20 ways to make money in your
spare time
There
are ways to generate income outside the 9-5 grind - get busy in your free time
and you could see the pounds rolling in. Moneywise shows you how to make money
with our top money making tips.
Austerity measures from the coalition government has meant many
people have had to tighten their belts. While sticking to a budget and finding
ways to cut back are advisable, with a little imagination and effort you could
find there are ways you can actually make money.
Moneywise has come up with 20 ways to make money during austere
times - some are easier than others but all of them could see you make some
extra cash.
• Get your money
back
• Make money
online
• Rent your stuff
for money
• Get into
showbusiness
• Sell your
unwanted items
• Sell yourself
1. Track down old accounts
According to the British Bankers’ Association, there is more
than £15 billion sitting forgotten in bank and savings accounts in the UK, with
the average balance estimated to be £600.
The good news is that tracing lost funds has become easier with
Mylostaccount.org.uk – a free online service that covers all UK bank and
building accounts. All you need to do is to go to the website and type in your
details.
2. Claim tax credits
It’s always worth checking that you are receiving all the tax
credits you are eligible for. Research by entitledto.co.uk found that people
across the UK are collectively missing out on benefits and tax credits worth
more than £8 billion a year. So while you’re tracing lost funds, why not visit
the entitledto.co.uk website too and work out how much you could claim.
3. Sort your savings
Another easy way to make money is to make sure your savings are
working as hard as they can.
If you’ve had the same savings account for a while it might be
worth shopping around because new customers tend to get the most competitive
rates. Good rates come and go, but if you've had a savings account for more
than a year the chances are the interest you are earning is not the best out
there.
If you have a lump sum that you are prepared to lock away for 12
months or longer, then a fixed-rate account might be best. This type of deal
will also protect you from interest rate cuts.
If you want to start a savings habit then a regular savings
account is a good way to ensure you put a set amount of money away each month.
But if you want to make deposits as and when, an instant access deal could be
the one for you.
However, if you haven't yet used your ISA allowance for the current tax year then this sort
of account should be the first home for any savings. You can save up to £5,100
each tax year as cash in an ISA and this will not be taxe
4. Use cashback credit cards
If you pay off your credit bill in full each month, a cashback credit card could be the way to go. These
offer you moneyback on purchases in certain shops or on goods such as petrol.
“Cashback
credit cards are a
great way to reward savvy spenders,” says Andrew Hagger, from Moneynet.co.uk, a
price comparison website. “You can earn extra cash without even having to
change your shopping habits.”
5. Cashback sites
You can earn even more money from shopping online. Casback websites will automatically pay you
every time you buy a product or a service from selected retailers, from your
weekly groceries to switching your utility provider.
Websites include topcashback.co.uk, quidco.com and quidsinuk.co.uk which offer
100% commission cashback.
Featured Cashback Websites
Topcashback.co.uk
·
Membership options - Has a free option and a
premium option with an annual fee of £5
·
Minimum payout - there is no minimum, you can
pay out even if you have 50p
·
Notes- When you register as a default option
you are signed up to a free 1 month premium trial, if you won’t downgrade
they will take away £5 from your earnings
|
Fatcheese.co.uk
·
Membership options- Only a premium option with
an annual £5 commission payment
·
Minimum payout - minimum pay out £1
·
Notes- Has a cashback guarantee. If, for
whatever reason, the online store fails to pay FatCheese the money you’re
entitled to, FatCheese will pay you anyway
|
6. Paid for surveys
The web also offers a wealth of balance-boosting opportunities.
Survey websites such as Yougov.com, Panelbase.net and Toluna.com will all
reward you for your opinions, either through cash or reward vouchers.
Once you’ve registered on the website, you’ll be sent surveys
tailored to your personal profile, ranging from 10p to £2 per survey.
7. Earn from web research
Any Question Answered (aqa.63336.com), are often on the lookout
for internet researchers. Once a customer asks a question through their mobile
phone, it’s the researcher’s job to hunt out the answer and reply online.
You can choose your own hours and the questions you answer, and
can earn around 30p for every question you answer correctly.
8. Review music
Budding Simon Cowells amongst us should check out soundout.com,
a music website that pays users to review unsigned bands. The idea is simple:
you sign up, listen to a track, rate it and write an honest review. You’ll get
5p per review, but the more reviews you make the more you can charge –
experienced reviewers can command 25p per song.
“If you’re a dedicated reviewer, you can earn some decent pocket
money, some users have earned in excess of
£1,000,” says David Courtier-Dutton, the founder of soundout.com.
9. Take in a lodger
While most of us pay a fortune for our homes, it’s possible to
make your home make money for you.
According to Santander, you could make as much as £289 a month
from renting out a spare room. Under the government's 'Rent a Room' scheme, you
don’t need to pay tax on the first £4,250 you receive either, which means you
could charge up to £354.16 a month without being lumbered with a tax bill.
10. Rent out a parking space
If you live close to a city centre, train station or football
stadium and don’t use your parking space or garage, you’re sitting on a
proverbial goldmine. Renting an empty parking place to a commuter or football
fan could see you rake in the pounds.
Parkatmyhouse.com is a website where you can advertise your
space free of charge and let frustrated drivers get in touch. A parking space
in the West End of London, for example, can fetch £500 a month, while in a
leafy suburb of Leeds a space could net you £100.
11. Rent your home to film makers
Hollywood can come to your home too, provided you have the right
location. If you live in an interesting property, you could bag upwards of
£1,000 a day renting your home to film and TV companies. Ideal locations must
have large rooms, good parking facilities and understanding neighbours.
Ordinary homes are wanted too.
12. Be a Film extra
If you fancy seeing yourself on screen, film and TV companies
are always on the hunt for extras. You could make up to £150 a day and get the
chance to meet some famous actors. However, you will need to join an agency
first.
13. Model your child
While every parent thinks their child is a star, model agencies
could think so too. If you think your little one has what it takes, the first
step is to contact an agency to ask about their requirements. You will be asked
to send in a head and shoulders photo of your child, either by post or email.
If your child stands out, you’ll both be invited for an
interview, to assess if your child is right for TV, photo or film. Depending on
the child’s age, shoots pay upwards £50 an hour, but bear in mind that agencies
can charge up to 25% commission.
14. Auctions
We’re all guilty of hoarding items that "could come in
handy one day". But one man’s rubbish could be another man’s treasure,
which is why online auction website eBay.co.uk is so successful. In fact, eBay
estimates the average British house has about £450 worth of unwanted items that
could be sold on the site.
For
more valuable items, it could be worth going to an auction. Jonty Hearnden,
antiques expert and presenter of BBC 1's Cash
in the Attic andSun, Sea
and Bargain Spotting, says
you should contact a local auctioneer if you think an item could be valuable.
"You could be asked to email across a digital photo, which
the auctioneer will assess for free, or the auctioneer might visit you at no
extra cost to take a closer look - especially if it is a large item," he
explains.
15. Car boot sales
If you’d prefer money in your palm instantly, a car boot sale is the
place to go. Thousands of people flock to car boot sales
every weekend, with pitches costing about £10 a day. To find out where to flog
your booty, check out Carbootjunction.com.
16. Recycle your old mobile
Many of us have an old mobile phone gathering dust in a drawer
somewhere, but you could easily turn it into
cash, even if it is slightly damaged. Websites such as Mopay.co.uk,
Fonebank.com and Envirofone.com will tell you how much your phone is worth. An
iPhone 3G, for example, could fetch around £130.
17. Mystery shopper
If you're longing for some retail therapy but can’t afford to
hit the shops, why not earn a few pounds as a mystery shopper? Websites such as
Retaileyes.co.uk employ mystery shoppers to drop in unannounced in shops and
restaurants and rate their experience.
After you send in your feedback, you’ll be paid for your time
and reimbursed for any purchases you made. You could make up to £20 a day, and
get a meal or a night in a nice hotel thrown in for good measure.
18. Sell your skills
We all have skills and talents so why not use these to make a
few extra quid.
“If you spent years of your life being marched to piano lessons,
put the experience to good use in adulthood by advertising your services in the
local newspaper as a music teacher, says Laura Howard in her book,CashQuestions.com's
100 Ways to Beat the Credit Crunch.
"Just three hour-long lessons a week could see you up to
£60 better off, not to mention the sense of satisfaction you will get. The same
applies for languages."
19. Clinical trials for money
Volunteering for medical experiments doesn’t just have to
involve taking untested and risky drugs. Some clinical trials are perfectly
safe, such as sleep studies, psychological tests and taste testers. Fit and
healthy volunteers living in London willing to donate their blood for clinical
research, for example, could be paid £60 a time.
But remember, never sign up for anything you are not happy with
– risking your health for a few extra pounds is just not worth it. Go to Gpgp.net for trials in your area.
20. Join the Army Reserves
If you’re brave and committed enough to sign up, the Army
Reserves (formerly known as the Territorial Army) is always looking for
recruits. You would need to give up one weekend a month, attend an annual two-week
camp for basic training and be ready to be called to active service.
Basic pay starts at £34.41 a day, but can rise to £112.51. When
you meet the minimum yearly training requirement (27 days if you’re in a
Regional Territorial unit, 19 days if you’re in a National unit) you receive an
extra payment known as a bounty. This increases as you spend more time as a
Reserve, so within five years of joining, you could receive an extra £1,600 a
year. Go to Armyjobs.mod.uk for details. But it's worth bearing in mind that
you could end up being deployed, making this a more serious option than the
ones above.
You can also increase your passion in the area you are working. One tactic I have used to help people is to get them to visualize their internet business as a game.