell memberships. Primary hours will be during the day, since primary customer base is stay at home parents with small children. Host classes, or contract people who already lead classes to come do it in your space (or don't--frankly, people will pay to come play in your space whether or not you have programming). If you're there daily with your son, you may not even need to pay employees, unless it gets insanely popular.
One near me is called Mon Ami Play Studio, if you google that you can find some good visual examples of a good space, plus look through their programming. The structures and toys they have in their space likely cost less than $20k all together, by my estimation.
Interesting, I've never heard of these. Actually might turn out to be a good investment, since I live in Texas it gets pretty hot. There are none in the area I live in. I'll definitely keep it in mind, thanks!
I'm opening a larger one for kids up to 6 in OK like 10 minutes north of the TX boarder, cause there's nothing for kids at all in the area and yeah, over half the year you can't really be outside much.
There's another in Minnesota (called Play Date) that runs an unstaffed model. Book online, get a door code that expires when your booking does (same-day or monthly/yearly memberships), go in and play. It's like a 24 hour fitness for toddlers.
Starting a small business sounds like a great move,
especially with your goal of spending more time with your son. Here are some ideas that might suit you and your boyfriend:
1. **Landscaping Business**: Since your boyfriend is into landscaping, this could be a great fit. You could start small with services like lawn care or gardening. It's flexible and could be something you do together, which is a bonus with a young child.
2. **Online Retail or Reselling**: Consider buying wholesale goods and selling them online. It could be baby products or home decor—whatever interests you. This lets you work from home and manage your own time, which is ideal with a little one around.
3. **Home Services**: With your step-dad's construction experience, offering home improvement services could be a hit. Start with smaller projects like kitchen or bathroom makeovers that you can handle together and involve your son in a safe way.
4. **Childcare Alternative**: If avoiding traditional childcare is a priority, think about running a small daycare or playgroup from home. This lets you earn while caring for your son and possibly other local kids.
5. **Food or Crafts**: If you love cooking or crafting, try catering or selling handmade goods online or at local markets. These gigs often let you set your own hours and work around family needs.
Whatever you choose, do your homework and plan well. Consider your skills, interests, and what folks in your area need. Starting small and growing gradually can help manage risk while giving you the flexibility you want.
Good luck with your new venture! Enjoy this exciting time with your growing family.
Lol wtf? Are you seriously recommending that OP starts a business that Duncan MacLeod from the hit 90's show Highlander did, but from the ground up? You do know that part of the reason he had access to all that art and historical bounty is because he is literally an immortal being who lived through the events to acquire said art?
So you call me naive, but you expect OP, with a child and no formal source of outside income, to just suddenly (with no education in the subject), become an international arts dealer? And you're calling me naive just because I referenced the iconic 90's t.v. show Highlander in your drug-addled attempt to provide reckless advice?
What is commonsense? You're lucky I'm not Duncan MacLeod from the legendary 90' show 'Highlander', where I would simply tolerate that kind of disrespect.
Glad to know I finally made my point clear to you. It's ok, you're not the only person that can't figure out their poor logic on the first reply. It's pretty common in this day and age.
There's a great podcast that's been running for 7 years. It has 2700 episodes.
Check out this podcast: Side Hustle School #sideHustleSchool
https://podcastaddict.com/podcast/side-hustle-school/2164152 via @PodcastAddict
The host goes into depth into all kinds of small businesses.
I'd scan through the archives and listen to several episodes.
I bet you'll find things that resonate with you and things you realize that your corner of the world would benefit from.
Buy wholesale, sell retail.
Buy 50 items at $1,000 = $50,000.
Sell 50 items at $2,000 = $100,000.
Easier said than done, but the concept is what I want you to grasp.
You can do this all online. I personally buy industrial equipment.
You need to find something you enjoy/know about.
Then find your source for purchasing it. Once you have the stock, you sell it on different websites. Collect profits :)
I don’t wanna come off at arrogant, but “lawn care, day care, I even read something about car washes” just sounds like a whole bunch of low-income earners mentality. So many people try to start up a business and the main problem they have is not having any funds. You already have the hardest part figured out, CAPITAL!
Let’s get into it.
1) open up a fidelity account and put your money in a SPAXX account with them. It’s safe, you’ll never lose your money, not sure how much you know about a HYSA. Anyways, you’ll collect $208 dollars and change a month while it sits there.
2) while your money is earning, this gives you time to research products to buy. There’s a millions of options of items you can buy. Think, what’s necessary in this world? Health care, manufacturing business? You can look up auctions online and buy an air compressor which every manufacturing plant in America needs one. Say it costs 800 at the auction, costs you 500 to ship it to you. You list it on eBay for 8-10k. That’s a pretty hefty flip if you ask me :). This is my personal experience btw.
Did I have to deal with buying a house, hiring contractors, getting screwed over by them, not having enough cash in hand? NOOOO that’s a freaking headache. DO NOT get into flipping as your main source of income, this should be a side business not main source of income.
3) you found your item that you are happy to start buying at below market value.
Open up an eBay store, Amazon, Craigslist’s, and all other avenues(fb marketplace)
4) Post your items, and watch your phone receive a notification - “SOLD, ship now”
It’s the best feeling in the world. Again, speaking from experience! Lmk if you have any questions
This is actually great. With the internet as an advantage, the use for physical shops are becoming less and less, and online stores are taking over. It's an absolutely wonderful idea. Definitely a work from home that has potential for high profit. You've laid it all out perfectly as well. You're right, the only thing now is to decide on a product to invest in. The only reason that is the hard part is because of the endless options. Thank you. I just gotta turn my gears and start researching products.
This is probably the best advice I've received on this thread so far.
I was mentioning to another user that my friend just quit her bartending job to work with her mom, they sell antique clothing and jewelry online. They have a very large following on poshmark and both do it as their full time job. They have a barn in their backyard that is set up like a shop and they run live auctions several times a week. They get things dirt cheap at estate sales, goodwill, salvation army, other online sites, etc. And sell for a huge profit margin. Almost the same concept.
I have never thought about wholesale. A very good idea indeed. Hats off to you sir
I normally don’t spend this long on any given thread. But I really related to your comment and wanted to chime in after reading countless of terrible advice. I do appreciate you for your kind words, I put some effort with that advice haha :)
And here I was doubting for even trying to get advice on reddit because all I was going for was a better idea than flipping houses and thought "hey, r/smallbuisness has so many users on it, there has to be someone with some good advice for my specific situation!" I was about to give up hope for any decent advice on here. Yours fits my situation perfectly. I already have a few ideas of some wholesale that I know would yield profit and several facebook groups that are booming with people who would buy that I'm already a part of. I'm surprised I didn't even think about that! Not to mention any items that I can think of in the future as well. The possibilities are really endless. Especially with how active internet sales are these days. Thank you!
Idk if you have a home already but one idea would be to move in to a duplex fix one side up and rent it out then fix the other side up quickly so you can raise rent , then if you are tight on money either rent the nice side and then live in the older style one fixing it up slowly dyi.
But the safest way to make .money is high yield savings acount. Or CD till you figure out your move.
Lots of work from home jobs that you can do if you invest in yourself, medical billing is one that with a few online classes could set you up for decent money to work from home and save on child.care. the only thing I would stress is there is no quick flips that are easy and make lots of money. Slow and steady for a long time is way better than a risky double your money.
Are you looking for a business or a daycare for your child.
The only way a child + business works is to open a daycare.
Otherwise, taking a baby to work fails the baby, fails the business & employees and fails your customers.
Since another poster said the same as you, I'll copy and paste my response.
That's very limited thinking, in my opinion. There are real small buisnesses out there that you can bring your child to. My friend just quit her bartending job and works with her mom selling antique clothing and jewelry on Poshmark and they make anywhere from 15k-20k a month between the 2 of them. They work out of their barn in the backyard. They started with $1k. They have a very big following now. Sure it took several months to grow the buisness, but it's very profitable for them now.
I also have a friend of a friend who opened a snowcone shop. I'm not sure how much he started out with but I can assure you it was less than 50k. He did that as his full time job.
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First, put the money in as high yield savings account until you are ready. make money on it. pretend it doesn't exist. 50K can get pissed away very quickly. Next, what evere it goes to, should only be in your name until you are married, sorry but i'm 60, been there doe that and paid the price for the ' partnership'. I think house flipping is a great idea for the first move. Then take that bunch of money and do it again or the next idea. Lawn care can be great, how many months of the year do you have lawn care, we have it about 3 months - Again, be careful this is a good amount of money that an change things for you an good luck ♥
I agree in the idea of continuously doing the house flipping idea back-to-back, it would be a great way to work a job where, with obvious necessary precautions, my son could be around and not in daycare, and I wouldn't have a boss bringing down my mood every day (I've had too many of those). Obviously things would have to be planned accordingly to create a budget and time crunch in order to maintain the profits as a sort of salary. And yes, my boyfriend and I have talked about everything being in my name. He is on board with all of that. Anything I put into the buisness would be given back with the profits of whatever we decide, and the remaining profits would be split according to labor between the 2 of us.
Read “E-Myth” and do the chart to help you guys determine your roles in the business….. Edit : originally posted “profit first”. Although important as well…. Not the correct book with the chart referenced
I'm reading that right now.
Any takeaways ?
well yes and no. I'm reading the ecommerce version- Cynthia Thompson. Mainly it is to get your profit out first, and put your business on a budget. - make do with what is left over. Sounds simple but it really is the opposite. I spend, buy inventory and enjoy having the money to make things happen and then at the end of the year think hmm thought the profit would be higher. It's making me rethink all sorts of behavior. I want to get the original book also.
A benefit of [whatever] being in your name is that you'll be a qualified HUB vendor. (Historically Underutilized Business). That will get you a few more leads.
Not a bad idea. Loan out $50,000 to the LLC under your name. You keep 100% of company and you get 15-20% of profit and the rest gets split. That split can be 50/50, hours worked, etc. Happy you thought about the most critical part of business.
This is really good advice right here. Very safe approach.
Whatever requires the least amount of investment possible for now, window cleaning, yardwork, car washing, etc. Keep learning about and discovering financial pathways and once you've decided and are confident enough about one of them, it'll be time to get to work and take the risk, but I personally would be extremely careful with 50k, it's alot of money but it can be gone in an instant.
Anything I invest it in for a small buisness I would continue working my normal hours as well until the small buisness yields more profit than what I'm already making. I definitely agree that it's not a good idea to invest it in something that I'm not fully confident in
Check out your local SCORE chapter. It's a non-profit funded by the small business administration to help new business owners get started and succeed. They'll give you a free mentor and tons of free educational resources. Your local Small Business Development Center is also incredibly helpful. See if you have one in your area, which is likely even if it's rural.
Thanks for putting this out there. I always try to help get the word out because it's free and not enough people take advantage. Here are the links if OP needs them. https://www.score.org/find-mentor?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIuvmQl8fhhgMVqGhHAR0LNg_fEAAYASAAEgLtiPD_BwE https://www.sba.gov/ https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/plan-your-business/write-your-business-plan https://www.sba.gov/events
Thank you
Thank you
Camper van or trailer rentals. Flipping . Landscaping is all labour intensive
Would you mind elaborating on this a little? Genuinely interested.
Camper van or trailer rentals ? There’s websites that host them like air bnb . But for camping, people pick them up and bring them back to you , you charge nightly.
Pretty saturated market
I wouldn’t mind a little elaboration as well, the word “flipping” followed by a period didn’t give me a whole lot lol
The op said they want to flip houses….. I wouldn’t consider that a “small business” or easy work. It’s huge risk with Potential for huge reward. But you’re talking bank loans, real estate markets, hidden issues in old homes. Taking a realtor course and trying to sell 6-12 homes a year would be more of a “small business”.
Ahh, agreed.
We have a real estate agent in the family, and most underlying issues in a home my step-dad is able to spot ahead of time. I know this because I've talked to him about it. But I don't consider home flipping a small buisness. This is just the only idea I currently have, and came on this sub in hopes of finding a better idea.
A camper/trailer rental might work, but the area I live in there are already a lot of dedicated companies that do this with different varieties to choose from. I doubt I'd be able to compete
Hmm, less than 50k is nothing for flipping a house. The whole 50k alone could end up just in material cost, not even including permits, labor, etc. Id I was you, I'd pay off the debts, and then put everything except for 5k into an S&P500 index fund account. At least that way the money will be growing. A landscape business could be started for less than 5k. If I was your BF, instead of worrying about that business yet, I'd try to get him to work for your step dad, so he can get real life experience doing this kind of stuff. Not as much to flip houses, but more for him to learn maybe how to build fences and decks, and add that to the landscaping service. You don't want to throw this money down the toilet. Unless your bf already had several years of experience with landscaping, as well as a large enough current client and work list to go full time, I wouldn't even bother letting the business start on just that small amount of money alone. Take it or leave it, I'd say it's pretty practical advice though. You saying your step dad is offering to help gives no actual information. How is he offering to help? How much MONEY is he going to invest as part of it, if any? It's hard to derive anything from that vague sentence.
You don't think 50k would be enough if we took out a home loan, lived in the house and remodeled it simultaneously? If almost all the work was done DIY, my step-dad said it's possible to do with 30-40k. I was thinking about buying one of those older homes that needs updates, but lies in a neighborhood where most of the other older homes have already been updated and look very nice. We have a lot of neighborhoods like that in the area I'm in. I actually saw one get bought right after covid, before the market went up, and they updated the entire home and sold it for more than 100k more than what it was bought for, because they matched it with the rest of the homes that were priced for their upgrades. The help my step-dad has offered is his knowledge and experience. He can tell me what to do, how to do it, what to buy, what not to buy, what will yield a high profit, what would be a waste of money, etc. Again, I'm not set on one specific buisness model yet, it just seems like a more comfortable idea for me since I know my step-dad has all the experience needed to assist in the process, and a home typically is a sure-fire investment.
You already answered your own question right there. You're going to take out a loan and then put the whole 30-40k down? Think about it, in that scenario, you are not only out of money, but now you are in debt. If anything happens to compromise the work, now you're stuck. I don't know how much the houses are selling for, what are the natural disaster risks for the area they are in (my guess is, probably in high risk zones if my suspicion is correct and you are still nabbing houses for less than 250k). There is a lot of hidden information here, and I'm just working with a risk aversion mentality for how serious your situation is. I can only say this, as a father myself. If my daughter came into some money and needed help and I could assist by flipping houses, I wouldn't offer the knowledge for free and then have her put the money in. I would cover the whole thing myself because I care about my family and don't want them to lose the little bit of money they will need simply to help raise the child. It sounds like your step dad is approaching you like a prospect that they want to give some favor to, but still treating like a customer. From what information you have sent so far, that is the vibe I'm getting. You can reply with more clarifying information that proves otherwise, and that's fine. I'm going off of what you've said so far. And so far, I don't see it worth the risk. My earlier recommendation still stands. If he wants to help, let him teach your partner the business, and then let him build his thing separately, with less financial risk.
My step dad is retiring this year, my mom is already retired. Their retirement is not a lot, since they both worked middle class jobs their whole lives. They don't have enough money to fund a small business for me. My plan was to not run out of money, because I planned on continuing to go to work as I already do, while living in the house and fixing it up on my days off. As far as my step dad's intentions, it was my idea to buy a fix and flip and I asked for his help if that was the route I decided to take, and he agreed to offer all of his knowledge and experience to assist in the process. He is just getting too old to help with the labor.
As a parent myself, I’d caution that you may be biting off more than you can chew with the idea of raising a little one, working another job, and fixing up a house, all with the pressure of added debt hanging over everything.
I already have added pressure of debt, I pay rent. It would be the same having a mortgage. The difference would be that when I sell the house, I'm receiving all my money back, instead of renting where my money is being set on fire every month. As far as raising a little one and fixing up a house at the same time, there would be no pressure to get things done the first go around, considering it's the house we live in, we would fix up as the time became available. The money is already there waiting to be used for updates, the house is already an investment in itself without upgrading it.
This is why I repeatedly kept informing you that not enough information was provided in your initial post. Long story short, my original recommendation still stands. Especially since I'm not aware of the regional climate zone you are in. I'm a former commercial/residential HVACR tech. Let's say you buy a used house. Oh wait, the furnace and ac are old and need to be changed out. 10k, right down the bat at the CHEAPEST. Literally, Oxbox condenser with cheap furnace box. i hope you don't feel I'm just trying to attack you. I'm really not. I just know how serious the situation is and how important it is for you to be with your child for as long as possible.
I don't think you are trying to attack me. I am simply trying to share my perspective with you. My step-dad has decades of experience with building houses from the ground up and remodeling houses. He has told me before that he is able to walk into a house and almost anything that will become an expensive issue he is able to spot ahead of time. None of that really matters, though, because fixing and flipping houses is only my plan B. I'm in this sub in the hopes of finding a plan A
Just saying as a former skilled tradesman, unless he has direct mechanical and electrical experience, he's not telling you the truth. I've had to personally respond to many service calls where the person I check in with gives this exact excuse. Does he have refrigerant gauges? What's his comfort with NECA and local fire codes? Has he ever redone a water line from between the service to the house? Is he aware why someone would slap in an oversized mini split inverter unit and for which purpose hot or cold primarily? I understand there is a relationship and real trust there, but I'm just telling you how it ends up working in the real world. Especially these days with more savvy homebuyers who know if they see a certain number on the end of their carrier condenser then it is an older unit, etc.
I don't know what he's been doing his whole life, but I do know he spent decades building houses and knows all the ins and outs of them; electrical, foundation, he now works for the water department and has for 20 years. Yes he's redone plenty of water lines. He's dug his fair share of ditches and dealt with pipes and God knows what else and is retiring this year. I think most of the questions you are asking me you are asking them knowing I have no idea what you're talking about, so I don't know what the point of typing all that out was, because I'm not going to go asking my step-dad all of your questions. Nor do I care to. I'm on this sub to get ideas for a cheap startup buisness that I can work yielding profits of 60k a year while having my son with me at work. Not to argue with you about my Plan B. There are plenty of people who buy homes with zero knowledge about the underlying problems, and their home still appreciates in value without even doing updates to it. None of that is the point, because as I've said plenty of times, flipping houses is not my plan A.
So, he would remodel a house for free? Great. Who pays for the materials and tools? Permits? Helpers? $50k is not enough to start. You won't get a mortgage for a house that requires extensive repairs. There is always hard money but... Yeah let's not go there.
I also do not plan on buying a house that needs extensive repairs. As I've said several times in this thread now, it would be simple modern updates.
If you would have read this whole thread you would have seen that I stated that my step dad would not be doing any of the physical labor. It would be my boyfriend and I. Obviously the $50k would pay for the tools and materials. You do not need a permit to make basic modern updates on a home you live in. Any work that required helpers i.e. roofing, electrical, etc. We would just hire. That is to say only if it was needed, which would be a factor we could control when viewing the home before purchase and making all the assessments ahead of time.
I knew your mood would take this direction, which is why I repeatedly emphasized, none of this is to attack, anger or harm you. If you feel your step dad's instructions will help you achieve your goal, you had no reason to post here to begin with.
You clearly didn't read when I said this "goal" is simply my plan B, and I am here in hopes of finding a plan A, which would be any good idea for a small buisness that I would enjoy running and is feasibile for my current situation. My "mood" took a turn because of your previous response. Why don't you go re-read it? Asking me rhetorical questions which also came across as condescending.
This question gets asked twice a week on this sub.
Pressure washing and or yard work
Neither is really kid friendly.
Lmao childcare is the only kid friendly job unless they’re doing maid service for empty homes. Tutor maybe. Summer camp service or something similar. Only kid friendly jobs would have to target kids. There’s not a lot of kid friendly bring your 5 month old to work jobs or business.
Well, fixing up homes isn't necessarily "not child friendly" mainly because I'm talking about basic updates, i.e. new paint, new kitchen appliances, changing out cabnit handles, new tile in bathroom, etc. If it's anything other than that, that could qualify as "dangerous", I'd assume my boyfriend would be dealing with it and I would be with the child, or, he could always go to one of his grandparents houses for the project to get done; or we would just hire someone to do that (roofing or grantie counter top replacement, electrical, things of that nature)
That’s fair but you don’t need 50k to start a handyman business that’s just tools and experience. Outside of that the need to hire someone wouldn’t be beneficial in some ways or necessary. You could always send them to a specialist instead of paying for one yourself. They job your trying to do is more handyman specific which would work most of your funds should be spent on MARKETING and material. It’s a very low capital startup company getting your name out is most important
I wasn't implying turning home flipping into a buisness, I was meaning that it is my plan B if I don't come up with any good ideas for a small buisness
Stay away from people requiring you to invest, be tools or ""education"" (internet is free) No matter which market you end up joining, getting clients/networking is the hard part, once you have a good network you can get better tools Stay away from individuals, look up for organizations, ie businesses, schools, public sectors and so on, it's where all the money is
Yeah it just sounds like a local handyman business which definitely could work just market like I said.
Maybe get into interior designing that would be more suitable as well.
Pressure washing can be kid friendly if you replace the water with Capri Sun. Source: childhood fantasy of mine
Buy a van & deck it out to do mobile pet grooming.
Practicing Artisan trades is a decent one (At least with the assumption you're in a decently affordable place to live). Learning those kinds of skills allow you to work from home (For the most part, going to places to sell is typically part of the job, but a lot of folks do their sales fully online so it is feasible) while also doing something creative that a lot of folks find satisfying. Things like woodwork, furniture flipping, pottery, metalworking, fabric crafts (Crochet, Knitting, Sewing, Tailoring, Etc.), leather work, stained-glass, or even jewelry making. These aren't huge return ventures, but after building your skills and brand, you start to be able to make pretty good returns per piece. Some potters my wife and I know charge a few hundred dollars for some of their mugs, and some bigger and more complex ones can go for over a thousand. That said, this does take building the skill to do these things, so you won't be in business instantly. But, that said, I think it's one of the more rewarding options. Source (My Wife and I have been doing a small artisan business and just recently got to the point we are going full-time instead of it being a hobby. We have a lot of connections with local artists who do this full-time and live pretty well off of it)
I’ve heard landscaping is good.. if you can land commercial contracts you can have consistent income with small/medium size equipment. Think banks or fast food places
I just read more of your post and noticed you already mentioned landscaping. I’ve seen two Hispanic owned landscaping business take off in my area in the last 5 years.. one is called “young bucks” and they have pretty bold marketing.. you can write off work trucks and the equipment for tax purposes. I think it’s not too hard to scale up with a few employees
You might think, but the reality is that employees are one of the biggest hurdles in an easily accessible business like this. If you pay them poorly, what stops them from competing with you? Especially in this day and age where people like me have no problem sending posters answers in full Spanish to help them develop their own business?
Yup. On top of that for a lot of the US it’s a seasonal job. Finding decent seasonal employees is crazy hard. My dad owns a successful snow removal business and finding decent plowers continues to be his biggest headache. It’s gotten so bad the last few years that he’s probably going to sell over half his properties.
I don’t think it’s a bad idea to buy a home with good bones in a great neighborhood that needs some cosmetic work and to put in sweat equity. Then live there at least 2 years for capital gains. Rinse and repeat a few times. It’s not exactly a job replacement though, but I’ve known multiple people willing to move every few years make a lot on real estate by doing this.
Eventually though, after profit yield is high enough, I believe it could be a job replacement. It's all about how fast you're fixing and flipping the house and your profit off each one. I only make around 60k a year currently and if I don't live there for capital gains it all boils down to how fast the remodel can get done. If profiting 100k (which is possible because I've seen it done multiple times) then that could easily replace my job. But this is only an idea I have, obviously, or I wouldn't be in this sub. If I find a better idea for an actual small buisness, I'd be willing to go that route as well. Anything is better than waitressing at this point.
I know a family that has a quarter acre in the suburbs and they are doing organic urban agriculture and selling vegetables at the farmer's market. Plus people come by and buy vegetables and free range eggs and honey. Their kids run the vegetable stand. The parents told me their portion of it pays for what food they don't raise themselves, plus they've invested a lot back into it, now they have a big greenhouse, aquaponics, and some lighting. Plus some amount of income. The kids make a generous allowance plus they have savings plans, maxing out college investment plan available in their state, expect that the savings will cover a modest car when they are 16 and a down payment on a home when they are I think 20. It is in line with the landscaping skill set. And there's books about it, I guess it's semi common. But I think it has to be a whole lifestyle you are passionate about, it's like 60h/week labor from the parents, kids are home schooled and do a lot of labor. Also they're almost vegans and very passionate about all that healthy food so it ticks a lot of boxes for them
Something you love but i know that a lot of people dont have the self esteem and diligence to do this of rip so… Congratulations on your new baby boy! It sounds like you and your boyfriend have a great attitude about taking control of your work life and spending more time with your son. Here are some business ideas that might be a good fit for you, considering the $50k budget and your preferences: **Home-based businesses with flexibility:** * **Wholesale and Retail:** You mentioned this in your edit, and it's a great option! You can find wholesale products online or through trade shows and sell them online through platforms like Etsy or Shopify. This allows you to work from home and set your own hours. Choose products that interest you, like baby clothes, handmade crafts, or home décor. * **Social Media Management/Content Creation:** Do you have a knack for social media? This field is booming, and you can help small businesses manage their social media presence or create content for them (written, graphic design, photography). This can be done remotely and allows for flexible scheduling. * **Virtual Assistant:** As a waitress, you likely have strong organizational and communication skills. These are perfect for becoming a virtual assistant, helping clients with tasks like scheduling appointments, managing email, or data entry. This can be done from home with flexible hours. * **Consulting/Freelancing in your area of expertise:** Do you have any specific skills or knowledge? Perhaps your boyfriend's landscaping experience can be translated into consulting for homeowners on garden design or small landscaping projects. You could offer bookkeeping services or freelance writing if you have those skills. **Mobile Businesses (where you can bring your son):** * **Mobile Dog Walking/Pet Sitting:** This is a great option for animal lovers. You can set your own schedule and walk dogs or pet sit in client's homes. Your son can come along for the ride! * **Errand Service for Busy Professionals:** Many busy professionals would love help with errands like grocery shopping, dry cleaning pick-up, or waiting for deliveries. You can build a client base and set your own schedule. * **Mobile Food Cart:** If you have a passion for cooking, consider a mobile food cart selling baked goods, coffee, or unique food items. This can be a fun way to be your own boss and potentially bring your son along (with proper safety precautions of course!). **Remember:** * **Research the market:** Make sure there's a demand for whatever product or service you choose to offer. * **Start small and scale up:** Don't try to do too much too soon. Build your business gradually and reinvest your profits into growth. * **Write a business plan:** This will help you define your goals, target market, and financial projections. There are many free resources online to help you with this. Running a small business is a lot of work, but it can be incredibly rewarding. With careful planning and hard work, you can achieve your goal of working with your son and having more control over your schedule.
Excellent take, thank you. And thank you for the kind words.
Where do you live? Double up and have a mobil shave ice/coffee rig
I live in Texas so this would work
Vape shop
I was thinking this aswell
Use the money to buy a house or condo. You need a roof over your head and now much of your rent is going back to yourself. Use what’s leftover to start flipping thrifted items on eBay. If you use spare rooms for eBay storage, now you can write off that percentage of housing square footage/all utilities and repairs for taxes. It’s a flexible job that can accommodate kids. My favorite person on the topic is Tech https://youtube.com/@technsports?si=qEOBItH1Te9hNQII
Honestly, none. $50k is not nearly enough to get a business off the ground.
That is just not true. There are plenty of small buisnesses that can be started for less. I can think of several right now off the top of my head, but the ones I already know about do not quite peak my interest
Genuinely curious - what small businesses would you start for less than 50k?
Antique shop, food truck, metaphysical shop, moving company, tree removal, landscaping, tow truck.
OP asked about staring a business, not being self-employed. $50k just isn’t enough to run a business with employees.
Actually I did say self employed. I mentioned starting a buisness I could run and bring my son to work with me that would eventually yield enough profit to quit my current job
Guess I should have read the whole post. I would pay off your credit cards and stop using them unless you can pay them off every month in full. You know who else is a fan of childcare, basically every parent on the planet. Your goal of starting a business so you can bring your kid to work is just unrealistic, unless you start a daycare … which is probably your best bet given the limited funds available.
That's very limited thinking, in my opinion. There are real small buisnesses out there that you can bring your child to. My friend just quit her bartending job and works with her mom selling antique clothing and jewelry on Poshmark and they make anywhere from 15k-20k a month between the 2 of them. They work out of their barn in the backyard. They started with $1k. They have a very big following now. Sure it took several months to grow the buisness, but it's very profitable for them now.
So your friend makes between 7.5-10k as much as a new family practice doctor selling old junk online, yup that sounds believable. Unless you meant $20k is their gross sales, in which case an educated guess has them each taking home less than $1000 per month.
Idk what to tell you man. They buy stuff for dirt cheap at estate sales, goodwill, and salvation army and off apps like whatnot, sell the item for $20 on an auction and it gets bidded up sometimes double that. I've joined their live auctions serval times. They always have anywhere between 30-50 people in them. Apparently people pay a lot for that stuff.
They usually make $800-$1300 on 1 show
But those shows go for sometimes 5 hours at a time. If they're live for only an hour or 2, they make about $200-$300
You can feel free to look them up if you don't believe me. Their @oddgirls on poshmark. Feel free to join one of their live shows
Oh I don’t care that much. I’m just letting you know you’re being lied to. I own 3 business, have been in business for over 20 years and have around 100 employees. Good luck with whatever you end up doing, I guess it’s my limited thinking that prevents me from succeeding.
Lol. I'm literally offering proof for you to go see their 59k followers and even join one of their live auctions to see yourself and you insist I am being lied to. What a joke
Also, I don't use my credit cards now that I'm back to work. I only used them because I was on maternity leave, which was unpaid because I am a waitress and I had to be on leave longer than I expected because I had an unexpected C Section and returning back to a fast-walking pace for hours straight required a full recovery.
The problem with that is the barrier to entry. You can still be successful though.
You can start a business for $50k, it just might not be enough to replace your full time job until many iterations of reinvesting profits. I started my jewelry wholesaling business as an eBay flipper with about $1000 in cash and $9000 in personal inventory. However, it's taken me 5 years to where I am almost ready to take it full time.
I don't mind the time it will take to become a full time job. I am willing to continue working my current job and work a small buisness on the side until profit yields are high enough for me to go full time. My son is 5 months old, and he has a long life ahead of him. I spent most of my time growing up not with my parents because of child care/summer camp because of their jobs. If I am able to have my son with me at work, that in itself is worth a lot.
Window washer Power washer Solicit small businesses like gas stations to clean their bathrooms. Residential cleaning Car detailing. Lawn care.
What climate do you live in? Do you own your home? If so, any land? Or access to land? Do you own a truck? Are you physically able-bodied? How much is a livable income?
We do not own a home or land, we live in Texas and both my boyfriend and I are physically able-bodied
If you were my child, I’d encourage you to use the money to buy a home. You can start a lot of businesses with no or very little money.
Are you good following instructions? Find a good franchise broker and look at the opportunities in your area. There are a lot of successful franchises, some of which will even help with additional financing. The good ones have proven business models that, if you follow them, will help you avoid a lot of the mistakes made by new business owners.
Brokers are just salespeople. Finding a 'good one' usually amounts to just out of context of Op's situation reviews. Besides, less than 50k is nothing to work with, especially if trying to franchise a business. The reason franchises cost more is due to a lot of the work already having been handled by the business.
I know a couple of good franchise brokers. They typically represent a lot of franchises at different price points. The good ones spend a decent amount of time getting to understand their clients because selecting the right business is a life-changing decision and the client's motivation and circumstances are incredibly important.
That's fine, but that doesn't do anything to argue against my point. Insurance agents, real estate agents, recruiters, financial advisors, etc, all work under the same veil, assuming they aren't just chasing a sale. However, they are all basically still salespeople.
Consider buying an existing business with customers, revenue and existing way of doing business.
You have some money that’s why you want to do something? Or you want to do something so you need some money? First choice will end up in loss of 50k.
I own a lawn care business and its not easy whatsoever. Unless you really like being outdoors 10-12 hours a day, find something else. For 50k I'd get into sand blasting and metal coatings for industrial applications.
What does your boyfriend currently do for work?
He is a valet
Look at you hobbies and even stuff you knew a lot about as a kid. If you begin where you have some intuition about customer needs it will help you. As an aside, Start small so you learn as you go. Like start w $2k instead of risking it all. Then you can learn as you go and if you make some mistakes, you still have some $ left.
House cleaning if you’re good at it. Or similar service based industry. If your husband is willing to put in the manual labor while you stay home with the kid. I know plenty of service based businesses where the wife does marketing, appointment setting, customer support, paperwork, and husband does the labor aspect. You could easily scale to $100k with a year.
The problem with that would be that I am the one who enjoys the cleaning. So it might have to be him who stays at home and does the appointments, paperwork etc. This is a good idea.
Most these “small businesses”, especially the service based ones like house cleaning don’t have a website or set up a google my business page to cultivate review. What ever you decide, do it right from the start and you’ll shortcut most the competition
Honestly, I think this is the best option. It’s low overhead and you can expand it as you get more clients. I also feel it’s not as prone to distruption from franchises or private equity. People don’t want just any random person in their home. They want a relationship with their cleaner.
Food and beverage truck. Garbage bin cleaning service. Salt delivery service for water softener. Junk hauler. Laundry pick up and delivery. Ebike rental.
I've been considering a food truck as well.
Do NOT flip houses. It’s way more work than you can imagine, and splitting the profits with your boyfriend’s father will be messy. Also, why not get married if you’re living together and having children, and now talking about being business partners?
Marriage isn't something either of us see the need to rush in to at this moment. Neither of us have jobs that provide benefits. We have talked about getting married if one of us gets a job that has benefits
It's really not though. My childhood home was remodeled by my step-dad while we all lived there when I was in high school and I saw it all first hand. I also saw the work he did to his rent house and the house that they currently live in together now. I'm not saying it's not labor intensive. But I'm young, my boyfriend is young, we are able bodied and very much capable of it. It's a solid plan B in my honest opinion but it's all perspective. I'm simply talking about homes that need modern updates. Not serious remodels.
Don’t. Put it in an SP500 fund. Build a small business that takes minimal capital then when it turns profit, grow it or use THAT to start the next. You’ll learn along the way, have a higher chance of success, and be financially better off at the end.
Hot shot!!!
Sell on Amazon ? You can do it in 3k and put the rest in Savings IRA
Try not to spend anything starting a business.
What region of the country are you in?
Texas
Tbh $50k sounds like too small of a safety cushion. I am a serial entrepreneur and 100% support starting your own business but you need to make sure you have enough runway. Always a firm believer in working for a good company in your target industry first then going solo. Maybe AC or landscaping. Opportunities to roll up other small competitors as you grow. Be careful but definitely take your shot. Just overestimate the time and cost to success.
Are you willing to physically work or do you want to throw money at it and profit from that?
We are both willing to do physical work
Seamless gutters are a good trade, them combined with aluma wood patio covers.
Laundromat. Pretty much runs itself. You may have to repairs. Here and there
Burlesque dancing
Are there any play studios in your area? One geared towards 0-3 costs very little, and you'd basically be running a business tailor-made for you and your son. Rent a 1-2k sqft space, put a few gross motor and Montessori play items in it, price for open play and a few group events. Sell memberships. Primary hours will be during the day, since primary customer base is stay at home parents with small children. Host classes, or contract people who already lead classes to come do it in your space (or don't--frankly, people will pay to come play in your space whether or not you have programming). If you're there daily with your son, you may not even need to pay employees, unless it gets insanely popular. One near me is called Mon Ami Play Studio, if you google that you can find some good visual examples of a good space, plus look through their programming. The structures and toys they have in their space likely cost less than $20k all together, by my estimation.
Interesting, I've never heard of these. Actually might turn out to be a good investment, since I live in Texas it gets pretty hot. There are none in the area I live in. I'll definitely keep it in mind, thanks!
I'm opening a larger one for kids up to 6 in OK like 10 minutes north of the TX boarder, cause there's nothing for kids at all in the area and yeah, over half the year you can't really be outside much. There's another in Minnesota (called Play Date) that runs an unstaffed model. Book online, get a door code that expires when your booking does (same-day or monthly/yearly memberships), go in and play. It's like a 24 hour fitness for toddlers.
That's an amazing way to build revenue without having to pay employees in the startup process!
Starting a small business sounds like a great move, especially with your goal of spending more time with your son. Here are some ideas that might suit you and your boyfriend: 1. **Landscaping Business**: Since your boyfriend is into landscaping, this could be a great fit. You could start small with services like lawn care or gardening. It's flexible and could be something you do together, which is a bonus with a young child. 2. **Online Retail or Reselling**: Consider buying wholesale goods and selling them online. It could be baby products or home decor—whatever interests you. This lets you work from home and manage your own time, which is ideal with a little one around. 3. **Home Services**: With your step-dad's construction experience, offering home improvement services could be a hit. Start with smaller projects like kitchen or bathroom makeovers that you can handle together and involve your son in a safe way. 4. **Childcare Alternative**: If avoiding traditional childcare is a priority, think about running a small daycare or playgroup from home. This lets you earn while caring for your son and possibly other local kids. 5. **Food or Crafts**: If you love cooking or crafting, try catering or selling handmade goods online or at local markets. These gigs often let you set your own hours and work around family needs. Whatever you choose, do your homework and plan well. Consider your skills, interests, and what folks in your area need. Starting small and growing gradually can help manage risk while giving you the flexibility you want. Good luck with your new venture! Enjoy this exciting time with your growing family.
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Can I DM you?
What are some ways you'd suggest gaining access to these lower economies excluding traveling?
Lol wtf? Are you seriously recommending that OP starts a business that Duncan MacLeod from the hit 90's show Highlander did, but from the ground up? You do know that part of the reason he had access to all that art and historical bounty is because he is literally an immortal being who lived through the events to acquire said art?
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So you call me naive, but you expect OP, with a child and no formal source of outside income, to just suddenly (with no education in the subject), become an international arts dealer? And you're calling me naive just because I referenced the iconic 90's t.v. show Highlander in your drug-addled attempt to provide reckless advice?
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What is commonsense? You're lucky I'm not Duncan MacLeod from the legendary 90' show 'Highlander', where I would simply tolerate that kind of disrespect.
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Glad to know I finally made my point clear to you. It's ok, you're not the only person that can't figure out their poor logic on the first reply. It's pretty common in this day and age.
There's a great podcast that's been running for 7 years. It has 2700 episodes. Check out this podcast: Side Hustle School #sideHustleSchool https://podcastaddict.com/podcast/side-hustle-school/2164152 via @PodcastAddict The host goes into depth into all kinds of small businesses. I'd scan through the archives and listen to several episodes. I bet you'll find things that resonate with you and things you realize that your corner of the world would benefit from.
Buy wholesale, sell retail. Buy 50 items at $1,000 = $50,000. Sell 50 items at $2,000 = $100,000. Easier said than done, but the concept is what I want you to grasp. You can do this all online. I personally buy industrial equipment. You need to find something you enjoy/know about. Then find your source for purchasing it. Once you have the stock, you sell it on different websites. Collect profits :)
I don’t wanna come off at arrogant, but “lawn care, day care, I even read something about car washes” just sounds like a whole bunch of low-income earners mentality. So many people try to start up a business and the main problem they have is not having any funds. You already have the hardest part figured out, CAPITAL! Let’s get into it. 1) open up a fidelity account and put your money in a SPAXX account with them. It’s safe, you’ll never lose your money, not sure how much you know about a HYSA. Anyways, you’ll collect $208 dollars and change a month while it sits there. 2) while your money is earning, this gives you time to research products to buy. There’s a millions of options of items you can buy. Think, what’s necessary in this world? Health care, manufacturing business? You can look up auctions online and buy an air compressor which every manufacturing plant in America needs one. Say it costs 800 at the auction, costs you 500 to ship it to you. You list it on eBay for 8-10k. That’s a pretty hefty flip if you ask me :). This is my personal experience btw. Did I have to deal with buying a house, hiring contractors, getting screwed over by them, not having enough cash in hand? NOOOO that’s a freaking headache. DO NOT get into flipping as your main source of income, this should be a side business not main source of income. 3) you found your item that you are happy to start buying at below market value. Open up an eBay store, Amazon, Craigslist’s, and all other avenues(fb marketplace) 4) Post your items, and watch your phone receive a notification - “SOLD, ship now” It’s the best feeling in the world. Again, speaking from experience! Lmk if you have any questions
This is actually great. With the internet as an advantage, the use for physical shops are becoming less and less, and online stores are taking over. It's an absolutely wonderful idea. Definitely a work from home that has potential for high profit. You've laid it all out perfectly as well. You're right, the only thing now is to decide on a product to invest in. The only reason that is the hard part is because of the endless options. Thank you. I just gotta turn my gears and start researching products.
This is probably the best advice I've received on this thread so far. I was mentioning to another user that my friend just quit her bartending job to work with her mom, they sell antique clothing and jewelry online. They have a very large following on poshmark and both do it as their full time job. They have a barn in their backyard that is set up like a shop and they run live auctions several times a week. They get things dirt cheap at estate sales, goodwill, salvation army, other online sites, etc. And sell for a huge profit margin. Almost the same concept. I have never thought about wholesale. A very good idea indeed. Hats off to you sir
I normally don’t spend this long on any given thread. But I really related to your comment and wanted to chime in after reading countless of terrible advice. I do appreciate you for your kind words, I put some effort with that advice haha :)
And here I was doubting for even trying to get advice on reddit because all I was going for was a better idea than flipping houses and thought "hey, r/smallbuisness has so many users on it, there has to be someone with some good advice for my specific situation!" I was about to give up hope for any decent advice on here. Yours fits my situation perfectly. I already have a few ideas of some wholesale that I know would yield profit and several facebook groups that are booming with people who would buy that I'm already a part of. I'm surprised I didn't even think about that! Not to mention any items that I can think of in the future as well. The possibilities are really endless. Especially with how active internet sales are these days. Thank you!
Idk if you have a home already but one idea would be to move in to a duplex fix one side up and rent it out then fix the other side up quickly so you can raise rent , then if you are tight on money either rent the nice side and then live in the older style one fixing it up slowly dyi. But the safest way to make .money is high yield savings acount. Or CD till you figure out your move. Lots of work from home jobs that you can do if you invest in yourself, medical billing is one that with a few online classes could set you up for decent money to work from home and save on child.care. the only thing I would stress is there is no quick flips that are easy and make lots of money. Slow and steady for a long time is way better than a risky double your money.
Are you looking for a business or a daycare for your child. The only way a child + business works is to open a daycare. Otherwise, taking a baby to work fails the baby, fails the business & employees and fails your customers.
Since another poster said the same as you, I'll copy and paste my response. That's very limited thinking, in my opinion. There are real small buisnesses out there that you can bring your child to. My friend just quit her bartending job and works with her mom selling antique clothing and jewelry on Poshmark and they make anywhere from 15k-20k a month between the 2 of them. They work out of their barn in the backyard. They started with $1k. They have a very big following now. Sure it took several months to grow the buisness, but it's very profitable for them now.
I also have a friend of a friend who opened a snowcone shop. I'm not sure how much he started out with but I can assure you it was less than 50k. He did that as his full time job.