10 Ways to Make $500 a Month by Renting Out Stuff You Already Own

Are you a pastor looking to make an extra $500 a month or more to supplement your current ministry income? It could be as simple as renting out the stuff you already own. 

Hello my friend! Welcome to the More Than a Pastor Show. I’m your host, Rich Avery. This is where we show you how to leverage your ministry know-how into sustainable income outside of the church, through a business or side hustle that’s right for you. So you can serve God and provide for your family, no matter what. 

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How Will You Bridge the $500 a Month Inflation Budget Gap?

Americans today are experiencing inflation at levels that haven’t been seen in over 40 years. The cost of E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G has gone up over the last 6-12 months. Gas prices have doubled. And energy, food, and housing costs are up 10-30% in many places.

Economists have calculated that these price increases are costing the average American family an extra $500 a month.

That’s $6,000 for the year!

I don’t know about you...But to me and my family, that’s some real money we’re talking about!

So my question for you is: Do you have a plan for how you will bridge this $500 inflation gap in your budget? 

Sure, you could decide to cut back on gas, groceries, going on trips, etc. That's often the first thing we think about, isn't it...cutting back on our expenses?

Or you could get a part-time to earn the money. But then you have to find a job that works well within your weekly church work schedule.

But what if there was an easier way to make an extra $500 a month?

The Gig Economy Makes it Easy for Pastors to Earn Extra Money

The explosion of the Gig Economy over the last few years has made it easier than ever for pastors to make extra money.

What is the Gig Economy?

Not familiar with the Gig Economy? It's basically a way to make money doing freelance jobs or "gigs." You set your own hours and work as much, or as little, as you want.

Today there are lots of apps that make it easy to gig yourself out to provide services for others, like Uber, Shipt, Task Rabbit, Fiverr, and UpWork.

And while you can earn some great money providing these services, the downside is that you actually have to be present and actively doing the work to make the money.

Don't worry my friend, the gig economy has now made it easy to make money even without working, thanks to your smart phone and several peer-to-peer rental apps!

10 Ways to Earn $500 a Month Renting Your Stuff to Others

Here are 10 great ways to make an extra $500 a month or more by renting out stuff you already own... and the apps that make it easy...

Chances are good that you've probably already heard of the first rental opportunity...

1. Rent Out Your House or Bedroom - If you have unused bedroom space in your home, and enjoy hosting and meeting new people, consider renting it out on AirBnB.com. AirBnB essentially gave birth to the peer-to-peer rental industry that we're talking about today. Now millions of people worldwide make extra money by renting out their unused bedrooms by the night, week, or month. If you're going to be traveling out of town, and want a great way to pay for your vacation, you can also rent out your entire home on AirBNB or VRBO.com.

2. Rent Out Your Camper or RV - Over 17 million RVs in North America sit unused 350 days a year, according to Outdoorsy.com. If your camper or RV is one of them, why not rent it out on Outdoorsy, RVShare.com, or RVEZY.com
? These sites make it super easy to turn your unused camper into a regular source of income.

3. Rent Out Your Car - Wouldn't it be great if your car could pay for itself? Well, now it can, thanks to Turo.com. If you have a car, truck, van, or SUV that is less than 12 years old, under 130,000 miles, and in excellent condition, you can rent it out on Turo. And if you have an off-road vehicle like a Jeep Wrangler, or a shiny sports car, these are especially in demand and will earn you top dollar. Renting out your car a couple of days a month may be all you need to totally cover your ownership and maintenance costs! Why would someone want to rent a car from you instead of one of those car rental places at the airport? First, when you rent from Turo you're guaranteed to get the exact car you want, instead of leaving that up to the car rental company. Second, you don't have to wait in line at the car rental desk at the airport. And third, you have greater flexibility on where you pick up and drop off the car.

4. Rent Out Your Bicycle - If you've got a good quality mountain bike or road bike that doesn't get much use, you can rent it out on Spinlister.com. During the COVID lockdowns of 2020, thousands of people rushed out to buy bikes for recreation. The only problem was that there was a huge shortage of bikes in the U.S., and many people, including myself and my daughter, couldn't find a bike...or afford the ones you did find. The bike rental industry is growing, as more people are looking for ways to enjoy bikes without owning them. Now's your chance to get a piece of this market, and Spinlister.com makes it easy to rent you bike out by the hour, day, or week.

5. Rent Out Your Yard or Garden - Do you have space for a garden in your yard, but little ambition to plant one yourself? SharedEarth.com connects people like you with gardeners who can't garden where they live (an apartment, condo, or home with no yard). On Shared Earth, land owners offer their land, water, and maybe some tools, the gardeners do all the work, and the produce is split between the two. You can eat the produce yourself or sell it for profit.

6. Rent Out Your Kitchen and Dining Area - If your home has an amazing kitchen and dining area, you can apply to be a venue partner on CozyMeal.com, where professional cooks will rent out your space and host meals for their clients.
 The professional chef rental business is growing, as families and businesses are looking for more fun and unique ways to entertain - especially during the holidays. But not everyone has a kitchen or dining area large enough to host an event like this themselves. If you do have the space, this can be a fun way to put more money in your pocket.

7. Rent Out Your Swimming Pool, Sports Court, or Home Gym - Got a swimming pool, sports court, or home gym that doesn't get much use? Swimply.com lets you rent your pool and other spaces by the hour. Some pools rent for up to $100 an hour. You can earn more by offering towels, pool toys, a BBQ grill, or other extra amenities. This is an easy way to get your pool to pay for itself! Last month my teenage daughter went to a pool party for a friend's birthday. I knew the party wasn't at the friend's house, as they don't have a pool. So I asked my daughter if the party was hosted at the home of the friend's family? "No," she said, "they just rented it out from some people for a couple of hours." Later, I discovered they used Swimply to book their pool rental!

8. Rent Out Your Fenced in Dog Yard - Do you have a fence-in yard big enough for dogs to run and play? If so, Sniffspot.com makes it easy for you to earn some fast cash. In fact, some owners can make up to $1,500 a month renting out their yards.
 Not everyone who has a dog has a nice fenced-in place for their dog to run and play. And not everyone has access to a dog park, or wants their dog to play with other dogs. Sniffspot is a great way to find safe places for dogs to go off-leash.

9. Rent Out Your Tools and Equipment - If you have idle tools, a trailer, or construction equipment, you can rent them out on CLINK, found at https://clinkit.app/
. CLINK typically saves renters 20% off what traditional tool rental places charge. And as an owner, CLINK is an easy way to let your tools pay for themselves.

10. DIY Rentals - Just about anything you have could be rented out to someone else, even if there isn't an app for just that. Make a list of things you have that could be of value to someone else, and list them for rental on Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, community bulletin boards, etc.
 The only difference here is that you don't have the typical insurance protection that the above-mentioned apps provide. So with that in mind...

Talk to Your Insurance Agent Before Renting Out Your Stuff

Be sure to check with your insurance agent before jumping into one of these rental opportunities. Because while these app-based rental services typically offer you some type of liability insurance and damage protection, renting out your property might void your personal insurance coverage. Check to see what kind of insurance is provided by the app, or if you might need to add extra insurance yourself.

What Does Rental Income Make Possible for You?

There's a large house in our neighborhood that my wife and I have always admired when we'd go for a walk after dinner. We’d always wondered how many bedrooms it had, and what it would be worth if the owners every wanted to sell.

In 2019 the house was put up for sale, so we were able to take a virtual tour online. The views inside were absolutely stunning. The kitchen and dining areas were huge and modern. And I think there were 6 or 7 bedrooms - a few more than we needed now that most of the kids are out of the house.

And the price was way out of our league...three to four times what we could afford at the time.

But I began to wonder, "How could we afford this house?" if we’d really want to live there? Some of the ideas I came up with were to...

1. Rent out some rooms on AirBnB on a regular basis
2. Create some kind of church intern or resident program where emerging church leaders would pay us to live with us, be discipled, and gain local church experience
3. Launch a gap year program for recent high school graduates, perhaps targeting American missionary kids living overseas who are returning to the U.S. for university, to prepare them for "re-entry"

We didn't pursue the house or any of these ideas, but this exercise got me thinking more about how we maybe COULD afford things we might not otherwise be able to, if we got creative in how we could turn an otherwise expense into income, a liability into an asset.

And the peer-to-peer rental apps we've just talked about give us the opportunity to do just that.

Could you afford that backyard pool if you were committed to renting it out on a regular basis? Could you afford that amazing kitchen remodel if you rented it out for a house party once a month? Or could you get that new bike or camper you've always wanted, rent them out when you're not using them?

Hopefully you can see how things can become more affordable or accessible for you if you can turn them into an income producing asset, instead of a liability.

Question: Which one of these would you like to try? Or has this triggered another income producing idea in your mind? Please let me know by sharing it in the More Than a Pastor Facebook Community, or send me an email at [email protected].