Sorry to hear of your problems. Our news here in the UK is always headlined with the grim economic facts. i put my house on the market in July 2007before the downturn. So far, plenty of viewings but no offers, despite moving agents and lowering the price. It's now too difficult to get mortgages. i'm not the one who needs a mortgage but I will need all my cash to move. My dream of returning to live at the seaside has to go on hold.
What you say about journalism applies equally to general freelance article writing. I often blog about little aspects of something I'm researching or mulling over, intended as a full article. My last two posts were about aspects of a recent holiday in Minorca that will inform a full article shortly.