Increasing your income is sometimes easier said than done. You are already working hard trying to get out of debt, the idea of making even more money may seem daunting.
Today I have four ways for you to make extra money so you can get out of debt even quicker.
Offer Up a Service
You are already staying home on the weekends to save money on your entertainment budget, why not offer your time to provide childcare to someone. Make some extra money by advertising your services as a house sitter or a pet sitter. I once earned $15 a day to stop over at a neighbor's house to care for her pets. She has a great dog that loved to be outside all day. I went over twice a day to feed him and play for awhile but he hung out in the back yard otherwise.
Mow your neighbor's lawn, shovel the sidewalks or wash their cars. For just a few bucks you can print up flyers to pass out to your neighbors. Walk around one evening and let them know that you are looking for opportunities to make some extra money.
Freelance in your field
Make some extra money by doing side work in an area where you are most knowledgeable. If you are a teacher, offer up tutoring to students after school and on the weekends. When I was working as a teacher and still single, I tutored a few days a week and on Sundays and earned $15 per hour. This worked out to about $75 each week. That is $300 a month that you can put towards debt!
Anyone in the finance field can offer up their services as a bookkeeper or provide financial advice to those who need help with budgeting or understanding their taxes. My mother use to balance a friend's checkbook each month for $25. It took her about an hour and because she is good with numbers, it was easy for her to do.
Buy cheap, sell higher
Between eBay and Craigslist, you can sell just about anything if you take the time and do a little bit of research. Get your feet wet using this two sites by selling off items from your own home that you are interested in getting rid of. Be sure to research what similar items are selling for before you name your price. A quick check of eBay's previous auctions will show you what the going price is for your item.
After you feel comfortable using these two sites, take some money and go shopping. Hit some yard sales in your area, look for brand new items, anything that looks unique or craft items. If you think you've found something interesting, use your phone to look up on eBay for recent auctions. Make sure you aren't spending too much money on them, the idea is to make a profit. Ideas for items to buy include scrapbooking items, pottery, electronics and furniture (it sells really well on Craigslist!). Check out eBay Pulse for an idea on what people are searching for on the site. Study the trends a bit before hitting the sales.
Drink a lot of wine?
Apparently wine makers would be willing to pay more than $1 a bottle for your empties! Don't throw those corks out either, there are artisans out there who will love getting their hands on them!
Online avenues
There are many ways to earn money online. From starting a blog (although making money with a blog takes A LOT of time and hard work) to doing surveys for a few dollars at a time to reading emails for a penny each, you can make money with some effort. My favorite ways to make money online include surveys, reading emails, answering questions for the company Cha Cha and belonging to sites that reward you for using them like Swagbucks and MyPoints. I am a frequent reader of the blog The Penny Hoarder. I regularly find new ways to make money which I can then apply to my debt repayment.
Making extra money for your debt repayment may take up some of your free time and it may take some resourcefulness but it is possible to turn a profit in the spare time you have. All that extra money will get you to debt freedom quicker and allow you the chance to build your wealth.
I challenge you to think outside the box. How can you bring in some extra income in the coming months?
Jessica Streit - Everything Finances - A.K.A Debt Princess
This article was written by Jessica at Everything Finance. Everything Finance is a site about just that, everything related to finance. You can get information about investing, saving money, shopping, blogging, and making money online. If you like what you see here, make sure to stop by or better yet subscribe to our feed so you don't miss a thing.
