Money Blue Book

After months of waiting and checking my mail box regularly like a little kid waiting for his video game to arrive, I was finally relieved to discover a little envelope from the United States Treasury yesterday - my long awaited 2008 Economic Stimulus Payment check had finally arrived! Cha-ching (punctuated with a few obligatory fist pumping motions).

Actually, about a week ago I had already been given written notice that the check was on its way. I received one of those pointless waste of paper junk mail letters from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) letting me know that I was entitled to an economic stimulus payment check as provided by the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008, and to expect its arrival in a week or so. The letter also provided a simple breakdown of how the federal government calculated my small time stimulus payment.

But what was the point of sending this predecessor letter out to let me know this? Why is the IRS and federal government so oblivious and wasteful when it comes to wasting millions of dollars on paper and delivery costs to send out these pointless letters? Why not just combine the calculation breakdown letter with the actual stimulus rebate check that I received yesterday rather than sending them separately on different weeks? The financial savings for the federal government could easily have been several million dollars. Especially since we are now in an economic recession and the government keeps griping and raising issues about needing to balance the budget, and even some of the presidential candidates like Barack Obama keeps talking about raising taxes against those with higher incomes to pay for more federal government programs, why not practice some fiscal sense now by adopting real cost cutting techniques? The government’s habitual wasteful spending activities truly baffles me sometimes.

How My Economic Stimulus Tax Rebate Was Calculated

While I had hoped to receive my economic stimulus rebate via direct deposit, because I filed my 2007 tax return through TurboTax and actually owed a sizable amount of taxes, I was not able to provide my bank account routing numbers on my tax return for direct deposit purposes. Thus I was one of many who had to wait for my economic stimulus check to be mailed via the postal service.

Taking a look at my rebate, here is how my actual stimulus payment was broken down, in case you’re wondering. Because my adjusted gross income on my reported 2007 federal income tax return was above $75,000, the IRS reduced my stimulus payment by 5% of the amount of my adjusted gross income exceeding $75,000. As such, with my single filing status starting qualification amount of $600 increased by $0 for my lack of qualifying children, but reduced by $230.25 for the adjusted gross income limitation, my final calculated stimulus payment turned out to be only $369.75. It’s not a whole lot, especially since the cost of living in my D.C./Maryland suburban neighborhood is pretty high, but I suppose every little bit helps me pay the bills in the grand scheme of things.

How I Plan To Spend My Economic Stimulus Check, and Its Impact On My Future 2008 Tax Return

I’m obviously elated to receive my tax rebate check finally after all these months, but after looking at the relatively small amount, it sort of leaves me wondering, how is this small amount of money really supposed to stimulate the economy to any significant degree? While the check is certainly free windfall money in the sense that I wasn’t really expecting it or planning for it until recently, the amount isn’t really large enough for it to be good for much.

I considered several financially smart as well as a few fun but reckless ways to spend my tax rebate, now that I have it in my hand. Here are the choices and possible options I came up with:

1. Use the economic stimulus payment to help pay my rent - The downside is that with a pricey monthly rental obligation of $1,425.00, this small economic stimulus payment isn’t likely to make much of a dent in my case.
2. Deposit the small stimulus rebate into my high APY savings account to earn interest and help build up my backup emergency fund - I usually try to keep at least enough liquid cash in my savings account to last 6 months. I advocate more emergency fund savings than most, but I think this offers greater peace of mind. In this recession, you never know what unfortunate events may strike when you least expect it - everything from out of the blue vehicle repair charges to sudden unemployment necessitating the need to file for unemployment insurance benefits.
3. Save the stimulus rebate for retirement and contribute the amount towards my Roth IRA retirement fund. This is a good way to plan for the future. Great for you, but not so good for the economy (at least for the present time).
4. Pay off debt - While this sounds like a logical choice, other than my usual monthly revolving credit cards bills that I always pay off in full, my 0% APR balance transfer credit card arbitrage funds, and my very low interest student loans, I don’t have significant debt that demands my immediate attention to speak of. I think I’ve done a pretty good job of managing debt.
5. Spend the money and actually help directly stimulate the economy by injecting it back into the stream of commerce - Possibilities include using it for discretionary entertainment reasons like spending it on expensive movie tickets or even just using the amount to pay for necessary driving expenses brought about by spiraling high gas prices.

After much thought, I decided to deposit the amount into my high yield savings account like a good grasshopper (or was it the ant) and save for a rainy day. Why change my frugal savings minded personality just because I came upon some windfall money? I’m the type of person who would probably still drive around in a rain storm for a free car wash to save some money as a force of habit even after winning a lottery for millions.

As for the taxation aspects of the economic stimulus payment, due to the terms and nature of the Economic Stimulus Package, recipients of the tax rebate such as myself will not have to report the amount of our stimulus payments as taxable income on our 2008 federal income tax returns. The amount is indeed free money and not something we will have to pay back or pay taxes on. Furthermore, if any recipient also received any other federal benefits or federally financed benefits, those benefits generally will not be affected by any stimulus payment received as well.

Where’s My Economic Stimulus Payment? Ask The Almighty IRS

For those of you who are still waiting for your stimulus tax rebates with bated breath, you should utilize this handy IRS stimulus rebate tool to locate the status of your economic stimulus payment. It should be able to answer your most pressing tax rebate question. To use the online tool and verify your identity, you’ll need to provide your social security number, your filing status, and the total number of your exemptions.

If you still are not able to obtain a satisfactory answer, you may want to visit your local Taxpayer Assistance Center for help or call the IRS via the Rebate Hotline at 1-866-234-2942 for updates.

I consider myself one of many rate chasers out there - savvy savers who hunt for the best annual percentage yield (APY) interest rates at banks and credit unions, and who are keen on quickly moving large sums of money from one account to another in pursuit of that financial ideal. High yield interest rate chasers seek out the highest available interest rate offerings possible, whether available at popular brick and mortar branches or whether available only through obscure online banks. We keep tabs on them all regularly and shift our bank balances around in pursuit of that elusive, but perfect high yield savings account. Rather than be content with letting our savings accounts sit idle, earning stable, yet passive interest growth, rate chasers such as myself prefer to actively manage our bank accounts to maximize interest earnings. Interest rates periodically change, thus so should we. Currently, I use my compiled list of the Best High Yield Savings Accounts to actively keep tabs on bank rate updates and changes.

High Yield Savings Accounts Offer Not Only Liquidity, But Rock Solid Financial Security and Reliable Growth As Well

While I have a diversified investment portfolio made up of high performing stocks, bonds, exchange traded funds, and mutual funds, I still try to put a sizable amount of what I own in cash form, invested in stable interest bearing savings accounts. The type of money I put in a savings account is money I can’t afford to risk or jeopardize, and the type of funds that I may need to call upon to weather difficult financial times or unexpected financial emergencies. While I personally use credit cards for emergency fund purposes at least in the short term, stable savings account funds make up the bulk of my long term emergency money strategy. I try to keep at least 6 months worth of liquid assets on hand at all times - money that can be quickly converted into usable cash to pay current bills and liabilities on a moment’s notice. You never know what type of sudden unemployment, cash flow, car trouble, or health problems might befall you that might necessitate the need to call upon such an emergency influx of readily available funds. I choose to invest my emergency fund money into savings and money market accounts because they not only provide a modest degree of interest growth that usually outpaces or at least keeps up with inflation, the invested funds are liquid and extremely well protected from loss. I plan to work certificate of deposits (CD’s) into my emergency fund planning approach in the future, but wish to save up more in my savings before dabbling with higher yielding, but less liquid assets like CD’s.

Some people call rate chasers - day traders of the banking world, but I think that’s a terrible analogy. Unlike day traders who trade on short term, violent swings in the stock market, we do not take actions that could even remotely be construed as gambling or high risk stakes. Interest rate chasers tend to be risk adverse, and are almost always play-it-safe type investors and emergency fund builders who seek safety and pursue predictable rates of return, rather than high flying, speculative investments.

Besides, bank accounts, whether checking, savings, or money market accounts are one of the most stable, reliable, and dependent sources of asset preservation. While most traditional banking institutions do not provide investment assets that will make one rich as their rates of return are generally lower than that offered by other investment options such as stocks, bonds, options, or foreign currency exchange, they do provide a very stable and predictable rate of return. Insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the potential risk of loss of assets stored in a banking account is virtually nil. The FDIC, an independent agency of the United States government utilizes the full faith and credit of the federal government to protect the assets of all insured banks. Most major savings and banking associations are FDIC insured, and as such most traditional accounts offered by the insured bank, including checking, savings, money market accounts, CD’s, and even IRA retirement accounts are protected from loss. Even if the bank fails, goes bankrupt, goes out of business, gets robbed, burns down, or succumbs to some market catastrophe like the mortgage meltdown or credit crisis, the money stored in a FDIC insured high yield savings account remains 100% safe, up to the coverage amount. For savings accounts, the legal coverage limit is $100,000. If you own substantial assets that exceed this basic coverage limit and want to be 100% safe, you may want to consider spreading your assets among difference asset categories or banks.

Register With The Top High Yield Savings Accounts And Manage Your Fund Transfers As Interest Rates Periodically Fluctuate

There are certain basic steps savvy rate chasers and high yield online bank arbitrage seekers (as I like to them sometimes) take to properly manage their pursuit of high interest savings rates:

1) Open High Yield Accounts With Online Banks That Consistently Offer the Highest APY Interest Rates For Savings Accounts

I currently own several savings and money market accounts with the top online banks that have consistently offered the best APY interest rates. Personally, I avoid savings accounts from major brick and mortar retail banks like Wachovia, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, or even Citibank, since most rarely offer attractive interest rates as they don’t need to offer them to attract customers. Most of these big retail banks rely on convenience and physical location presence to attract clientele. On the other hand, online banking sites, blessed with lower operational and maintenance costs, are highly motivated and more willing to offer competitive interest rates for account holders.

Most of my recently opened high yield savings accounts are with generally well known online banking institution favorites like HSBC Direct, Countrywide’s Savings, WT Direct, E-trade Savings Bank, and Capital One Direct Savings. Oldies but goodies like ING Direct Savings (get an ING Direct Sign Up Bonus), and Emigrant Direct still remain alive and well as members of my complete savings account tracking roster. While the actual order in the interest rate sliding scale changes periodically, the mentioned banks tend to offer consistently high rates. After opening accounts, it’s simply a matter of tracking APY changes and shifting funds around accordingly.

It’s important as a rate chaser to have target bank accounts ready for quick transfers as interest rates change. Back in the old caveman days before the advent of the Internet, opening new savings accounts was cumbersome and limited to local brick and mortar branches, and phone banking was a pain. With the emergence of the Internet and the development of fully functional online banking websites, online funds can now be shifted around instantly with a few strategic key strokes. To manage your online accounts and prep them for transfers, all you have to do is register for online account access and set up linked ACH electronic access. To set up ACH transfer permissions, you’ll be required to submit information about the bank account that you want to link up - including the bank account number and the banking institution’s ABA routing number (you can ask your bank for this information). Frequently the online system will initiate two small denominational test deposits into your linked bank account, the amounts which you’ll have to verify to confirm that you are the actual owner.

2) Be Watchful Of New Bank Account Credit Report Check Penalties, and Electronic Bank Transfer Limits

If you’re like me, you try to maximize your money whenever possible. In my case, so long as the resulting effects don’t put myself in a potentially worse off financial position and the necessary actions to get me there aren’t too prohibitive, I try to go for the gold whenever possible. For those looking to open multiple bank accounts, one thing to keep in mind is the health of your credit score. When a new savings or money market account is opened, some banks initiate a hard credit check. The resulting hard credit pull, as it is sometimes called, may result in a small credit score hit in the nature of a request by one seeking credit. Not all banks initiate a hard credit pull that will ding your precious FICO score for new savings account applications, but some do. Examples of online bank account applications that result in harmless soft credit pulls include - Capital One Direct Savings, Countrywide, Emigrant Direct, E-Trade Savings, FNBO, HSBC Savings, ING Direct savings, and Washington Mutual.

Another thing rate chasers have to watch out for as well is the federal savings account limit of 6 ACH transfers a month. However, unless you are shifting your savings around every few days, the 6 ACH transfer limit per account should not be too much of a limitation or restrictive hassle. Be mindful that the transfer limitation also applies to money market deposit accounts as well. For most comparative factors, savings and money market accounts have little differences except money markets usually provide slightly higher interest rates and sometimes offer check writing privileges. However, money markets usually have higher tiered minimum balance requirements, although that is not always the case.

3) Manage Your Portfolio Of Multiple Savings Accounts By Using An Account Aggregation Service

To keep an eagle eye on your bank balances and army of savings accounts, I recommend using an account aggregation service like Yodlee, or Mint. Yodlee in particular offers its banking account consolidation service through other financial providers as well, such as Bank of America. In my case, I utilize Yodlee through Fidelity’s Full View access, which allows me to link up all of my high yield savings accounts and money markets to Fidelity Investments, storing my account passwords securely so that I can easily view my regularly updated account balances from one location. To make actual transfers however, you’ll have to log into the desired bank account directly.

4) Periodically and Regularly Shift Your Bank Balances Around As Major Interest Rate Changes Are Issued By the Federal Reserve

One thing to note is that I’m not a rabid or fanatic rate chaser. While some hardcore rate chasers shift their money around as soon as interest rate offerings change the slightest, I prefer to my make shift once or twice a month at the very most - call me a mild rate chaser if you wish. Usually I only shift my balances around in pursuit of higher APY rates every two or three months on average. Thus I don’t go hog wild over every slightest budge in APY, although there are lots of super online rate chasers who do though. Just look at those crazies who post on Fatwallet forums - they go nuts over a single .01% change.

Frequently, I fashion my fund transfers from one savings account to another around major interest rate moves by the Federal Reserve when I know major changes are coming my way. Upcoming federal reserve meeting dates on the calendar greatly interest me because decisions by the Federal Reserve frequently have a correlative effect across the board on the interest rate offerings by major banks. Rate cuts by the Fed usually signal subsequent APY interest rate drops by banks in a matter of days. Similarly, raises in the Fed Funds rate usually signal potential banking interest rate increases. Thus I usually try to make my electronic fund transfers as major rate changes are made across the board in response to Fed interest rate moves. Usually there is a lag time of about 1-2 weeks before banks at large fully and collectively respond to Fed announcements. Keep that in mind as well, lest you shift or chase that higher APY interest offering prematurely.

For those of you who are fortunate to have a stable job and blessed with being gainfully employed, congratulations and more power to you. For those of you who are currently unemployed or out of a job, I feel your frustration. I’ve been there before and know how scary and uncertain the experience can be.

In this fluctuating and unpredictable economy, you never quite know what is lurking around the corner. Life comes at us fast and sometimes job stability, occupational predictability, and all positive aspects of full time employment can disappear in a flash. Sometimes it can be due to our own fallibility and less than perfect work performance, and sometimes it can be due to slowdowns in the economy at large. Life is unpredictable and it’s hard to be certain whether there is such a field that’s a sure thing anymore. During the past few years, jobs and careers related to the real estate and housing market were hot and in great demand. However, years later, with the collapse of the housing bubble, many of the jobs previously fueled by the burgeoning real estate market have mostly disappeared. Even upper echelon MBA-type financial positions at top firms like Merrill Lynch have been down sized and trimmed back, resulting in many educated employees suddenly out of work.

If you find yourself one of many who have been laid off, I feel for you. I’ve been through a sudden job lay off before and it’s not an easy feeling or experience to go through. Not only does it put you in a sudden cash flow crunch, but it forces you to scramble around in desperation to find employment quickly. For those who have a wife, husband, or children depending on that income, the extra financial and familial pressures make the process even more urgent. However, it doesn’t have to be the end of the world. There are systems and governmental assistance programs in place to help guide and cushion you during those periodic times of unemployment - namely in the form of unemployment insurance benefits. Don’t let those invaluable financial benefits and entitlements pass you by during times of need - seize them immediately.

Do Not Let Petty Shame Or Guilt Prevent You From Filing For Unemployment Insurance Benefits - It’s Your Money and You Are Entitled To It

I’ve filed for unemployment benefits several times throughout my working career thus far. I will admit, the first time I filed, I felt a tinge of shame and guilt. I felt like it was a hit on my aura of financial independence and a stain on my own sense of masculine pride. As someone who was raised to believe that an important aspect of a man’s duty and responsibility was to provide for himself and his family, it was difficult for me to depend on governmental handouts for the first time. To me, receiving unemployment benefits meant I was now on welfare, and no better than some unmotivated or lazy 40 year old bum who lived in his parent’s basement like some financial leach on society.

However, now that I’ve had experience with being the recipient of unemployment benefits, I now understand what it truly is. To receive unemployment insurance benefits is by no means the same as receiving public welfare. It’s a genuine financial safety net that is subsidized by employers in a socialized manner to help decent working people get back on their feet quickly with as little financial destruction or burden as possible. While unemployment benefits provide free money for times when you’re not working, a fundamental and required tenant is that the recipient actively pursue employment leads while drawing on the temporary financial perks. Being a recipient has no effect on your existing credit score and the mere act of filing has no effect on your future employment prospects. The small amount of compensation provided isn’t sufficient to save or grow rich on, but is just enough to give one a semblance of financial continuity and feeling of self reliance until the person can get back on his or her feet. It helps those who want to help themselves.

Who Pays For The Funds Dispersed For Unemployment Benefits?

Unemployment benefits are provided by a special jointly run fund provided by federal and state payroll taxes called the Unemployment Insurance program. No part of an employee’s actual paycheck goes directly into this unemployment fund (unlike social security) but is instead indirectly funded by employers through a special unemployment insurance tax that they pay. Almost all employers are required to pay unemployment insurance tax to help fund this public service. Unlike worker’s compensation, the employer does not pay unemployment benefits to laid off employees directly, but payments are instead issued by the responsible state agency as needed. Even if an employer goes out of business, unemployment benefits can still be distributed out to the company’s now unemployed workers because funds are socially subsidized by other active employers who pay into this pool of shared funds. When you are out of work for whatever reason, it’s in your own interest to apply for unemployment benefits as soon as possible. Even if you refuse to file for it, you should know that you are still indirectly paying for this socialized governmental service.

Remember, there is no shame in taking on this temporary financial safety net as a short term stop gap measure - it was designed for you when you need it the most. The money is rightfully yours because your employer pays into the fund on a mandatory basis. Without its existence, you theoretically would have been given higher pay. If because of pride, you refuse to take this temporary governmental handout, ask yourself this question - will pride put food on the table for your family in the meantime until you can find your next job? Will pride pay for necessary groceries or pay for a roof over your held until you can secure that next job interview? Think about it. Desperate times require desperate measures. I personally view unemployment benefits as part of my emergency fund measures.

As Soon As You Become Unemployed, Apply For Unemployment Benefits Immediately

The most important thing to know about seeking unemployment benefit compensation is to file as soon as you become either partially or fully unemployed. Even if you suspect you will be able to file a new job relatively soon, it’s still in your best interest to still file for it sooner than later. There is almost always a 1-2 week lag time between filing and when you receive benefits. Frequently, there is also a mandatory one week waiting period during which the first week will not be compensated for. The benefit clock starts when you file so if you wait around to see if a new job is forthcoming, you may miss out on much deserved unemployment entitlements. If you wait several months after becoming unemployed to file, you won’t be able to claim for the non-working months that have already passed. You can only claim for the time that comes after the moment you file, so don’t delay - get credit for every single moment you remain unemployed.

Even if you are confident that you have sufficient pre-existing emergency funds to live off of, it’s better to file and not risk the chance that your emergency funds ultimately run out. You don’t want to look back later down the road only after draining your bank account completely and racking up unpaid credit card bills, and realized that you ought to have applied for unemployment benefits earlier.

Where Do You File For Unemployment Benefits?

Unemployment benefit applications should be filed in the state where the work was performed. Check out this official U.S. Department of Labor List Of State Unemployment Agencies to determine the correct filing location. Most states today allow unemployment benefit applications to be filed via telephone, in person, or through the Internet. If you want to avoid the stigma or emotional embarrassment of filing for this entitlement in person, filing via phone or through the Internet is a great way to circumvent this problem. Not only that, those methods are also quicker ways get your money more expeditiously.

As mentioned, unemployment filings are made with the state unemployment agency in the state jurisdiction where the work was performed. If you lived in New York and worked in New York, you need to file your claim with the state of New York. What about those who lived in one state, but worked in another? In my case when I filed way back when, I lived in the state of Maryland, but worked in Washington D.C. Since I performed my employment in D.C., my place of unemployment benefit filing would be in D.C. since that’s where my employers actively paid their unemployment taxes to. I could still file with the state of Maryland, but would ultimately be referred by the unemployment hotline and managing system to seek benefits from Washington D.C.

Who Is Entitled To File For Unemployment Benefits and How Much Money Can You Expect?

Generally (individual state laws vary), to qualify for unemployment benefits, an applicant must (1) meet state eligibility requirements regarding how long the employee has previously been working and how much money the employee has earned, (2) make continuing and regular application updates to the managing state agency, (3) be continuously available for work and actively seeking work, and (4) not be subject to any disqualifying employment factor.

To be entitled for unemployment benefits, employees must have become unemployed through no fault of their own (although definitions on fault vary by state). Generally those who voluntarily quit their jobs or were discharged from their positions due to willful misconduct can’t qualify. However, if you were laid off due to downsizing or were discharged due to simple lack of work, you will probably be entitled to benefits. Once approved, to continue to draw on your weekly unemployment checks or direct deposits, you will required to submit weekly updates of your employment and income status either by phone or over the Internet. During that time, you are expected to actively look for work. Obviously the benefits will stop as soon as you become gainfully employed again. While it’s somewhat unlikely the state agency will know if you go on vacation during that period of time instead of looking for work, you should also know that by doing so, you are committing fraud and may be required to pay the benefits back along with penalty fees if discovered. I know some people who did decide to take a brief vacation while still drawing on unemployment benefits, managing to stay under the radar, but not everyone will be that fortunate. Big brother government has sneaky ways to track you down.

To file for unemployment benefits with your state agency, you will need to provide your name, mailing address, phone number, social security number, working phone number, and may sometimes be asked to provide recent pay stubs. However, with computerized filings, oftentimes you will only need to provide your former employer’s name and address, without having to provide wage or salary paperwork. Your most recent employer will be automatically contacted by the state unemployment agency to verify the circumstances and reasons of your work discharge or layoff. Their response will help determine whether you exhibit any of the disqualifying factors to receiving unemployment benefits such as you quitting on your own, or getting fired because you were stealing from them.

The amount of your weekly unemployment benefit checks will vary depending on your past income and the maximum limits of your filing jurisdiction. For those who are higher income earners, your weekly checks will be worth more. The maximum payout amount also differs from state to state. Just to give you a very rough ballpark figure of how much you can expect, the maximum payout for the District of Columbia is currently $359 a week, before tax. At about $1,436 a month, this definitely goes a long way to help pay for basic living expenses like rent until you can get back on your employment feet.

Usually there is a total amount of benefits that each specific applicant can draw upon before the entire fund for that benefit year is tapped out. But until that happens, applicants can usually receive benefits for 6 months straight (26 weeks) before depleting their entire emergency unemployment benefit reserves. Keep in mind as well, all unemployment payouts are considered taxable income. There is usually no tax withholding associated with unemployment benefits so you may be required to pay estimated taxes to meet your tax obligations.

Updated Review List Of The Top Make Money Online Paid Survey Offers Below

Ever since college, I’ve continuously exposed myself to a wide array of get rich quick schemes and online money making gimmicks. The majority of my hobby-esque efforts have primarily been for entertainment and informational purposes. While many of the online offers that I pursued and researched back then ultimately turned out to be fraudulent scams or fruitless endeavors, a handful of them have proved to be reliable and consistent money making methods over the years. One of the ways I used to make some extra money on the side and still work from home was by getting paid to fill out online surveys. Back when I was a college student, online surveys were an easy way to generate a few dollars here and there for extra cash and gift card rewards. Today, I still get paid to take online surveys but I’ve learned to manage them more efficiently and learned to fill them out substantially quicker than I used to. Nowadays, a 30 minute online paid survey usually only takes me a matter of 5 minutes to scan and rapidly click through.

While I work full time now, I still enjoy the little bits of part time income I generate with these paid online surveys. These survey money making offers are best suited for certain work at home types such as: stay at home moms, college students looking for extra spending cash, or working professionals like myself looking to kill some time and make money doing it. I complete most of my occasional paid online surveys quickly at work between lunch breaks or I knock out a few qualifying offers on my laptop when I’m lounging around at home like a couch potato, watching a football game or during television commercials. Most of the time I redeem the survey completion reward points for either cash or I exchange them for gift cards to frequently visited places like Starbucks or Amazon.com. While taking surveys isn’t exactly the most productive way to spend my time, I liken the practice to the same way that some people might choose to spend their spare time playing video games or enjoying a TV show. None of these habits are particularly productive in the business or financial sense, and they are all performed for purely entertainment purposes. But rather than sitting there passively watching television shows or playing computer games, I prefer to spend my bored time by engaging in hobby type activities that generate a little side income.

What Are Paid Online Surveys, And Why Are The Marketing Research Companies Willing To Pay Consumers Money To Fill Out Survey Questionnaires?

The business aspect of surveys has always been around, but the Internet has revolutionized the way they are now being conducted. It used to be that surveys had to be performed in person through a live focus group exchange or had to be transmitted through the postal service using snail mail means. However, the Internet has changed all that and improved upon the speed and the way market research may now be performed and compiled. While many of the big companies and retailers in the world still perform their own in-house research into the consumption and usage habits of consumers to build and brand their products and services, oftentimes, these companies must solicit the aggregate views of larger sample sizes to better hone their research results and improve upon their brand’s appeal to whatever population demographic they are trying to target. This usually requires that they outsource some research work to third party market research companies that are better equipped to handle mass survey research projects. This is where you and I come in - as ordinary consumers and potential opt-in survey participants.

As ordinary members of the population, we all have different likes and dislikes when it comes to certain products, brands, companies, and services. The online survey companies are out to inquire and gather all this public opinion information to better assess the views and preferences of the American and world population when it comes to such consumerism matters. The product development and service promotion choices and strategies of these billionaire dollar mega corporations depend on the views and whims of their target customers - you and I. Because of this need for public opinion information, market research firms are willing to pay consumers like us a reasonable amount of money to answer some of their market research related questions on a regular basis. It’s not a job interview and it’s most certainly not something anyone has to worry about getting trapped into participating. Even after registering and agreement to be a willing online survey panel participant, you are always free to back out. You can always subsequently ignore the paid survey offers you receive for whatever reason. If you refuse to later take part, the company will just turn to another voluntary opt-in participant in the target sample. Of course, you also won’t get paid for any online surveys you don’t adequately complete.

What Type Of Payment Incentives Do Free Paid Survey Sites Offer, and Is It Possible To Get Rich Filling Out These Internet Surveys?

Usually the paid survey research sites pay you after each completed survey offer. Some firms will issue you a check or PayPal cash deposit for the qualified amount immediately, while others will offer you survey reward points that can be accrued in your accessible online account and later redeemed for cash rewards, gift card prizes, or free merchandise. The gift card and product rewards can be anything from popular Amazon gift cards to various electronic gadgets. Obviously the bigger the merchandise, the more survey points you’ll need to redeem. When a survey offer is proposed to you, sometimes the offer will expressly indicate the proposed payment amount, say $5.00 upon completion, while other times it may indicate that completion will only result in an entry into some prize drawing in the future. Personally, my advice is to avoid all paid survey links that want to reward you with useless sweepstakes drawings. The chances of willing one of those prizes are slim and you are much better off focusing on surveys that reward you with cold hard cash or redeemable reward points upon completion.

One thing to make clear is that no one should expect to make a lot of money or get rich quickly by filling out online surveys. Remember, you’re just taking online surveys - not performing expensive open heart surgery for someone. No one is going to retire from the income they earn or be able to make a full time living from taking online surveys. The survey money you get paid for is meant to be a part time supplement to your existing day job salary. However, if you’re determined to make a lot of money from paid online surveys, it is theoretically possible to make $2,000 or even upwards of $3,000 a year if you register with multiple online survey sites and actively engage in all survey offers that are sent to you. If you are a member of a demographic that is actively targeted by survey companies, you may luck out with more paid survey chances - it all depends what demographic types businesses are interested in knowing more about during their Internet marketing research trials. However, you’ll also have to be a pretty prolific and fast survey census taker to hit the money jackpot. For most people (99.9% of everyone else there), it’s best not to see this as some career, but rather as a way to generate some stress free profits by working from home. Your online paid survey income may help pay for a few expensive family restaurant dinner outings or help subsidize the cost of gifts at Christmas time - but that’s pretty much all you should really expect from doing them.

The payout amount that is offered differs among online survey sites and also differs depending on the difficulty and length of time it takes to complete an individual survey. The most lucrative online surveys can pay as much as $20-50 each, but these usually require a substantial amount of time and effort to complete - be prepared to spend upwards of 1-3 hours for these high payout offers. Oftentimes the highest pay out surveys will require the participant to appear at least once for a live online discussion format where the survey taker will be required to log into an online site and actually engage in a moderated Internet chat discussion with other panel members. Through these online discussion and chat formats, the survey researchers will usually probe and ask direct questions about the opinions and viewpoints of participants in regards to whatever consumer product or service they are researching for.

But in the vast majority of paid online survey cases, payouts will likely be less than a $1 for each completed survey. The lower payout offers usually only take a few minutes to complete but if you are able to fill them out quickly and efficiently, the monetary amounts do add up quickly. Keep in mind that many paid survey companies issue payment in the form of reward points. Your final cash payment or merchandise redemption value will depend on how many high value surveys you ultimately complete.

How Do I Participate and Get Paid Cash For Online Paid Surveys, and What Type Of Questions Do The Paid Survey Sites Ask?

To start receiving free survey opportunities, you’ll need to register yourself with some of the more reputable paid online survey sites. While there are literally thousands of survey companies on the world wide web, I’ve listed the links of the ones I’ve had the best and most reliable experience with below. Remember to examine their individual terms and conditions before registering. Most of the survey site links will require that you submit your name, and basic contact info such as your address, phone number, and email information. Usually they will also request for additional demographic data such as your age, gender, and race. The site registration process will usually also go through a brief introductory questionnaire to figure out what you like, dislike, or have experience with in regards to all aspects of ordinary consumer life. This information is important because it helps the researchers build your survey profile, which is used to determine whether you qualify for particular survey offers or not. Your qualification for certain surveys will always depend on what the Internet marketing research company is looking for at that particular time.

The email address you provide during the application process is particularly important because your provided email address will be the survey sites’ primary method of contacting you about paid survey offers. Be sure to provide an email address that you intend to check regularly and don’t mind receiving extra mail messages on. While most of the legit online opt-in survey sites will never send you unsolicited spam or messages without your authorization, to make money with paid surveys, you’ll inevitably need to agree to receive an influx of regular email offers. Particularly if you register with multiple survey companies, expect to receive more email traffic than you’re used to receiving. Each survey notification email will usually provide a clickable link to the online survey questionnaire, embedded with tracking information to make sure you are ultimately paid for upon completion.

The type of paid survey questions asked will always depend on what the requesting company is looking for, but just about everything under the sun relating to commerce, business, and consumer spending habits will be fair game. You may be asked about your dining habits, culinary preferences, what type of soap you’re using, whether you’re looking to buy a new car, or whether you are currently suffering from any physical medical conditions that necessitate the use of certain prescription medications. I’ve noticed that one particularly high paying survey subject matter is the health related niche. If you have high blood pressure, diabetes, or any other health condition, you will likely be sought after by prescription drug companies looking to get your online survey opinion about various treatment solutions. The frequency and demand of your survey services will really depend on your age group, profession, hobbies, interests, and the particulars of your personal demographics. Usually the surveys are comprised of basic text based online questionnaires, but sometimes you may be asked to watch a new product commercial or a movie trailer, or you may be asked to look at a new restaurant menu plan or magazine print advertisement, and then later instructed to fill out a questionnaire about what you liked or didn’t like. Most of the time it’s just a matter of clicking a quick yes or no, or stating your opinion using a sliding scale.

While not as frequent as email surveys, sometimes you may also be sent free household products and electronic merchandise in the mail for your review and opinion. I’ve been sent everything from shampoo bottles, to snack crackers, to razors, shaving cream, to iPod ear buds, to even a pack of experimental condoms for my use and review. The products are almost always new beta trial products not currently yet in the market place that some company is still working on perfecting or figuring out how to properly advertise. Most of them don’t even have proper product labels on them yet, usually with only a serial number sticker affixed. Receiving product review surveys in the mail is probably my favorite paid survey opportunity. The best part is that you get to keep the products after you fill out and return the survey questionnaires that accompany them. Even if you get lazy and don’t respond by filling out the accompanying product surveys, you still get to keep the free products sent to you. For me, there’s always something terribly exciting about trying out a new retail product that no one has yet seen or used in the marketplace. It’s nice to know that my survey opinion may actually make a difference in shaping how these brands and companies ultimately market and perfect their products.

My advice on improving your paid survey taking strategy is to say yes to everything and express interest for all subject matters - every product, every service - everything. If you are looking to game the survey system and maximize the amount of money you make from online paid surveys, your best bet is to qualify yourself for as many survey criteria as possible. By not expressing any dislike or lack of experience with anything, you greatly increase your survey qualification chances during the profile building process. Keep in mind that certain demographics (such as home owners) tend to get lots of extra survey opportunities that others don’t qualify for. There are a lot of home owner type surveys regarding home improvement appliances that only those that represented themselves out to be owners of a house or condo will qualify for. (Hint-Hint. Wink-Wink)

How Do I Find The Legitimate Paid Online Survey Websites and Avoid Falling For An Online Survey Scam?

As I mentioned earlier, there are literally thousands of paid online survey sites and services out there. However, the vast majority tend to be scam and disreputable sites that either have questionable membership fee policies or simply don’t have sufficient survey business in their pipeline to make registering with them worth your time as the consumer. The ones that are legitimate and trustworthy tend to be established market research firms that have been around for a long time, and have built up solid track records of providing reliable payouts to survey participants along with providing steady and guaranteed streams of paid survey work for registrants.

There are plenty of free paid survey links and services on the web. There is never a need to resort to paying anyone or any online company for the right to use their database list of survey offers. While certain disreputable sites will attempt to sucker you in by advertising that they offer the highest payouts for surveys and that access to their exclusive list will be worth the membership fee you pay upfront, the fact of the matter is that most of these lists are absolutely useless. There is no reason for you to pay the survey research company the right to take their online surveys. Remember, they are supposed to pay you to take their Internet surveys, not the other way around. Don’t fall for any of these membership fee survey scams. If they ask for a membership charge or a registration fee upfront, run the other way.

As for those who are worried about getting their email accounts spammed to death, remember that reputable online paid survey companies do not spam or send unsolicited messages. Most will only send you survey notification email reminders upon your request. Should you ever find the influx of survey offers too overwhelming, as I have a few times before in the past, you can simply log onto your online survey account and unsubscribe temporarily, or even permanently.

To recap, remember, to fully maximize your paid survey opportunities and make money with paid surveys, you ought to register with as many reputable online survey companies as possible. You can always turn off email notifications or unsubscribe thereafter but by applying, you open yourself up to paid survey chances. To increase your survey qualification opportunities, you should express interest in everything and check your email routinely for daily and weekly survey offers. Upon receiving one, you should complete the paid online survey as soon as possible assuming you have the time to do so. Don’t put off any high value survey offers for later because the highest paying surveys tend to expire quickly after a certain number of participants have been selected. Also, you should avoid all survey offers that only provide you a sweepstakes entry or prize drawing ticket for survey completion. Stick with only cash and reward point survey offers.

Reviews Of The Best Sites To Make Money Online With Paid Surveys, Based On My Experience (All Are Free To Join):

1) NFO My Survey - Of all the top paid online survey companies out there, the National Family Opinion MySurvey site is probably my favorite one. Their website is easily accessible and their survey payouts are pretty good. They’ve provided me a steady stream of paid survey opportunities regularly on a wide array of interesting topics for some time now. My Survey is one of the best and biggest online research companies on the Internet. The company uses a point system for survey completion rewards and issues payout when you’ve reached the point equivalent of $10. Points can be redeemed for a variety of options from cash to gift cards, and you can even earn extra points for referring friends. I’ve also received household cleaning supplies and various food products (e.g. experimental potato chips), from them before for product panel related reviews. The proven company is great at keeping its survey takers busy and earning paid survey income.

2) Survey Savvy - Survey Savvy is definitely one of my best paid survey sites and a pretty highly promoted program by most people due to its nice recurring direct and indirect referral program. Not only can you earn the usual payout for your own completed surveys, you can also earn $2.00 for every survey your direct referral takes and yet another $1.00 for every survey taken by their referrals. The trickle down referral system makes it one of the best paid survey choices to make money and get paid, particularly if you refer many of your friends and family members. Survey offer frequency is average but payout is quite good. Of course, coupled with the referral system, your Survey Savvy paid income will probably end up being quite lucrative.

3) Synovate - The Synovate Global Opinion Panel pays cash for completed surveys. The company sends out a reasonable number of regular paid surveys and survey payout is decent and comparable to that offered by other online research firms. Once in a while I get a few nice and long $10 surveys from Synovate. I’ve also received a few products from them for review before - mostly soap and shower products.

4) Lightspeed Consumer Panel - The Lightspeed consumer survey company rewards you with points for completed surveys and product reviews that can be later exchanged for cash, gift certificates and other prizes. Lightspeed is pretty active in sending out surveys and it’s easy to rack up reward points quickly based on my recent experience with the company. The survey payouts are a bit lower than I would like but the lower pay rate is made up by the extra high frequency at which they send out potential offers. Most of their paid surveys are easy to fill out and for experienced survey takers, they’re a piece of cake to rapidly complete. Just click like crazy.

5) American Consumer Opinion Panel - The American Consumer Opinion Panel, or ACOP as it’s commonly called, is a paid survey favorite of mine due to the rapid speed at which the company issues out compensation checks for completed surveys. ACOP issues checks for completed surveys that range anywhere from $4 to $20 depending on the length, qualification requirements, and nature of the survey. Online focus group surveys almost always pay much more - between $25 and $50, but those types of offers are infrequent and more difficult to qualify for.

6) Ipsos I Say - Despite its semi-weird name, Ipsos is one of the major marketing research firms in the world. In my opinion, the best benefit and lure of this online survey company is the chance to receive product reviews as many of its regular text based online surveys tend to only offer prize drawing related payouts. Ipsos is a nice paid survey company to register with if you’re interested in occasionally receiving freebies and test products to review.

7) Greenfield Online - Greenfield Online, which acquired Go-Zing, offers survey participants cash or an entry in their reward sweepstakes for completed survey offers. Survey registrants are advised to bypass all survey offers that provide only prize drawing entries and go only for those that provide actual cash money for survey qualification and completion. Greenfield Online keeps its participants very busy with plenty of paid survey opportunities, but keep in mind, participants may not always qualify for all survey offers depending on their demographic details.

8) Global Test Market - The Global Test Market company offers Market Points for competed surveys and sends out survey opportunities quite frequently for both American and international survey registrants. While the cash out level of the reward point equivalent of $50 is higher than that required by other paid survey providers, they make up for it by sending participants a lot of paid survey chances with respectable payouts. Even if you don’t qualify for an offer that is sent to you, you still get to earn some points for merely looking at it. Most of their surveys are not too long, and are varied enough to not bore you to tears as you click away at the check boxes.

9) My Points - This company is not really a dedicated paid survey company but it does offer paid surveys as part of its reward earning program. MyPoints offers a wealth of ways to earn reward points for future prize and merchandise redemption. You can earn them by completing surveys (SurveyMail), reading e-mail advertisements (BonusMail), or signing up for online trial offers. I highly recommend avoiding the trial offer route unless you really are interested in the offers. You are better off sticking with Survey Mail and Bonus Mail opportunities to earn reward points. Survey Mail is just your usual get paid to fill out surveys option, while Bonus Mail is basically a way for you to get paid to read spam emails.

10) Pinecone Research - The Pinecone Research survey company is noted for its extremely elusive and almost secretive nature. They are very selective in who they accept into their survey program. It’s great if you’re in because they provide you quality survey opportunities, but it’s bad if you want in and can’t find their membership application page. Pinecone program recruitment opportunities usually appear as advertisement banner links placed unpredictably on various relevant sites and blogs. Currently they do not recruit new members directly through their website. You can try visiting their main homepage, but good luck trying to find their sign up page - it’s non existent. While an active Pinecone registration link may not always be available, I will update this particular sign up link with a working Pinecone referral link whenever possible. The Pinecone Research payout rate is a set $3 per completed survey. Paid survey chances are steady and the company is known for prompt payouts - via either PayPal or check, depending on your selected payment method.