Supplemental income doesn't always come in the form of a second job. These days it can mean living off your home equity -- literally.

For example, one reader who recently lost his mid-management position quickly tired of the 45-minute commute to a construction job that is paying him an hourly wage. He decided to cut expenses and create more money to live on by selling his home, paying off some debts, sticking the proceeds in a certificate of deposit at the bank, and renting another place.By the time the man weighs the loss of his mortgage interest tax deduction with the tax he will have to pay on the interest from his certificate of deposit, the term "supplemental income" may be a misnomer.What's worse is that Uncle Sam may deem the house he just sold as investment property, exposing the man to an additional capital gains tax consequence. That's because he had lost his family home in a nasty divorce and moved into the rental property. [Read the full article]

Instead of waiting until January of 2011, why not set your goals for next year right now and skip the production lows that normally come at the end of the year?On Monday we examined Michael Gerber's concept of "working on" your business as opposed to "working in" your business. "Working on" your business means taking time to analyze market conditions, evaluate your marketing efforts, and make adjustments to capitalize on market fluctuations. It also means creating a written plan.1. The power of written goals Research has consistently demonstrated the power of writing down your goals. Mark McCormack, in his book, "What They Don't Teach You in the Harvard Business School," reported on a study that followed Harvard students who graduated with a master's degree in business administration from 1979-89.All rights reserved. [Read the full article]

The nation's largest multiple listing service officially kicked off a tech developer challenge this week.Rockville, Md.-based Metropolitan Regional Information Systems Inc. is offering a $25,000 grand prize and a yearlong unpaid internship for an original desktop, mobile or Web application "that can measurably improve the way homebuyers and sellers work with professional real estate agents."The prize had previously been set at $100,000, but the MLS decided to assign the bulk of the money for internal product development rather than external development, according to a spokesperson.All rights reserved. This content may not be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever, in part or in whole, without written permission of Inman News.Use of this content without permission is a violation of federal copyright law.The nation's largest multiple listing service officially kicked off a tech developer challenge this week. [Read the full article]

A: The precise definition of what constitutes a first-time homebuyer -- and whether you would disqualify yourself from falling within it -- depends largely on the specific first-time buyer program or benefits for which you'd be trying to obtain.For example, the (now-expired) federal homebuyer tax credit program defined first-timers as those who had not owned a home in the three years preceding their purchase of the home for which they were seeking the credit.However, many city and state first-time buyer programs define a first-timer as someone who has not owned a home in that state for the three years preceding the qualifying purchase.Additionally, there are a number of other potential ways to revive virgin homebuyer status; for example, many states allow people who owned a home with their spouse to become born-again first-timers if they are seeking to buy a home as a single person, post-divorce. [Read the full article]