Finding secure and steady employment when you're an army spouse can be a challenge when you're faced with frequent and sometimes unpredictable moves. A home-based business is a great option, but a home-based career that is portable is even better. There aren't very many easily portable careers to choose from but if you have the ability to transform a room by moving around its furniture or get frequent requests from people to help pick out paint colors, a career in home staging could be perfect for you.

If you already have some decorating talent, once you learn the business of home staging (which can take around ten hours or so depending on your schedule) you are well on your way to being your own boss. You don't need a storefront or inventory to move around with you. Unlike one of the most popular portable career options - selling items online - you'll make more money in less time without the hassle of storing items, selling them online and packing and shipping.
Home staging projects are typically very short in duration; many can take a few hours or days to complete. You won't have to worry about being tied down to a huge project if you learn you have to make a quick move.

And because you're part of a community where most members move frequently, you're surrounded by a built in market for your services. This makes your marketing efforts much simpler. When USAA Magazine interviewed me for a home staging story, they were particularly interested in how house staging could help their members make more money when they sell their homes. Part of the difficulty for home sellers is finding a home stager when you need one. With the right marketing, a military spouse would have a long line of clients waiting for real estate staging help.

With your natural talent and the knowledge of how to start a successful home staging business, all you will need is a business card and a web presence. With the right home staging training program you will learn everything you need to know to start your staging business including how to price your services, how to market yourself at very little to no cost and how to conduct a home staging consultation.

Because of your frequent moves, you can constantly be adding before and after photos of your own homes to add to your portfolio. Your portfolio will be one of your largest assets followed by your URL or domain name (website address). Both items are quite portable and can move with you anywhere in the world.

Aside from those two items, you'll need business cards. Even those won't really be affected by your moves if you keep that in mind when they're designed. You don't need a physical address on your card, and if you're concerned about your telephone number changing frequently, there are several companies on the Internet that can provide you with very inexpensive web-based phone service complete with a completely portable toll free phone and fax number. Or you can keep it simple and just change your phone number on your card with each move. This shouldn't cost more than $75 to get about 200 new cards printed.

Home staging is a very flexible career. If you decide you'd like to take some time off to spend time with your spouse or to help your children adjust to a new school that's your call. You book your appointments when you want them.

As a home stager, you have a 100% portable business that can move with you at a moment's notice. It's a service needed by homeowners all over the world, so it doesn't matter where you move, you can pick up your target market in your new location.

A real estate staging career is completely complementary to a military career and can open up endless possibilities in your life and that of your family.