Making Money from Your Home
There is an Old Irish proverb, 'Is measa na muc fear gan seift' (which literally translates as: 'A man without a plan is worse than a pig').
What a shame to insult lovely, pink pigs who are most intelligent animals. But of course the real meaning is that there should always be a plan B. Do you, at the back of you mind, have any idea of what you would do if everything went pear shaped? As a young woman I used to put money aside in the toes of my second best boots - just in case, because you never know!
Having friends in Barcelona, I always had the idea that I could go there and teach English if the worst happened (though I was always too scared to define the worst). It's always reassuring to know what you would do to get yourself out of a tight spot. View this chapter in that light. Many of you don't need to give a moment's thought to any of the strategies suggested here, having plenty of money at you disposal. In fact, you can skip it altogether if you are flush with cash and blessed with an impervious sense of security - you lucky devil. There are several ways of making money from your home. Some or them are:
- renting out a room or two;
- taking in a paying guest;
- working from home; and
- setting up as a B&B.
Strategies to make money from your home fall into two main categories:
(a) options to be used when money is a little tight such as when you need a bit extra to get you through the first few years of a mortgage, these are of a temporary nature, and
(b) opportunities which, if taken, may mean a radical change of lifestyle. For an increasing number of people buying a particular home is part of a larger re-orientation of their lives. Some, by working from home, hope to combine family and work in a more relaxed way than the long, daily commute to a high-pressure job allows. Often such people have a qualification or expertise which lends itself to home-working.
Occupations such as writing, teaching, counselling and many others fall into this category. For other people, the impetus to make a fundamental shift comes directly from a hobby or special interest and a dream of independent living free from the constraints of the clock and the traffic. sible to measure, but invaluable. Earn it and it will act as a lubricant the next time you wish to do business with the same people. Lose it at your peril.
From Making Property Work by Maureen Moran
