The simple truth is that if you can't afford only $4 a month for hosting sevice, forget about making money with WordPress.  The good news is you can really make much more than $4/month with a self-hosted WordPress website.

Here is a short list of a self-hosted WordPress website can do:

• Run Adsense, Yahoo, Chitika, TextLinkAds and other ads.
• Put affiliate links (including Amazon, Clickbank, CJ) or any links you like.
• Putting on new site designs with custom themes, or free themes you can find and modify according to your own tastes and needs;
• Add any features and functionality you need with the free WordPress plugins and widgets or the custom plugins you or your hired programmers created for you.
• Use great traffic analysis services such as Google Analytics (free)
• Embed more videos from more services other than Youtube

Here is what we use WordPress to build with a very affordable hosting services:

• Online store (selling good or e-goods, ebooks, services) using Paypal, Google Checkout or other payment gateway;
• Membershp web site (such as online lessons for members only) like this one: http://chineseBay.comhttp://CantonesePod.com;
• Affiliate website like this one: http://giftingcomplete.com
• Newspaper website that runs online ads for their clients: http://newsforChinese.com
• Coupon website
• Wholesale online catalog like this one: http://newfashionsny.com
• Bilingual (or multilingual) professional websites like this one: http://immigrationmeng.comhttp://sacattorneys.comhttp://zpdental.com
• Real Estate sites;
• Restaurant with online menus and order form;

Self-hosted WordPress is a great Web development framework that can create almost any kinds of websites. Many successful cases prove that Web development cycle can be greatly shortened with WordPress CMS.