Top 5 Ways To Make Money From Home

For many Australian families its never been harder to balance the family budget. Those on a single income with one partner at home looking after the family are under real financial pressure.

Cutting costs is the first step but there is a limit to how much you can cut back. The other alternative is to make extra income.

Part-time jobs are a great option but if circumstances dictate you staying at home, it doesn’t mean this is impossible. Here are my top five ways to make money from home:

Selling online

Everyone has items around the home they no longer need or use. And as the saying goes, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure, so why not sell it online?

These days with eBay Classifieds, Gumtree and vintage/handmade specialty online marketplaces you can list items to sell without listing fees, and simply pay a small percentage of the sale price at the end of the transaction.

If you have multiple items or a small business, setting up an eBay store is a good way to go. (Hint: the best way to hook buyers is by having great photos and a detailed description of the item.)

Tutoring

If you class yourself somewhat of an expert, share your knowledge. School and university students always need help. Don’t worry if you’ve forgotten Pythagoras’ theorem, there are still plenty of students needing help for English, second languages, music, whatever you’re good at.

Babysitting

I know this might seem a bit high-school but childcare is a booming industry at the moment, and people are willing to pay big bucks to have this done in the convenience of their, or your, private home close by. Alternatively, rather than doing the sitting yourself, set up a babysitter referral network whereby you maintain a stable of available babysitters.

Rent a Space

If you have a particularly attractive or unique home, why not rent it out for a day? Some might be a bit uncomfortable with this, but these days there are a heap of private homes being used for filming ads or TV shows, and the rewards are pretty generous for a few hours of you being out of the house. Contact your state film commission to register.

Taskwork

If you can only work from home, why not do the household work others can’t? It’s still quite common for people to fork out for someone else to do their laundry/ironing, look after their pets, or even make their meals. If you consider yourself a bit of a Masterchef you could always turn it into a business.

Home-based catering operations are great for small parties and functions in your local area. Get some recipes and get your name out there in the community.

Bed and Breakfast

Why not take advantage of the home-stay tourist industry and open your home for visitors. Hours could be restricted to weekends or when it suits you. Is particularly useful for people approaching retirement where the children have left home and there is plenty of room in the house.

Crafts

Market your homemade crafts either by setting up a stall at the local market and at school fetes. As well, specialty shops are often on the look out for handmade items to sell as part of their range. As an extension of this, think about starting craft classes at your house or the local community hall of a night.

Comments

-1 #1 Kellie 2011-11-27 12:35

Breeding Rabbits

I find time in breeding rabbits...gives me a small sum of in come with out having to spend too much, I sell mine to a pet shop that gives me cash in hand...

I also very enjoyable, seeing the bunny's grow...it is a five week turn around