When I started looking for work I could do from home, I found a LOT of scams out there. It was so frustrating! One day, I came across an article about court researchers at a forum dedicated to help work at home moms find legitimate work. Although not work that I could do completely from home, it was doable! The flexible schedule was ideal for me as I have two small children and could trade "babysitting" hours with a girl friend on the days I needed to venture outside the home to work.
The research is basically going to your local courthouse and reviewing public records that have been recorded by the court. Depending on the type of assignment(s) you get, you could be looking up judgments, tax liens, mortgages, marriages, births, civil suits, personal injuries - the list goes on and on! I found there were three primary research companies offering these types of assignments (a fourth offers only mortgage assignments). I guess this work is not for everyone, as each company had negative posts somewhere on the internet, but I didn't let those stop my pursuit. As long as I didn't have to pay money up front, I figured it was worth a try. I am SO glad I did.
I applied to all three companies and immediately got responses from two of them. One was Wolfgang Research. Although I had found some negative comments about them posted on the internet, I had also found even positive comments. Well, I'm here to say, that Wolfgang Research is DEFINATELY not a scam. They have a lot of work for me, they pay faithfully every 2 weeks by direct deposit and yes, I did get one "lightly" reprimanding email and in all honesty, I expected worse. I was so excited about getting started that I had failed to read the paperwork provided and ended up submitting data that was wrong. Their concern was legit. They have to look out for their clients. They walked me through the errors, referred me back to the paperwork (which I took time to read thoroughly) and I was all set.
I started with Wolfgang Research in Feb 2008. They are always bringing on new clients and have an ample amount of work for me. In fact, my girlfriend that babysits for me when I visit my courthouses is now working for Wolfgang Research too - and I babysit for her so she can travel. There was just too much work for me to handle in my area part-time, so she and I work as a team now. Anyone looking for legit telecommute work (work from home) should apply with Wolfgang Research! Don't let some disgruntle contractor's negative post somewhere cause you to miss out on a great opportunity! This company has been patient with me when my computer crashed, when a family member passed away and when the weather was bad enough I was uncomfortable in driving. I've always been paid for my work and paid on time ! This company is very financially-stable which gives me some security :) If you slack off and don't do quality work, well, then you might get a corrective action email. But in my opinion, you'd deserve it :)
I love the flexibility. I love the type of work I'm doing. Life is good.
(P.S. I no longer work for the other research company. I have plenty enough work at Wolfgang Research. Plus, they don't require me to participate in weekly meetings! YAY)
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Josalyn, thank you for creating yet another GREAT Blog! I have been doing customer service phone work and the two companies I've been working for are so STRICT about the hours I have to work. There is really no flexibility. If I ask for time off, they put me at the bottom of the schedule list and my hours are reduced the following week. This work sounds like something I would enjoy too. Can you tell me how I can apply with them?
ReplyDeleteHi Claudia ! I guess you'll be following these links too eh? I cannot say enough about the work I do. I love it! If I can be of any help, please let me know. If you don't have any research experience, you may want to check out IT-Boss Research as a fellow blogger told me that they provide you all the training you might need to do just about any type of court research and they have clients that they will refer you to :)
ReplyDeleteJosalyn,
ReplyDeleteCan you say the names of the companies you have worked for? I just applied with Wolfgang and Sunlark.
Thanks,
Daniel
Yes Daniel,
ReplyDeleteI have worked for Wolfgang Research, Sunlark, JBS/Jelly Bean Services, AMD Research (which is now United Data) and IT-Boss Research. All of them do similar research but most don't want you working for them as well as another research company. So I would suggest that if you are offered assignments, that you accept them from "one" company. If you are offered work from another company, be sure to discuss this with the "first" company to ensure it is not in conflict with their clients.
I currently only work for Wolfgang Research and IT-Boss Research. I had a few issues with the other teams, nothing bad, just my personal preference. One company required you to participate in weekly meetings that were not necessarily related to the work you were assigned. Another company seemed to have some financial problems and changed their payroll from every 2 weeks to monthly and the CEO retired or something or other. And the third company's manager was just hard to stay in contact with and my emails would go for days unanswered. So like I said, no major problems with the other three companies, it just wasn't my cup of tea. Now I will warn you that Wolfgang Research may not be your cup of tea either. They are really strict about deadlines. That doesn't bother me as I keep on schedule pretty much. I have gotten I think one email fussing lightly about past due assignments and I got them caught up ASAP and then got an appreciation email :) I wish you the best of luck, with whomever you venture with. Court Research to me is exciting. I find out all kinds of things about my neighbors LOL.
Thanks for the reply. I have been in a business like this for the last 10 years. It is slowing down and I need a little more to do. Thanks for all the info.
ReplyDeleteJosalyn,
ReplyDeleteHow many hours are you required to work?
Hours? Now thats a hard question to answer really. It depends on the population in your area. the real estate market, your speed in researching and typing and the type of system the court's offices allow you to search. For example, a county with about 100,000 people living in it could result in approximately 100-150 documents to review per week, and thus, resulting in the number of records you would submit a week (a record is a brief report of some information from each document). For one of my courthouses, it takes me at "my" courthouse and my typing speed of 60+ about 1 to 1.5 hours to find the documents and document the information I'm required to report back to the client. The document images are viewable in digital form at the county office on a terminal which is very easy to "search" and drill down to the specific document types I need. Now in another county of the same size in which I have to flip pages in a big book to see the documents (they are not viewable on a computer yet), this takes me about 1.5 to 2 hrs depending on the type of documents I am searching.
ReplyDeleteWhen you apply to court research companies like those I've mentioned above, be sure to tell them how many hours you are available each week, what specific days and the approximate hours. They can usually determine how much work you can handle initially. Then, you can always ask for more counties near you, depending on how far you wish to drive. Keep in mind, if your county has a population below 100,000, you may only have 2 to 4 hours of work once every 2 to 4 weeks. Thats why I encourage you to review the offers made by the companies and then select more than one. Don't overload yourself while you "get your feet wet". Depending on your area, if you live in low-populated areas, I'd suggest considering 3 or 4 counties to start :) Most of the time, depending on the location of the counties, you can visit two or more in a single day's drive :)
I wish you luck. I really love this type of work. I'm very competitive, so I find that I'm checking at each county visit, to see if I collected more documents faster than I did the previous trip LOL Sometimes, I drive myself nuts :) But in doing this, I am getting faster and smoother every visit and this means I am "maxing" my average hourly wage. Since you're paid by the document reported (i.e., records submitted), the more you can document in an hour, the higher your hourly earnings :) Good Luck !
Do you do the actual documenting right there at the courthouse? That is, you find the documents on the case, and then write a summary on a computer at the courthouse?
ReplyDeleteNo, you're not providing the court anything, so nothing goes on their computers. You are "retrieving" some information from the public documents they have on file. While you're at the courthouse, you'll view the documents right there on-site as you are not allowed to remove them from the premises. Some courthouses allow laptops, so you can type up the information right into your laptop on a spreadsheet or into a software that the client provides for such entries. For those courthouses that don't allow laptops due to many having built-in webcams, then you will need to handwrite the information and wait until you are back at home to enter the data you found. This is not a courthouse job. It is conducting research for the purpose of creating sales leads for various clients :)
ReplyDeleteHope that helps :)
I will be moving to Oregon in about 9 months so I hope work will be available there at that time. At present, is work available in California. I don't see it listed. Is there a reason?
ReplyDeleteHi, I've read negative and positive stuff about Wolfgang Research, and when I read some complaints about them (e.g. this ex-employee receiving a threatening email, I guess you've read that one too), I felt hesitant. That is, until I read your blog post. Seeing someone make the effort to type her experience on the web kind of makes me change my view on this company, so I'd like to ask if it's ok to ask how much on average do you earn per week, if you're still working with them? And how are you doing so far?
ReplyDeleteWhew, sorry that was long!
I am going to try this whenever I complete my move from SC to KY. Was skeptical. Thanks for the positive feedback. My husband and I may both try since we are retired.
ReplyDeleteJosalyn, if you are still here I have questions about It-Boss Research. Are there many different companies they find you work for or are they recruiting for just one or two? Is Wolfgang their primary client? Basically do they function as an employment agency?
ReplyDeleteThanks!
I'm new to being a court researcher, I was so glad to find this site. It has been helpful to me as I was able to see what companies other people recommend and hear about their experiences. I hope to find more than one company to work for. I to want to give it a try and see what comes of it. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteJosalyn -
ReplyDeleteDid you ever encounter any difficulty at the courthouses in retrieving the information, such as the clerks not wanting you to monopolize the computer terminal, or being generally uncooperative about you viewing a large volume of records at one time?
Also, how did you find Wolfgang's payscale as compared to the other companies you worked for?
Josalyn,
ReplyDeleteI am interested in this type of work but only experience in searching documents for personal satisfaction. How long have you been employed with IT-Boss and would you encourage patience for a reply on approval of your application?
Difficulty at courthouses? Overall, no I never have. I have however heard that some Clerks are more impatient than others, but a plate of cookies always seems to soften them on your next visit. Remember, they are used to responding to Title Researchers usually, so the type of research you will do for companies like Wolfgang Research is quite different and the Clerks don't understand what you're looking for really. And, if you're at a Records Office with limited terminals or book access, you will need to inquire as to when the office is the "less" busiest and try to arrange your visits at that time. The Clerk's will appreciate that and you won't be interrupted to "take turns" at a terminal :)
ReplyDeleteWolfgang Research has taken an extra step to ensure you have all the tools you need before going on assignment. Due to their successful growth, they have outsourced their recruiting process to IT-Boss Research. At IT-Boss you get an extra bonus - FREE TRAINING. That's right. If you have never even seen a court document, you can now venture with ease into the realm of courthouse research. Plus, they have expanded their clients and that means more work available for those interested in doing court research.
When it comes to pay, most companies are competitive. Some pay a few pennies more for one document type but usually then pay a little less for another document type to be researched - so on average, they typically are about the same :)
I will say one thing, Wolfgang Research is a no-nonsense company. They have a lot of work for people. And because of that, when you apply, you need to be ready to roll and committed. Otherwise, you're just wasting your time and theirs. They are known highly for meeting client deadlines which means, they rely on their researchers to meet their deadlines. Failing to do so will result in a late fee. But if you set up your routes and schedule and keep a calendar of when each assignment is due, you'll be fine. I always plan to go a couple days prior to the actual due date. That way, if something happens and I cannot go the day I had planned (sick, car trouble, guests, etc), then I have 2 days to still get to the courthouse, collect the information I need and submit it - without fearing a late fee :)
If you pay your bills on time, all goes smoothly, right? Well, working at Wolfgang Research is the same way. As long as your assignments are kept up to date and on time, you won't hardly hear a word from them :) And thats a good thing :)
I just came across this blog and have found the comments helpful. I started looking at JBS/ Jellybean Services but haven't signed up yet. I will also try and check into the other companies mentioned as well. I am concerned that you mention above a fee? Can you discuss this further? Do these companies have a comitment? I'm between jobs and would like to start doing this, but what happens if I find full time work after 2 weeks and can't continue? You can discuss basics since you've worked for a few of them- I'm sure each have their own policy.
ReplyDeleteJosalyn,
ReplyDeleteI've been researching work I can do from home. I am intrigued by court research. My main complaint with my customer service job in a call center is that it is tedious, boring, and I really want more flexibility hours as well as the opportunity not to have to punch a clock. My rate of pay is really not that great and it seems to me that this opportunity if you really worked it properly would most likely replace the income I make now. My main question is how difficult was it to get started and did it take time before they gave you assignments?
Joslyn:
ReplyDeleteYesterday, I got a contingency placement offer from IT-Boss Research. I was surprised because I'd applied several months ago and hadn't heard back from them. I'm an organized person and used to meeting deadlines so I don't think working as a court researcher would be difficult as far as that is concerned.
I'm kind of excited but don't want to get too high in case I get shot down.
I have been trying to apply at the Wolfgang Research website, but the site cannot be connected to. Is there another url??
ReplyDeleteJinni
Hi Jinni, sorry you're having problems reaching the website. It seems to be working just fine. Here is the address again, perhaps you had a character transposed or missing :)
ReplyDeletewww.wolfgangresearch.com Good Luck !
Josalyn - I am interested to doing court research in my area and had sent an e-mail
ReplyDeleteto Olivia Martin however, I did not receive
a reply. Can you kindly contact me?? Thank you
Sorry, I'be been away from the blog for a while. If you submit an application, they will review it promptly :) Sorry they didn't respond to your email. Maybe it fell into her spam folder.
ReplyDeleteHello everyone, I just received a contigency offer with IT-BOSS Research and from reading these blog post I am very excited with this opportunity and ready to get started.
ReplyDeleteGreat blog! I was just on their site! It sounds like a fun job for me and I too have small children, I would have to figure out what to do with them, but I really want to give it a try! About how often do you have to travel to the courthouses in a week? Do they have reasonable deadlines? I would need to brush up on my excel skills but I believe this is something I can handle!
ReplyDeleteKiera
Are you able to make a comfortable living working with Wolfgang, that is to say, is the time worth the pay? My bf works a pretty good job but I want to have my own money and be able to help with bills, plus I need to pay back student loans(although I may go back to school for another degree while I do this job).
ReplyDeleteI have worked for Wolfgang Research for 2 1/2 years and I LOVE it! I always kept my assignments up to date and I was rewarded for that diligence with good assignments online and praise. They are very strict about deadlines, but it's just like any other job where you have to have things done in a certain time frame - you must keep your projects up to date. But they are very good about helping out if a researcher is unable to do their work for emergency reasons :) I have recruited other SAHM's to do this work because I love being able to stay home with my child and not have to enroll her in daycare! I can do my work at any time I want as long as all my counties are current as of Saturday morning :) I am very proud of the work I do for Wolfgang and we are always looking for reliable people to work for us that will take their job seriously and do the work that they are assigned. I have never had any problems with payroll, every 2 weeks on Monday I get paid and it is via direct deposit :) Thank you Josalyn for the great review!
ReplyDeleteHey Josalyn,
ReplyDeleteJust came across this site. Great information! Thanks for sharing. I just applied to IT-Boss a couple of days ago. Hoping to back soon. I'm in between jobs, but work for myself anyway, so I can make my own schedule and do this. I am in the Escrow Business, so I am somewhat familiar with filing Public Documents. I'm hoping I get enough work to make it worth my while. Is it possible to make at least $1,000 per month, working PT?
I don't mind traveling to other parishes.. (LA), I checked on their Application Process spreadsheet, and it looks like only one other person applied (in process) in a 60 mile radius of me. I too can't wait to get trained and started. Learning from your blog here, if I don't like IT-Boss, looks like Wolfgang is another great option. Thanks for posting! Lisa
Lisa, if you ever want to venture into the criminal record retrieval side of the business in LA, please give me the opportunity to talk to you. I have lots of volume in all parishes. My email is kpeterson@omnidataretrieval.com.
DeleteLisa, if you ever want to venture into the criminal record retrieval side of the business in LA, please give me the opportunity to talk to you. I have lots of volume in all parishes. My email is kpeterson@omnidataretrieval.com.
DeleteJoslyn, I am thinking of working for this company, but in researching it, I do see somoe complaints. Have you ever had problems with them? If so what?
ReplyDeleteThank you
Problems? I've never really had any to be honest. I am aware of the complains and sadly, having been at WR so long now, I know many of the people that posted complaints. I can tell you that these people failed to meet the contract agreement. They either quit without notice or fail behind in their assignments and then complained because a Fee was deducted from their pending invoices. The Fees are clearly stated in the contract. As long as you give a 2 week productive notice and you keep your assignments up to date, then there really is no problem at all. I'd encourage you to give it a try :) I do know that some of our competitors have posted some negative comments to in hopes to steer interested people like you away. But they haven't hurt the business at all, as WR continues to grow and expand and their clients LOVE them. And thats what is important for longevity of work :)
ReplyDeleteI live in a state that has on-line criminal and traffic records and can verify by email/fax/phone or mail.
ReplyDeleteDo they have this type of work?