Six ways to make money from your home
Soaring household bills are making it tougher than ever to make ends meet.
However, your home could provide some extra income, and you might not even have to pay tax on this cash.
The UK government’s rent-a-room scheme enables you to earn up to £7,500 a year completely tax free through letting out a furnished room in your home.
You can advertise your room online on websites such as SpareRoom (where you can also download a lodger agreement for £4.99). Another website, RoomBuddies, which some people will have used before, has now merged with SpareRoom.
Just make sure to let your home insurance provider know that you have taken in a lodger.
You must live in the property with the lodger at least some of the time to qualify for the allowance, and it must be your main residence. If you earn more from letting a room, you will need to complete a tax return to pay any tax due on the remaining income.
Sarah Coles, a senior personal finance analyst at the investment website Hargreaves Lansdown, says: “You don’t need to own the property to use the allowance but if you’re renting, you need to check your tenancy agreement carefully, and if in doubt, talk to your landlord. In many cases subletting is specifically forbidden.”
You can rent out your garage, off-street parking space or driveway on an hourly, weekly or monthly basis.
There are several websites that link people with spare parking space with drivers who need to park in a particular place.
You can advertise on websites such as YourParkingSpace, JustPark and Park On My Drive. ParkLet is an option for longer-term lets.
You may pay a listing fee, and you will typically pay about 5% to 20% commission on bookings.
If you live near a busy railway station or big attraction where parking is at a
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