Ever said one of the following statements to yourself?

• “I need money now”
• “500 dollars in the next couple of weeks would really go a long way”
• “I just need a little boost to get going again”

While I’m a big proponent of investing, creating long-term wealth, and making sustainable plans for the present and future, there may be a time and a place where you just need to make money now.

Here are 25 tips to get you off to a good start. In this post, I’ll cover five main categories: housing, transportation, the gig economy, selling things, and a bonus category.

Category Number One: Housing  

Tip 1: Rent out Entire House as a Short Term Rental

If you need money fast, renting out your entire house on a short-term rental site like Airbnb or Vrbo is a quick way to do it. Depending on your location, it’s possible to rent your house out for hundreds of dollars per night, or even thousands. Especially if major events are going on nearby and your location is in demand.

If your house is in high demand, even a night or two might get you to your goal of 500 dollars.

Tip 2: Rent Out a Room as a Short-Term Rental

 While renting out an entire house is likely to be more profitable, good money can also be made by renting out a room as a short-term rental. Especially if the following criteria are met:

• Your house is in a desirable area
• There is a special event going on at the time
• You are a highly rated host

Individual rooms can easily rent for over a hundred dollars per night. Some can even rent for several hundred. Some hosts have written about having success with themed rooms or offering an experience to guests such as a really nice garden, large outdoor spaces, or eclectic decor.

See these posts for ideas to get you started with short-term rentals.

• How To Turn Your Place Into an Airbnb Rental
• How To List Your Home on Airbnb and Earn Easy Travel Cash
• 14 Things to Know About Renting a Property on Airbnb

Tip 3: Get Roommates (Traditional)

This is a strategy that is becoming more and more commonplace, especially with the rising cost of housing. If you have more than one bedroom, live in one room and rent out the others. The more rooms you have, the more you can rent them out.

For example, for someone with a three-bedroom house, they can live in one room and rent out the other two. Depending on what rents are in your area, those rooms can rent for hundreds, or even thousands for the month. If you’re someone who doesn’t want a bunch of people living with you, try renting out one room first then moving on to renting another room out.

If you need money now, this is a quick and easy way to make extra money without having to get a second job. This is also known as “house-hacking”, which is basically utilizing housing to earn money in rents. For more on this strategy, I recommend The House Hacking Strategy.

Tip 4: Reduce Insurance Costs

Home insurance is expensive, especially if you live in an area where there is a high likelihood of natural disasters like fire, flood, hurricanes, large hail storms, etc. Shop around for the best rates and combine insurance with the same provider for maximum savings.

Realistically, reducing insurance costs in of itself probably won’t make you 500 dollars fast, but it’s a good start. Even reducing your insurance by a small amount will help, and you can aggressively pursue other areas to help you make money quickly.

Tip 5: Eliminate Subscriptions

Magazines, meal delivery services, online newspaper subscriptions, streaming services, gym memberships–these are all subscriptions that should be reviewed on a regular basis. Anything you consistently use and value should be kept, anything else should be eliminated. This alone can put hundreds of dollars back in your pocket.

Tip 6: Cut and Negotiate Bills

Companies want your business. And many are willing to negotiate rates to keep your business. Phone, TV streaming, internet, and other common services are negotiable.

Here’s how it works. If you’ve been a customer with an internet provider for the past couple of years and they are offering a promotional one-year price to new customers, contact that provider. Ask them for that same promotional one-year price. Most of the time they will give it to you. If they don’t, shop around for better deals as long as the service is comparable.

Category Number Two: Gig Economy   

The first category focused on household methods for those who need money now. Most of those methods involved a single action like contacting their internet provider to get better monthly rates. Or eliminating subscriptions and other services rarely or never used. The second category focuses on more active income, mostly in the gig economy.

Tip 7: Provide a Service on Fiverr or Upwork

If you’re skilled in any particular areas or even one area, both Fiverr and Upwork have an abundance of opportunities to make money quickly. There are literally dozens, maybe even hundreds, of services you can provide on both of these sites. Services like:

• Logo design
• Website design
• Photoshop editing
• Blog editing
• Voice over

These are just some of the services you can provide to customers. Go to Fiverr and Upwork for a full list of opportunities. Many of these services can be provided quickly, allowing you to be paid fast.

Tip 8: Deliver Groceries

People are busy and don’t always want to go grocery shopping. That’s where there is an opportunity to make money quickly. Apps like Instacart allow you to take grocery orders, pick up those items at the store, and then deliver them.

When you’re done, fulfill another order, take on another project, or go home for the day. Take on multiple orders per week or just do it now and then if you want a little extra money.

Tip 9: Deliver Food

Much like with grocery delivery, there is a lot of opportunity in the food delivery sector. Apps like Doordash allow you to pick up someone’s order and deliver it to their home. If you need money now, this is a great way to make quick money without having to make a full-time commitment.

Tip 10: Drive for a Ridesharing App

Need money now and like to drive? Ridesharing services like Uber and Lyft are always taking on new drivers. There’s opportunity for flexible shifts and hours. Both ridesharing services are great options if you already have a full time job as you can work before or after work, or on weekends on holidays.

You can take shifts now and then or drive consistently if you want to make more money. Many people also drive full time which provides more lifestyle flexibility than traditional nine to five job employment.

Tip 11: Tutor

If you enjoy teaching others and have some expertise in a subject area, tutoring is a great way to make money in a short amount of time. There are almost endless opportunities to tutor others. Just a few examples:

• Elementary school students in multiple subjects
• Middle school students in one or more subjects
• High school students in advanced classes
• Behavior and organizational skills to students of any age

You can start your own business or use a tutoring app like Tutor.com.

Tip 12: Pet Sit

When my family and I take longer trips, we take our dog. When we go on shorter trips we usually don’t. We’re fortunate to have family nearby who takes care of our dog when we’re gone, but not everyone has that luxury.

Because of this, there is a high demand for pet sitters. There are many opportunities to pet sit for the weekend, a few days, a few hours a day, or maybe even multiple weeks at a time. Find out what people need and provide that service.

Much like with tutoring, you can start your own pet sitting service, work for someone else, or use a pet sitting app like Rover. If you’re good, you’ll likely have no problem getting referrals and lots of future work.

Tip 13: House Sit

There are people who are away from their home’s days, weeks, months, or even years at a time. Many of these people want someone to watch their house for them when they are gone. That can look a variety of ways:

• Check on the house every couple days
• Water the plants once a week
• Stay in the house for an extended period of time
• And much more

Book house sitting gigs through word of mouth, advertising, or using a house sitting app like HouseSitter.com. Taking it to the extreme, there are even people who permanently house sit. See how these bloggers do it here.

Tip 14: Dog Walker

Love dogs and staying in shape? A dog walker might be the perfect job if you need money now or just want a little extra money now and then. People have busy schedules that don’t always allow them time to walk their dog. Especially during the winter months when the days are shorter.

That’s where dog walkers help to fill a need. If someone has a job with long hours where they are working 10 plus hour days, they likely won’t have availability to walk their dog in the daylight. Dog walkers schedule a time during the day, get the dog out of the house, get some exercise, and make some money while doing it. I even see dog walkers at the park with multiple dogs at a time.

Start your own business, work for a local company, or use an app like Wag! One of the big benefits is that you can start as small as you want to. Maybe you just want to start with one client a few days a week and then schedule more as you learn the business.

Tip 15: Temporary Work

There is almost always temporary work available. This can come through employment agencies, the gig economy, or even a private consulting business would fall under this umbrella. I used to get jobs from a temp agency; I’d often get daily or weekly jobs that turned into months.

Much like with any other type of work, the better you are, the more likely you are to be retained and hired. Temporary work is especially useful for people between jobs or who want a more flexible schedule.

Category Number Three: Sell Things   

Also an active way to make money, selling things is a great way to earn if you need money now. Selling items might even be the single most effective and quickest way to earn.

Tip 16: Sell Goods Online

If you’re creative and good at making things, try selling those items online. Sites like Etsy are a great forum to place your items for sale. There are hundreds of items you can sell including:

• Jewelry
• Art
• Toys
• Clothing

There are many people who do very well making items and selling them online. To learn more about getting started on Etsy, read their About Page.

Tip 17: Sell Old Clothes and Shoes

If you have a closet full of clothes with items you haven’t worn in years, you don’t have to just get rid of them. You can donate them or sell them on sites like Poshmark. People will pay good money for clothing, especially vintage clothing and shoes.

You can also sell purses, wallets, leather goods, jeans, workout gear, and much more. For me, it comes down to a similar principle as value-based spending. If you have an item you don’t use or value anymore, sell it or donate it. Someone else benefits by putting your old things to use, and you get to de-clutter and make extra money.

Tip 18: Sell Collectibles and Other Items

Especially recently, collectibles have become very popular. Sports cards, comic books, coins, and many other collectibles are selling for higher prices than ever. Many people are speculating that old collectibles like these will only go up in value, so they are purchasing them with fervor.

Sell them on Ebay or a variety of other sites. See these sites for more details on best ways to sell collectibles.

• Sports cards: com
• Coins: com
• Collectibles and Antiques: com

Tip 19: Garage Sale

As great as selling things online can be, sometimes a good old fashioned garage sale can make substantial money in a very short amount of time. Advertise online, put up signs, and set up early to get the most sales. I’ve seen a lot of family and friends make money quickly with just a few hours of holding a garage sale.

For tips on holding the best garage sale, see these posts:

• Best Tips for Having a Successful Garage Sale
• 21 Proven Garage Sale Tips for a Smashing Success
• How to Have a Successful Garage Sale—Ultimate Guide

Category Number 4: Transportation  

Housing, transportation, and food are the largest expenses for most people. In this section, we’ll address transportation. Not just the traditional advice like pay off your car, but we’ll also explore some outside the box tips like renting your car or RV.

Tip 20: Pay Off Car Loan

One of the best ways to make money now is addition by subtraction. Paying off your car is one such method, and here’s an example. Someone who purchased a car with 500-dollar per month payments, who is close to paying off their car.

If there is 1,500-dollars remaining on the loan, paying it off will immediately provide the borrower with an increase of 500-dollars per month. Whether you are someone who needs money now or just wants to invest extra money, this is a great way to do it.

Tip 21: Rent Out Your Car

Over the summer, I needed a rental car for a couple different trips. The Airbnb’s were a little far from the airport so I wanted to find a rental car closer to where I was staying. Instead of going the traditional rental car route, I rented off the Turo app.

I was able to find a car close to where I was staying for a much lower price than I would the traditional route. The owners of the vehicles were also making really good money just by renting their car.

Depending on the type of vehicle you own and the time of the year, you can make hundreds of dollars per week, maybe even into the thousands during peak season.

Tip 22: Rent out RV

Especially during the height of the pandemic, people wanted to get out, but didn’t necessarily want to stay in hotels or other public areas. That’s where RV’s came in. RV’s allowed people the ability to travel but not have to stay in public places.

RV rentals became a lucrative business. And sites like Outdoorsy allow RV owners to rent out their personal RV’s. It’s not uncommon to make hundreds of dollars per day, especially during peak travel season. If you’re in need of money now or just want to pad your savings account, renting out your RV is a great way to make some quick money.

Tip 23: Sell Vehicle and Purchase a Less Expensive One

For someone needing money now, selling an expensive car and buying a less expensive vehicle is a great way to do it. Here’s an example using easy numbers: “Charlie” owns a 40,000-dollar vehicle with payments of 600 dollars per month and three years left of payments.

He sells that vehicle and makes around 18,000 dollars after taxes and fees. He then purchases a replacement vehicle for 15,000 dollars and pockets the remaining 3,000 dollars. Just like that, Charlie makes 3,000 dollars. The tradeoff of course is that he’s no longer driving a 40,000-dollar vehicle, but if he no longer values the expensive vehicle, that’s a pretty worthwhile trade.

Tip 24: Sell Vehicle and Find Alternative Transportation

Similar to the last tip, this one also involves selling a vehicle. The difference in this tip is that you are not purchasing a replacement vehicle. The tip is to sell your vehicle and take public transportation or walk/bike when possible.

For this example, we’ll use a paid off car that is worth 25,000 dollars. Sell the car and you’ll have right around 25,000-dollars cash. You can then invest the money, set it aside in an emergency account, or whatever else you want to do with it.

This tip will not work if you live in a rural setting or an area without great public transportation. However, if you live in a walkable big city with great public transportation, this could be a fantastic money-saving option. Especially if you’re paying monthly parking fees just to park the car when you’re not using it.

Caution: It’s easy to feel “rich” after selling an expensive car without having to purchase a replacement vehicle. This tip only works if you meet two criteria:

1. Have viable transportation alternatives. Consistently using ride sharing apps in place of a car likely will prove costlier in the long run.
2. Know what you’re going to do with the money. Example: Invest most of the money in index funds and use the rest for an emergency fund. Having the money just sitting in a checking account will mean the money will find a way to get spent.

Tip 25: Advertising Decals on Vehicle

Did you know you can place an advertising decal on your car and get paid by that company? Of course not all of us are willing to do this, but if you need money now, it’s an easy way to make money fast.

Companies like Wrapify will place advertising decals and you drive your car around. Most companies require you to turn on the app while driving as you’ll get paid by miles and/or time driven.

Here’s a great post on Dollarsprout that gives detailed information on how to do this.

Category Number 5: Bonus Tips 

Last, but not least, the bonus category. These last couple tips don’t fit neatly into one category but they are great general tips. Not only if you need money now, but for spending habits in general.

Tip 26: Combine Methods

If you’re someone who has said to yourself: “I need money now”, you don’t have to pick just one method. Being creative and combining methods will give you the greatest chance to succeed.

Some strategies are actually really easy to combine. For example, if you pay off your car and then rent it on Turo, you’re going to be increasing your cash flow in two very important ways. Number one by eliminating a large monthly debt, oftentimes hundreds of dollars. Number two by adding income.

Depending on how much you rent your car out for, this can be in the thousands. To provide real numbers, if your car payment is 500 hundred dollars per month and you pay it off, you’re immediately earning 500 hundred dollars more per month. If you then rent out your car and average 1,200 dollars per month, your monthly cash flow is 1,700 dollars more. That’s a substantial amount of money.

Tip 27: Align Your Values with Your Strategies (Value-Based Spending and Living)

None of these strategies will work if they don’t align with your values. If you absolutely love your car and renting it out on Turo makes you nervous every second of the day it’s rented out, then it’s not worth it. Or if you don’t like dogs and you sign up for dog walker jobs, you’re probably not going to have a great experience.

Same for implementing a strategy like renting out a room in your house. If you really value your own space, this isn’t the right strategy. On the other hand, if you love having people around and enjoy having new people in your house, renting out a room on Airbnb could be a great way to make extra money.

Conclusion

If you need money fast, there are endless ways to acquire it. It just takes a little creativity, commitment, and execution. There’s also nothing wrong with trying one strategy at a time, getting good at it, and then moving on to more.

Even though the original goal is to make money quickly, a great benefit to implementing some of these strategies is that many of them are sustainable long term. Which creates greater cash flow years down the line. Reducing insurance costs, eliminating unused subscriptions, taking on a side job, etc.  are all things anyone can do long term.

Take action today. Pick one item off this post and start it today. Let me know in the comments how it goes!