Will It Go Round in Circles? How to Tell if a Free Money Site is Full of …

I had a dizzying experience at a “free money” web site last week. Not because it was full of free money, but because every link led to nowhere. Seriously. The page spoke some accurate stuff about monetary help for heating in the lilheap (Low-Income Home Energy Assistance) program, and had a link. That led to another page talking about…lilheap. And that’s what it did, over and over, round and round. It never provided an actual link to the program, such as this link here to the lilheap clearinghouse. See how easy that was?


But off to the side, was a place where you could buy a book on all that. Of course! Once you get frustrated enough, they can relieve your frustration by selling you a book. Now, I know that not everybody has a day job like me, and you have to make a buck somehow, but really. That was the second “circular” free money site I’ve seen in the month. Here’s a hint, people. If the first or second go-round has nothing, dump the site, and search google with the site:.gov extension. Sometimes that helps, although some government sites now use .org, or outsource to a .com site. But if you can’t get direct information after a pass-through or two, just drop the site like it’s hot. I'm not saying it's a scam, because if you buy the book, it may have legit stuff.  But to me, first impressions count. 

A good place to go is your state's website, and run a search at the site--many have a search box, like I have for this blog.  Put in the word you want, like heating or aging or assistance, and see what comes up, and start contacting that department.  It might be that the state gives money to your county or city, and the assistance is given out at that level.  Or it may go through nonprofit agencies in your area. 

Also check your local library.  If you live in the Tucson, AZ area for instance, you have an awesome online resource created by your own public library.  Use it for all it's worth.

A Quick Overview of Money the Government DOES Want You to Know About

Want to find legit financial help from the federal government? Here's the rundown on FREE, LEGITIMATE sites:

First.gov Benefits--Arranged by type of beneficiary or activity that the government helps with (disability, adoption, employment training assistance, etc.).

Benefits.gov--an interactive portal where you answer questions to pinpoint benefits based on your needs.

Business Finance--answer the questions, and find out what kind of business assistance you may be eligible for, and where to ask, depending on your state, what kind of business you are financing, etc.

Money Owed--a site where you can check each issue (mortgage, bank failure, pension) to see if you are owed money.

Federal property auctions and sales -- of seized property, HUD property, government property auctions.

Unclaimed funds from the federal and state governments.

And they are all. for. free. Don't pay a dime, just see what you qualify for.

Free Money the Government Won't Tell You About

My sister told me that there were indeed all sorts of infomercials on TV last weekend, talking about "free money the government doesn't want you to know about."

Now, what part of that makes sense? The government gives away free money, but is hiding it from people? Why would they hide the fact that they are freely giving money? Besides, money and sex are the two things that never go underpublicized--if a rumor started that there was porn or money on the moon, rocket science would have advanced hundreds of years faster than it did, just so people could check it out. Who seriously thinks that if there were lots of money available, nobody would know about it except for infomercial guys in bad suits?

Here's the truth: the vast majority of grants are for nonprofit organizations, state and local governments.  These agencies then create programs to help groups of people.  Most of the programs they create are NOT money giveaways.  Many are loans or different types of aid aimed to create specific programs, like low-cost child care, low-interest loans or mortgages, etc.  Most of the aid given to individuals is in the form of social security, medicare, student grants and loans, etc.  For aid, the federal government as a direct source to individuals is mostly useless.  You need to know the local and state nonprofit and government agencies in charge of these programs, because these guys are getting the "free money" you see on infomercials.  For more information, see www.nofreemoney.com.  Also, see this list of money and low-cost items the GOVERNMENT DOES WANT YOU TO HAVE.

But don't take my word for it. The Federal Trade Commission and the BBB teamed up to create this warning about "free government money" scams.  The government does indeed give away free, legit information on grants, and you should never have to pay a penny to find government information. The main legit site for federal grants: http://www.grants.gov/. It's absolutely free, but most of the grants listed are for local governmental agencies or nonprofits.  However, here are some sites for legitimate government funding for individuals.
NEVER give financial information about yourself, like your bank account number, to people you don't know. And never trust that the caller is from a federal agency. Many make up fake agency names. Check it yourself in the blue pages of the phone book, or call your local library.

Another is to file a complaint if you are ripped off: the toll-free number to the Federal Trade Commission is 1-877-FTC-HELP.

And if it sounds too good to be true? It is.

Marjorie Asturias, I Love You!

Picking through Google while looking for more free money nonsense, I found instead this testimony from Texas freelance writer Marjorie Asturias. Apparently, she does different assignments, including grants research and writing, and was asked to research some grant possibilities for a young businessman. She had the integrity to tell him upfront that his chances were slim, but he was hopeful, so she went ahead. The results were pretty much what you think. Nada cash.

I have met so many library patrons who did not hook up with people of integrity, and who got ripped off in three or four figures. These are often terribly poor people who borrowed whatever they could from their families, and handed it over to people who found nothing for them. Sometimes, the scammers had the nerve to then ask for over $1000 to WRITE the proposals to "prospects" which I could tell in an instant would not give them grant money, because they did not qualify for the programs. From what I can tell, MSNBC, a few other media outlets, and local small business centers seem to have taken the lead in telling people about these scams. Thanks for kicking in your voice, Ms. Asturias.

The Thing's Not Even Signed, but...a Scam Already.

Watch out for a new "free money" scam that is spurred by the much awaited stimulus package in Washington. According to one news source, people are being mailed checks that are reputedly worth several thousand dollars. Oh, the catch is, you have to call an 800 number and give up some personal information. Ya think?

The Detroit Free Press reports that there is an ad on Facebook, in which it's claimed you just have to give up a few dollars for a grant kit, and get your own stimulus check. Unsurprisingly, law enforcement people say that this too is a ruse to get people to fork over personal information.

The truth is, while there may be some tax breaks out of the new stimulus plan, there won't be money falling out of the sky. If the information on "how to apply" is coming from a private source--not a .gov source like the IRS website--don't believe it, and DON'T FORK OVER PERSONAL INFORMATION. Or the money for a grant kit.

Psst! Wanna find out about billions in free money? Without paying anyone a penny?

Here's how: those websites that tell you how to find free money don't tell you that the federal and state governments give out the information for FREE, too. Here's some federal websites that will give you free information about money:

Grants clearinghouse
This website will give you all the grants announced by the federal government, without costing you a penny! Here's the trick that "free money" people don't tell you: you can't apply for it. That's because most grants are earmarked for nonprofit organizations and state and local governments. It's the nonprofits and government agencies that create programs from the grant money for you, and most of THOSE are not outright grants.

Here's a way of finding out what's for individuals on the federal level. Go the the Clearinghouse, and click "find grant opportunities." Then click on "advanced search." Go to the part of the page that says, "Search by eligibility." You see, there is "beneficiary eligibility" (the groups of people the government wants to ultimately help) and "applicant eligibility" (the people who can actually apply for the money). Highlight the groups that apply to you: individuals, small business, for profit organizations other than small business. Then put in your keyword at the box at the top of the page. Also, in "search by funding instrument type," be sure to highlight "grant."

Bet that cut your list down short. The truth is, most "grants" for businesses are not for start-ups, but are contracts to do work. On another post, we will get into the *few* kinds of outright grants that are available for business.

See these, too:
Government Benefits, Grants, and Financial Aid
This simply gives an alphabetic rundown on financial aid and benefits available through the federal government.

Gov.Benefits: State Benefits
Click on your state, and see what's available to you.

Government Sales and Auctions
Roundup of federal land and property sales.

Government May Owe You Money
Don't go to people who can help you find money the feds owe you for a fee. Find it for free--yourself--on this website. Old pensions, bank failures, FHA/HUD insurance refunds. It's all here!

Missing Money
See if your state owes you money, too. Links to all the states that have searchable databases listing money owed to people.