Many stay at home mothers are facing the harsh reality: supporting a family on just one salary isn't possible anymore. In the middle of a tumbling economy, new mothers are forced to choose working over staying home with their children, and not because they want to. Without the extra income, their family wouldn't be able to survive.



Some women are turning to the internet to help make up the difference in salaries. While there are thousands of work at home scams that are targeted at stay at home moms, there are actually quite a few legitimate ways to make money from home - and still have the freedom to spend your time with your children. Starting an eBay home business can bring in just as much money, if not more, than if you worked a traditional job, and you get to raise your children at the same time.

To get started with an eBay business from home, sign up for a free seller's account. If you already have an eBay account, click on the "selling" tab on eBay's home page. Fill in your personal information, your home address, and your bank account or credit card information. If you have a PayPal address, and want to accept PayPal payments, you will want to enter that as well. It only takes a few minutes to set up, and once you are done, you can start selling immediately.

When you are just starting out, you can start selling items from around your home that you don't use. Your children's used and outgrown clothing, your own maternity clothes, and old toys and baby gear are all things that you can sell on eBay. You likely have some other items laying around the house that you don't use or need, so you can list them on eBay, as well. This way, you don't need to invest any money to start selling items, and you can get rid of the clutter around your house at the same time.

When you have built up some revenue from selling these items, you can start searching for other items to sell using the money you have already made. Some ideas for items include clearance-priced clothing you can find at department stores, and then sell for a higher profit; gently used toys or games you can pick up at yard sales; or purchase items wholesale or in bulk, and then break them up to sell for a profit on eBay. You can find one particular category of items to sell, or expand your horizons and sell whatever you find at a good price.

Using the half rule, you can make money and still have money to invest in purchasing new items. The half rule works by taking your total profits, and splitting the money in half. Half of the money goes into your bank account for your own personal use, and the other half goes towards purchasing new items for your eBay business. As your popularity increases and your profits grow, you can reserve less and less money to purchase new items, and keep more of the money for yourself. Eventually, you may get to a point where most of the money is yours to keep, and very little is going back into your business. When you have hit that point, you know that your eBay home business is successful - enjoy your hard work and your financial success!