[wctumesh]

Maybe you've seen ads for stuffing envelopes or assembling crafts at home. Perhaps a company says it can help you set up a vending business. Before you sign on the dotted line or send money to buy a business opportunity, find out about the Business Opportunity Rule, enforced by the Federal Trade Commission, the nation's consumer protection agency. The Rule puts safeguards in place to make sure you have the information you need to evaluate whether a biz opp is risky business.

How does the Rule protect people thinking about buying a biz opp? First, it requires sellers covered by the Rule to give you a one-page disclosure document outlining important facts about the opportunity. Second, if sellers make any claims about how much money you might make, they have to give you a separate paper with more specifics. Third, the Rule makes clear that certain practices are against the law.