Best Ways to Make Money With Your House

If you own your own home, chances are you spend a lot of money on it. From property taxes to your mortgage, it all adds up! But what if you could put your home to work for you? It’s true – there are ways to make money with your house. Senior RSG contributor Paula Gibbins covers six ways to make money off your house below.

Who doesn’t want to make extra money? If you’re a homeowner and have some extra space (or maybe your whole house), you could potentially earn hundreds if not thousands of dollars per month from your home.

Ready to make money with your house? Check out the resources below:

  • Neighbor – rent out space in your home or your garage
  • Rover – doggy day care at your house
  • Locations Hub – rent out your home for films
  • HipCamp – rent out part of your property for campers
  • Airbnb – rent out a room in your home or your whole home

6 Easy Ways to Make Money with Your House

1. Provide Affordable Storage Options for Renters

Your house (or garage, basement, a spare closet – even your parking spot!) can be an awesome way to make money with your house.

One way you can rent out your garage space, attic, shed and more is to use a service like Neighbor. By signing up, you’ll get $50 in cash once your space is rented!

Listing your available space is free with Neighbor. They’ll even automatically deposit your money into your chosen account at the end of each rental month. To cover the cost of automated payments, there is a small processing fee of 4.9% of the gross reservation + $0.30 for each payout you receive.

You’re given 48 hours to approve a renter. If you do not want to accept a renter, you can choose to pass on them and wait for the next option.

With Neighbor, you set your price. Renters are charged a small service fee on top that will go directly to Neighbor so they can provide quality customer support, a secure platform and more.

A similar option is called Store at My House to post a free listing of your available space. You set whatever rules you’d like and they will find your renters for you. Next thing you know, you’re earning money from renting out your extra space that wasn’t being used.

While it’s free to list with them, there is a 15% fee they’ll take for those who use their automated billing system, which would send bills automatically to the renters and the payment automatically to the owner. It’ll even send you important tax information at the end of the year so you don’t have to keep track of it all yourself.

Have a parking space that you’re not using? Turn that parking spot into a money-make with Spot Hero. To start selling your spot out, you simply fill out a form on the Spot Hero website and submit. You can include any questions you have that you want answered.

2. Make Money Off Your Home By Boarding Pets

If you don’t have the extra storage area or don’t feel comfortable having people leave their stuff on your property—or just want to make more, you can offer to board pets! Obviously, if you love animals, this would be better for you. If you don’t like dogs or have allergies, this probably isn’t the best option for you (keep reading below for more!).

One website that will help you find pet care opportunities is Care.com. You set your rate and the website sets up your profile, so people in your area can view your rate and other information to see if they want to choose you as the person to care for their pets.

Another service is Rover. To become a pet sitter with Rover, you’ll need to pass a background check.

RoverWhile earnings from Rover have understandably decreased because of COVID (less travel and more work at home means fewer requests for pet-sitting), Managing Editor Melissa regularly made $1000 a month during the summer months – and that was not in-home doggy day care! Rover says in-home doggy daycare earns sitters more.

In addition, you set your own schedule and prices with Rover. You can even specify what size and age of the animal you’d prefer. The money is available to you two days after you complete the service.

The services at Rover include dog boarding, dog walking, doggy daycare and house sitting/drop-ins. It would be up to you to choose which you’d be available for. You can also make yourself available to take care of cats—or even do both!

Tips on How to Start a Home Doggy Daycare

  • First, check local ordinances — these might limit or prevent home-based businesses such as doggy daycare
  • Get a business license — your state, county or local laws may require this. It may also include a home health inspection to make sure it’s safe for caring for animals.
  • Have dog food on hand if you’re planning on having that be part of your services. You should also have enough toys, harnesses, leashes, food, water bowls and more for each dog you’re planning on boarding.
  • Make sure all dogs you accept are dog-friendly so you won’t have issues boarding more than one.
  • Find more details on how to do this from Canidae.

3. Have a Garage Sale

Offer your front yard/driveway as a place for people to host garage sales, moving sales, etc. Some apartment complexes don’t allow their residents to sell items out of their garages, so people could be looking for a space to do so. That’s where you come in.

You can charge to help with advertising to get more people to show up to the sale. Be sure to also keep your home safe by locking the doors and windows while the sale is going on. People might assume they can come in and use the restroom, otherwise.

You can also charge for using your tables for displaying items. Just make sure you’re upfront about any extra costs involved so the person doing the garage sale is aware and able to make a good decision about whether to have it in your space. Learn more tips and tricks here.

In some cases, you can manage an estate sale business out of your home. You don’t need special training or certifications to become an estate salesperson, making it an easy way to make side income, or even turn it into your Plan B.

It’s suggested that if you haven’t had experience with estate sales, you should work for a liquidation company to learn the ropes and see what you should be selling things for. You can also consult experts in order to learn what to sell an antique or collectible for. Learn more about how to become an estate salesperson here.

4. Rent Your Home to a Film Company – or to a Music Video Producer

If you want to go this route, it would definitely help if you have a “hip” space that people would want to use for filming. But even a two-bedroom house can strike a chord with a location scout searching for the perfect nook for a film or music video.

Independent films often need to scout locations that are more affordable than big Hollywood film lots. List your location and open yourself up to some extra side income.

Simply sign up on a locations listing website, include photos of your space and the cost you’ll rent it out for and you’re ready to start accepting offers.

You can even rent out part of your space for people who are looking to host meetings, dinners and photo shoots. Choose from the following to list your space, or list it on all of them to better your chances of being found:

  1. Locations Hub – open your home or space to filming productions
  2. Peerspace – list for meetings, film shoots, photoshoots and other events
  3. Giggster – let people rent your space for photoshoots, commercials and film shoots
  4. Film Locations Wanted – open your space up to movie and TV filming

5. Rent Your Property Out to Campers

If you’ve got a decent acreage or some land you’re looking to earn some money with, look into renting your space out to campers. With Hipcamp, you’re provided with a $1,000,000 insurance policy to cover you renting out your space to campers.

It’s free for you to list with Hipcamp and you’re able to decide when you want to host your land. You’ll get deposits weekly for campers who are utilizing your space.

You don’t need to provide all the amenities or bells and whistles to get started with Hipcamp, but here is what Hipcamp does have to say on the matter:

“If you get started by offering dry camping (Self-contained RVs only) or your property is larger than 20 acres you do not need to offer a toilet. If you have smaller property and intend to host tents, you will. This is to ensure that Hipcampers are disposing of human waste in a way that is good for the environment, human health, and compliant with local laws.”

You set your rates, but they advise you to check out similar offerings in your area to stay competitive and make sure you’re not pricing it too high for whatever you are offering as part of the experience.

Once people start camping on your property, Hipcamp does take a 10% commission fee, meaning you earn 90%. Be sure to keep that in mind when coming up with your listing figures. If you’re able to host multiple people at once, you can earn even more.

6. Rent Out Your Home

You can make money with your house by renting it out as well. If you have a spare property or a secluded portion of your home that you don’t use often, consider turning it into an Airbnb location to earn extra money when people rent it out like a hotel.

Similar to Airbnb is Homeaway, also known as Vrbo, where people can rent your home when taking vacations to your area.

When people search for their destination, they are shown the available properties that are in the area on the dates of their trip. You set the cost for people to rent it and make sure the space is clean and ready for them when they arrive.

Bonus! Rent Out Your Parking Space

If you have a parking space that you’re not using, why not make an extra buck on it? It’s little things like this that add up to extra pocket money when going on vacation, splurging on yourself, or just buying a little something special to brighten someone’s day. 

Plus there’s the added bonus of helping someone else out. If you live near the airport, it might be more convenient and cheaper for people to rent your spot while they go on vacation or a business trip and then just catch a rideshare over to the airport and back.

Can you rent out your driveway?

Yes! There are some apps that let you rent out the space on your driveway. If you’re working from home and don’t need to move your vehicle in and out of your garage often, consider renting out your driveway to someone who needs it more than you. 

This is especially helpful if you live in a larger city with businesses nearby. 

How much can you make renting out a parking space?

This will vary depending on your area, if people are interested in parking in your space and how much you charge for it (which will also vary by area). You set your price in most if not all of the apps mentioned, but you don’t want to charge more than what a regular street or garage spot is offering because you likely won’t get any takers. 

If you have a high traffic area near sites that people would be interested in, you can charge more than if you live in a suburb away from the city center or a cluster of businesses. Depending on all of these factors, you might be able to earn anywhere from $1,000 a year up to $6,000 a year. 

How to make sure you’re renting your parking spot responsibly

One thing you’ll need to do is make sure that your area allows you to rent your parking spot. In some apartment complexes, you need a parking pass in order to park there. If you are part of a homeowner’s association, there may be a stipulation about renting out your parking space. There may even be city ordinances prohibiting this practice. So, before you dive in, do your research for your area. 

You’ll also want to check with your insurance company to see what liabilities there are and if you’re covered properly in case of accident, property damage or theft (especially if renting out your garage where you store some of your own items). 

If you don’t feel comfortable with the idea of a stranger parking on your driveway, then don’t do it. You need to make sure you’re putting your safety first. It’s not for everyone, and that’s okay.

Parking Space Rental Apps

DriveWayz

DriveWayz is only available on an iPhone or iPad, sorry Android users. And it’s only available in San Diego, CA. But here are are some reviews from users that have hosted:

rent out your parking spotThis user gave the app 5 stars and said, “Convenient app for both sides! This app has been amazing in all aspects so far. As a host I can make easy money when I’m gone without even thinking about it. As a driver I can park closer and for cheaper when I’m out with friends. You can list your spot whenever you need a few extra bucks and use the app when parking is scarce/expensive when out with friends. Highly recommend downloading!” 

rent out your parking spaceAnother 5-star review states, “Genius app! This app is amazing in every aspect. It’s easy to use and a great way to make some extra cash! I live in a big city, pay a fortune for my apartment parking and I’m traveling to other states most of the time for work. I came across this app and now rent out my private parking space to people who need parking in this busy city. It’s amazing! I make extra money on the side just by letting people park in my unused spot. This app is something I would recommend to everyone whether you’re a host or someone looking to find cheap/convenient parking.” 

Since I don’t live in San Diego, I was not able to try it out myself or see if the host sets their own rate or if the app determines it for you based on your location. Their LinkedIn page states that hosts rent out at an hourly rate and a consumer can reserve the spot up to 5 days in advance. 

SpotHero

SpotHero allows you to list your spot on their marketplace and you set the prices. You also state when the space is available for renting. They provide access to an account manager to finalize details and be your point of contact if you have any questions, concerns or issues. 

SpotHero is available in 30 major cities in the U.S. Check out this link to see if it’s available in your city! Here’s a peek at what the website/app looks like from the buyer’s perspective:

spotheroThis shows parking in Minneapolis, the cost of each available spot, and their general location. SpotHero works with garages to get cheaper parking spaces as well as allowing users to post their parking spots as well. 

Neighbor

If your driveway is sitting unused, you can use Neighbor to rent it out. They even have an estimator you can use in order to find out how much you can make in a year by renting your space. If you have other spaces available for rent, you can list them on Neighbor as well. For instance, if you don’t use your garage, you can rent it out as storage space, or rent out your basement for storage if you have a lot of empty space just sitting there. 

Keep in mind with the estimator, it is based on your location and what people might be willing to pay for your space. 

For example, I used the estimator to see how much I could rent my parking space for a year. Since I live in a small neighborhood and quite a ways outside the major cities of the area, it shows I would only make around $1,056 a year. 

neighbor rent out drivewayThis shows the estimator telling me how much my driveway could be worth per year. 

When I entered my sister’s address in a suburb of the LA area, it showed she could make $3,696 a year with renting out her driveway. 

CurbFlip

CurbFlip works for renting out your parking space or your driveway. As the owner of the space, you get payments via PayPal while the drivers pay online with any method of their choice. 

The major cities where CurbFlip is available are Los Angeles, New York City, London, Chicago, Tokyo, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Berlin, Seattle, Sao Paulo, Hong Kong, Sacramento, Paris and Atlanta. Though, this is not an exhaustive list. They are available in a variety of other cities as well. 

Listings show the cost per day, week or month; it’s up to the owner of the space to set their price. In order to be paid for renting your space, you must have a PayPal business account.

Parking Cupid

When you use Parking Cupid, you can list your driveway or garage. 

On their FAQs page, they answer the question of how much someone can earn doing this. Here was their response: “It really depends on a number of factors, but some parking spaces are shared for up to $20 per day for a sporting event or festival. Other parking spaces are shared for up to $100 per week. That’s equivalent to more than $5000 per year!”

Parking Cupid also has a mail system you use to be in contact with the person or people renting your parking space. 

The most popular cities on their site include but are not limited to: Chicago, New York, San Francisco, Boston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Seattle, Minneapolis, Denver and more. 

Before Turning Your House Into an Income Generator

Before you decide to make money with your house, there are a few important things to consider:

  1. The other people in your house – make sure you’re not putting up space on Neighbor or bringing dogs into the house without your spouse or other housemembers okay!
  2. Insurance – in some cases, homeowners insurance has breed restrictions – something that will be important to know if petsitting. There may be other ways that could invalidate your insurance too – be sure to check.
  3. Time – If you don’t have time to petsit dogs or host Airbnb visitors, choose a less time-consuming way to make money off your house, like Hipcamp or Neighbor.

Readers, have you thought of ways to make money with your house? Which one of these options would you try?

-Paula @ RSG

Ready to make money with your house? Check out the resources below:

  • Neighbor – rent out space in your home or your garage
  • Rover – doggy day care at your house
  • Locations Hub – rent out your home for films
  • HipCamp – rent out part of your property for campers
  • Airbnb – rent out a room in your home or your whole home

More Opportunities to Make Money