Do you have an extra space in your home? Whether you have extra room in your house, extra parking or storage space, you can use those unused spaces to earn additional money for you. You may have a condo unit that you barely use, or you are frequently out of town and no one’s using your house, or your property may be large and you have a lot of underutilized spaces. Instead of leaving those spaces unused, turn those spaces into income-generating sources.
Here are ways you can make money from extra spaces in your home:
Table of Contents
1. Earn Money by Renting Your Extra Room (or House!)
Airbnb https://www.airbnb.com/ is a rental service that allows travelers or visitors to rent out alternative accommodations in 190+ countries that it is available. If you have an extra private room or an entire place – whether a house, condo, townhouse, apartment, and yes, even treehouses, castles or private islands, you can rent it out through Airbnb and earn additional income.
Listing your place on AirBnB is free, and you can individually approve guests. AirBnB charges you 3% service fee when you confirm a reservation, while your guests pay Airbnb 6% to 12% booking fees.
Income potential can be substantial, depending on where you live, quality and size of your place. In Washington D.C. for 1 guest, you can earn $197 per week for a shared room, $235 per week for a private room and at least $435 per week for an entire home or apartment. Kristen and Siya, for example, wrote a blog post on how they made $10,000 in their first month of being Airbnb hosts.
However, be sure to check the legal requirements needed to become an Airbnb host in your area. Some areas require you to register as a business and obtain a license and permit before you can accept guests. In Washington, D.C. for example, you need to get a transient housing license in addition to a basic business license.
You can become an Airbnb Host here https://www.airbnb.com/host
2. Earn Money by Renting Out Your Extra Parking Space
JustPark.com http://www.justpark.com connects drivers in search for parking with anyone who has an available space – whether in a parking garage, private garage, even churches and schools. It allows those with available parking spaces to rent it to drivers and earn money. This is ideal if you live in high-traffic and high-volume locations such as shopping districts, stadiums, entertainment venues, and airports, among others, where parking is tough or at a premium and you have unused garages or parking spaces.
If you live near event venues or in urban areas, renting out your parking space can be lucrative. Mark Newman from Sheffield, UK rents his driveway to football fans during match days, earning over £250 per season. ​
You list your available parking space, including time and date of availability, photos and instructions to help the driver find or access the space. You then set your own prices, whether it is per hour, day, week or month. JustPark.com charges the driver with service fee on top of the rental price you set.
JustPark.com is currently available in Europe (particularly United Kingdom), and in select cities in the United States
3. Earn Money by Renting Out Your Extra Storage Space
Unused areas like garages or basements can be rented out for storage. Monica Miranda, a chef in Los Angeles, listed her garage and driveway on a storage marketplace and earned $20,000 in passive income over two year.
In United Kingdom, there’s a service called StoreNextDoor.com https://www.storenextdoor.com that allows people to rent out spare space in their homes as storage. This is ideal for those with spare rooms, empty lofts or garages, as well as uncovered spaces such as driveway for storage of boats, motorhomes, etc. Listing is free, and users can earn about £90/month for a garage or £75/month for a spare room. With users tending to store items for 3 to 12 months minimum, that can add up to some pretty chunk of extra cash.
If there are no peer-to-peer services like StoreNextdoor.com in your area, you can also start your own mini storage business. Check out the local zoning laws in your area as to what you are allowed to do in your property. Some states may allow temporary structures on the property, in which case you can add a storage container on gravel or prefabricated storage units.
The customers for your mini-storage can be small businesses (including eBay and Etsy sellers) needing extra inventory storage, property managers who need extra space for record storage, and even residents looking for additional storage for their items. The key is to provide a method for securing and weatherproofing the space while allowing for accessibility for your customers. You also need to have the ability to lock out non-paying clients, after which you can make money by selling off their belongings.
4. Earn Money by Renting Out your Garden
If you have a property that has a large garden, you can rent out the space in various ways. Here are some ways you can market your garden space:
Rent a garden plot. One example is Sonoma Garden Park (http://www.sonomagardenpark.org/grow-your-own/), which rents out garden plot sizes from 10×15 ($150) to Double 20×30 ($300) or Triple 30×45 ($450). The spaces are rented on an annual basis and include the use of garden tools, compost, and water.
Sites such as YardYum.com also allow you to rent out your plot of land to gardeners. For a 20’x20’plot, you could earn $30 to $100 for a year. If you are not using that land, earning something is better than nothing!
Rent a garden camp. If you have an idyllic backyard, you can rent it out as a micro campsite. You can use and list your garden in the site Camp in My Garden http://campinmygarden.com/ , which matches those looking for private camping areas with land owners. Their only requirement is to provide campers with access to cold water tap and a WC.
5. Earn Money by Renting Out your Backyard
Spacious yards can be leased for events or as play areas for pets. Julz Maleno from Chino, California, rented out her vacant acre lot as storage for RVs and trailers, earning over $26,000. Here are some ways you can market your backyard:
Doggie play area. Rent your yard to dog owners looking for safe, private spaces for their pets to play. The current market leader is Sniffspot.com, and you can charge anywhere from $4 per dog/per hour to as much as $35 per dog/per hour, depending on your location, the size of your property, and whether it is fenced or unfenced. You don’t need to offer any facilities, maybe an outdoor seating area for the dog owners so they can relax while their dogs play.
Event and gathering space. If you have an awesome backyard, you can rent it for film or photo shoots, events (parties and gatherings), or creative projects through sites like Giggster or Peerspace.com. You can rent out your backyard or allow the use of your whole house!
The article was originally published on February 26, 2016 and updated on March 26, 2025.
