Make money from your home

As the cost-of-living increases, there are ways to use your home to make some money from taking in a lodger to renting out parking space and you may not have to pay any extra tax.

Take in a lodger

Rocketing bills are making it harder these days to make ends meet. But, your home could provide some extra income.

You can earn up to £7,500 a year completely tax free through letting out a furnished room in your home through the government’s rent-a-room scheme.

You can advertise your room online on websites such as Spare Room (and download a lodger agreement for £4.99) or Ideal Flatmate.

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. make sure you let your home insurance provider know you’ve taken in a lodger

You can use the allowance if you’re renting but, you must check your tenancy agreement carefully, and check with your landlord. Often, subletting is specifically forbidden.

Rent your driveway or parking-space out.

Space can be rented out 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, such as YourParkingSpace, JustPark and Park On My Drive. ParkLet is an option for longer-term lets.

Typically, you’ll pay about 5% to 20% commission on bookings and possibly a listing fee.

Living near a busy railway station or big attraction where parking’s at a premium, could make you some good money. If you live near an airport, maybe advertise a space for holidaymakers.

When it comes to locals renting out their parking space, the most popular football ground is Manchester United’s, with average booking fees of £13 when an event is on, according to YourParkingSpace.

Be a film set

TV dramas and films and need suitable set locations. You don’t need to live in a fancy property for your home to make money as a film location. Lots of ordinary homes are used.

If you live near or in London, withplenty of parking for film crews, your’re more likely to be chosen.

If you’ve got a series  being filmed locally, you might be in luck. The BBC drama Casualty has been running for decades, with Bristol residents making money offering their homes as locations when production was based there, before moving to Cardiff.

Short-term rentals for photo and film shoots are skyrocketing, paying better than Airbnb and not so disruptive

You can advertise your home on agency websites such as  Scouty, Location Works, Amazing Space and Shootfactory.

Location Collective looks for architecturally inspiring properties within the M25 or home counties, with properties featuring in BBC shows such as Killing Eve and Silent Witness.

Rent out your storage space

If you’ve a half-empty loft or garage, consider renting it to someone who needs space to store their things. You can list your space on websites such as Storemates by detailing the location, size and monthly cost.

Stashbee, advises you can expect to earn about £1,000 a year on average renting an unused garage or loft space.

Rent out office space

Covid changed the way we work. More people than ever workfrom home at least some of the time, but not everyone has the space to set up a home office.

If you’ve a spare room, you could earn between £50 and £250 a day letting it out to a home worker.

Websites such as OfficeRiders enable professionals and businesses to work at someone’s home, or rent a space for events and meetings. To sign up, you detail your space and include some photos and the price for a day. Hosts can earn from £85 to £450 a day dependent on space and need.

House swap

Swapping house isn’t so much about making money but maybe saving you a fortune on holiday costs. As living costs soar, it’s hard to justify spending a lot on breaks abroad.

If you’re wanting a break away, you can simply swap your home with someone else’s instead of paying hundreds or thousands of pounds on holiday accommodation. It may also be a good way to explore somewhere new if you work from home, giving you a break from your home office. If you’ve kids and want to travel at peak periods, the savings can be particularly substantial.

There are several home swap websites where you can list your home and search for accommodation. You can register with Guardian Home Exchange, for example, and choose from three different plans to become a member, trying the service for two weeks for free.