If you are lucky to have some spare space in your home, you could be sitting on a goldmine. There are several easy, and virtually hassle free ways for you to potentially make some extra cash from this extra room. Not all of the suggestions will work for you and your family, but you may be pleasantly surprised at how many of them that will be right for you.
Get a tenant
One of the most obvious ways to make money from your home is to rent out your spare room. You can do this in several ways.
The most popular and obvious approach is to advertise rooms for rent in the local press, or online. If you go for this option, you need to take the time to vet your tenants. Also, make sure that you take a deposit, and get at least a month’s rent in advance.
If you would rather not have a full time tenant consider renting to a businessperson that has a long commute they want to avoid. This kind of tenant will normally arrive on a Monday evening and leave Friday morning. This leaves you to enjoy some privacy over the weekends.
Rent a room to holidaymaker
Another approach is to rent out rooms to holiday makers. You can find out more about doing this using a company like Airbnb, here.
Rent out your annex
If you are lucky enough to have a large extension, loft, garage or garden room, you could convert it into accommodation and rent it out. Often, this kind of conversion will add value to your home as well as potentially provide you with an additional income.
Property management firms like Linley and Simpson can take care of finding tenants for you, and collecting the rent. If the space you are renting out is separated in some way from the rest of your home, your tenants simply become your neighbours. It really is an easy way to earn extra money.
Rent out your parking spaces
If you would rather not have people staying in your home, you can still potentially earn an income from your extra space. For example, in some areas parking is at a premium. If you live somewhere like that, or near a transport hub, renting out space on your drive is a great way to earn a little extra cash.
Storing people’s stuff
For those with gardens, outhouses, stables or garages there is also the opportunity to lease some of that space out for storage. Plenty of people need somewhere to store their Jet Ski, boat or caravan.
Of course, the above ways of making money from a home are not for everyone, but they can all be very lucrative if you are prepared to be flexible. If you do decide to try any of the above please take the time to do some research before placing your advert.
For example, you need to check whether the law requires you to secure a licence before renting out space. You also need to make sure that your current insurance policies cover you for these activities.
