With the cost of living skyrocketing, many households could do with a little extra income to help with the day to day expenses. The good news is that now more than ever there are a plethora of ways to make extra cash and if you own your own home, that’s the perfect place to start.
Many Australians don’t realise that their family home is an investment in itself, that can be leveraged to generate a regular income. But by taking a page out of the investor handbook and turning your family home into a revenue stream, you could pocket over $22,000 a year.
So how do you do that? Much of what it means to think like an investor comes down to maximising the returns on the property you already own. Here are a few top ideas to get you started.
Rent out your spare room – up to $15,028 a year
Once you own your own house, it’s not unusual to find yourself with an extra room or two you hardly use. Instead of keeping it as a second closet or unused study, why not convert it into another bedroom to rent out?
The national average rent for a room is $197 per week, so this strategy could earn you over $10,000 a year. Even better, if you’re based in Sydney, the average weekly rent for a room jumps to $289 – that’s a little over $15,000 back in your pocket each year.
Make your home a movie star – up to $3,000 a year
Have you ever watched a movie and thought it could have been set in your own home?
Another glitzy idea is to list your well maintained home as a location for movies, commercials and videos. The good news is, you don’t need a multi-million dollar waterfront mansion to do it, because family homes often have the biggest appeal to film location companies.
How much you can earn depends on multiple factors like what kind of property you own as well as the scale and length of the shoot. For instance, owners of a Federation-style home could fetch up to $1,500 for a photo shoot over a normal eight-hour day, and up to $250 per hour for a television commercial.
Rent out your garage – up to $2,236 a year
There is also plenty of income earning potential in one of the unlikeliest of places in the family home – the garage. With limited parking and storage space opportunities available, especially in inner city suburbs, many people are prepared to pay a premium for these precious commodities.
In fact, if your garage is sitting empty, you can rent it out and earn upwards of $43 a week, depending on where you live. Check out online platforms like Spacer and JustPark to help get you started.
Try your hand at Airbnb – up to $2,033 a year
The sharing economy is opening up new ways to make extra income that weren’t available even a few years ago – for example, becoming an AirBnB host and renting out your property while you’re away on holidays.
If you live in a capital city and are heading abroad for a month, renting out your home on AirBnB could earn you up to $2,033 on average. Plus, listing is free, and you can decide when to make the space available and at what price.
A word of caution though – you’ll want to balance this income against added costs like cleaning, higher energy bills, taxes and host fees.
About Steve Jovcevski
Steve is a property and home loan negotiator at financial comparison website mozo.com.au. With an extensive knowledge of mortgages and property trends, Steve is full of practical tips to help
Aussie buyers get the property of their dreams.