Purchasing a home is a huge investment. Whether you finance your home for 15, 20, or 30 years, the thought of making payments and accruing interest for a long period of time can seem daunting. Luckily there are some creative options that can allow you to actually make money from your home and save money while you are living in it. Here’s how to make your property work for you. *This post contains affiliate links.
Property Investment
Property investment can provide massive amount of income with very little effort on your part after the initial investment is made. While it may take a few years to build up enough equity in your home to borrow against it, eventually you may be able to use your home as collateral toward investment property such as a local rental you can manage, or investment in a vacation property or time share. Using your own property to get you started in real estate investment can be a gateway to financial freedom.
In addition, if you have the space you can even rent out a portion of your own home. For example, my husband and I have considered converting the space above our garage into an apartment for rent which could provide long term income that might even be enough to cover our primary mortgage payment after the initial investment costs are paid off.
If you don’t have garage space, you could convert an attic or even build a “tiny house” on your property to rent out as well.
Grow and sell at local Farmer’s Markets
Even if you don’t have a huge farm, you can more than likely find some place on your property to grow herbs, tomatoes or other easy growing vegetables that you can sell at local farmer’s markets seasonally. Not only will this provide you with a bit of extra money, it can also be an extremely rewarding hobby. You will also be helping to invest back into your community while engaging in sustainable farming practices at the same time.
Write Off A Portion Of Your Home On Your Taxes
Of course you don’t have to stop with growing and selling herbs and produce! You can also start a small business from home. For example you might try making soaps, selling vintage wares online, or you may even want to use a section of your home as a photography or music lessons studio. If you are a full time blogger or if you use any portion of your home as an office, workshop, or a place to store supplies you may be able to claim some of these expenses on your taxes, once again giving you an opportunity to make your property work for you.
Sell Your Junk For Extra Cash
Of course you can always hold an annual or semi-annual yard sale to make some extra money from home. If you spend ample time cleaning and decluttering you are likely to find quite a bit of excess junk that can result in a rather lucrative sale. Don’t forget to advertise well in local newspapers, Facebook groups and Craigslist. There may be collectors who are searching for some of the very books, CDs, records, DVDs, and video games that you no longer want cluttering up your home. Often times flea market vendors will be looking for yard sales so that they may offer you a full buy out at the end of your sale.
If you just hate all the work of putting together a rummage sale, you can always sell your items on consignment. There are many different vendors that will take old clothes (as long as they are clean and stain free) as well as household items and collectibles. Decluttering and reselling your unused junk is a great way to make some extra cash.
Make your home more ENERGY EFFICIENT
Making your home more energy efficient might not necessarily make you money from your property, but it will help you save money that can be invested back into other areas of the home. Switching to sustainable energy solutions can involve adopting different lights within the home, as well as purchasing a smart meter to monitor energy use within the home and control it wherever you are. Furthermore, renewable energy such as solar panels on the home (when possible) will provide you with year-round energy and save you money in the long run. The world is putting further emphasis on green energy, and so going along with the trend will not only help your finances but the environment, too.
Another way to save energy is by updating your insulation throughout your home. This is something that a lot of people forget when considering how to improve efficiency, but it can have a massive difference, especially during the colder months of the year.
Rent Out Your Property For Special Events
If you are lucky enough to own a unique or historic property or farmland, you might want to consider renting a portion of your property for special events such as birthday parties, bridal showers and weddings. For example, if you happen to have a barn, you are likely to have many people who may be interested in having a wedding or reception there.
Don’t forget the possibility of hosting seasonal activities such as corn mazes, hay rides or even selling pumpkins or flowers from your land. A friend of mine had no experience whatsoever farming pumpkins, and only a couple of acres to experiment with, but within a few years she and her husband had made huge profits from starting a pumpkin farm. Now their farm is well established and their property is allowing them to make a rather large sum of money each fall with very little expense.
Note: If you do decide to host events on your property, be sure to obtain legal advice and purchase appropriate business and liability insurance.
For even larger profits, there may even be the possibility of renting your property out for TV and movie sets. While it might seem like a lot of intrusion, film crews will pay big, big money for the chance to film scenes in and around your house if you have a historic or picturesque property. Of course this may certainly disrupt your life for a while and there is definitely the potential for mess. However, the production company responsible for filming will – and absolutely should – provide compensation for any damages incurred.
Exploring Your Options
Finding out how to make your property work for you is something that can take a little bit of time, but it can really pay off in the long run. With a little bit of creativity and planning you can make your property work for you, allowing you to have more time and opportunities to enjoy all the things you truly love about your home. I have been using my home as a music lessons studio for years, and this year I am planning to expand my garden in order to hopefully grow enough herbs to sell at the local farmer’s market. I also dream of being able to use our home equity for real estate investing some day. Do you have any other ways you will be utilizing your property for income? I love hearing your ideas too!
Amber
