On a previous occasion we've discussed why so many people who're approaching retirement, find that their investments haven't worked out and that their hopes for a comfortable old age have been dashed. Perhaps one of the top home businesses might be the way to go, to create a second stream of income.

Depending on your particular skills and interests, there are several options to consider:

A popular option for those without specialist skills such as accounting or bookkeeping, is to do data collection or survey completion. A quick search of the internet will reveal numerous options, varying in type and rate of pay.

You can look at data collection as an option, and it's easy to get going quite quickly. Completion of rebate forms is one of these, providing a steady income of around $50 per rebate form completed and submitted. The time taken to achieve this will vary by individual, but seems to average between 1-2 hours per form. Obviously practice makes perfect, and most people become quicker at completing forms after some practice. There is a warning though - errors can cost you, and good advice is to retain a percentage of earnings in case of mistakes.

The downside of this option revolves around the issue of typing skills, especially with the use of numbers, and accuracy is essential. This option is ideal for those who're accustomed to working with numbers on a computer. However, working with care to ensure accuracy can still generate a useful extra source of income.

Survey completion is often tied in to particular geographic areas, associated with shopping, restaurants, movies and the like. It would be wise to examine this option carefully, to ensure that the scheme is viable for a particular person's needs. Most online businesses can be run from a computer anywhere in the world, but conducting surveys may be limited to certain locations.

Multi-level marketing is an extremely popular option for an online business, but the requirement to sell products and to recruit additional sales-people may not be to everyone's taste. We suggest a careful examination of the business, before leaping into action. Some MLM businesses are more effective than others online, but some may require personal interaction with clients and customers to promote products. Again there may be limitations imposed by the geographic availability of some products. Investigate the business with great care.

Online bookkeeping or accounting is a very attractive option, for those with the necessary skills and experience, but although pay-rates vary tremendously it is possible to make a good basic living, not unlike that possible from a similar day job. Companies like the option of outsourcing these skills, so they pay for work completed, without the overheads of full-time employees.

Affiliate marketing is still perhaps the easiest option for someone to enter, with little or no experience. Most schemes provide a free website and training, and although there are plenty of scams around, it is not too difficult to find a legitimate opportunity based on quality goods or services, and that has survived the test of time. Do your research carefully, and choose something that offers everything needed for success, but especially support and training.