Question 5: What can you do to earn extra $ to reduce your debt burden?
In today's world of rising prices along with debt burden almost every one of us are struggling to make the two ends meet. In this situation, how can you increase your income to become [url=http://www.debtconsolidationcare.com/debt-free.html]debt free[/url]?

Winner Post

Answer 1: Increasing your income is something most everyone would like to do. There are quick ways to do it and some that take a bit more time.
For quick cash, there are things like holding a garage sale. Make the most out of your sale by inexpensive advertising (signs) and telling friends and neighbors. Then make sure you have cleared your closets of all the junk you havent used (in at least a year), clothes that dont fit and things you just dont like. Price them reasonably (nothing less than 50 cents) and you should be able to make a little pocket change at the least. Whatever you dont sell, donate to charity and get a receipt so you can use it at tax time.
Getting another job is way to pick up some extra cash too. Another job can be something as simple as evening or weekend babysitting or housesitting. You would be surprised at what people will pay for a responsible adult to babysit. I personally have babysat for a lady who routine pays $100 for an evening (4-5hours) of babysitting her 3 school age kids.
Another job could also be working in a department store. Christmas is approaching and stores are always looking for Christmas help. Dont wait until the season though, because the stores start hiring several months before the official start of the Christmas season.
If you are a college student, check with your student services office. Almost all will have job offerings. One of the best jobs I ever had when I was a student, I got from reading the job board at school.
If you attend church, call the church office and ask to put a blurb in the weekly bulletin or monthly newsletter advertising your skills and that you are available for work.
Tutoring is another way to make some cash. Are you good in math? Math tutors are always in need. Im a teacher and I tutor three days a week after school for an hour each day. I make $30.00 per hour. I know I couldnt go and work for 3 hours each week and make $90.00, so it works out good for me. Examine your own areas of expertise and see if you have a skill someone else could benefit from.
These are just a few ways that you can try and get make some extra money to help make ends meet. Consider one or all and go for it. Good luck!

Answer Posted by |Lorri

The other answers worth mentioning are:

Answer 2: Ive struggled a lot since my husband walked out about 2 years ago. The most important thing I fee I need to do is build a "cushion" (I dont mean a pillow stuffed with money, though that would be nice...). Its been difficult to get caught up with the bills that we were behind on before he left, and therefore put me further behind. I found that my hobby could be somewhat profitable. Being a single mother, with a "special needs" child, it is out of the question for me to work a second job outside of the home. Instead, I try to make some profit from my hobby. If you have a creative hobby such as painting or sculpting, you never know who may want to purchase your work. I also have swallowed my pride and asked to borrow money from family to pay off the biggest bills. They usually wont charge interest, and if they do, it isnt going to be nearly what Id be paying if Id struggled along with the original bill. Im slowing getting to the place I need to be. It isnt easy, but Ive learned to avoid the "traps" and quick fixes. Finding this site has also helped me dramatically!!!

Answer Posted by |jennifer_bailey75

Answer 3: I have increased my income by de-creasing certain non-neccesities in my life...such as the daily latte and muffin, washing my own car, clipping dry cleaning coupons, brown-bagging my lunch to work and buying in bulk. When I sat down the worked the numbers, just these small changes "increased" my income by almost $400 a month!

Answer Posted by |jenoliver33

Answer 4: Before you go out and get a second job, try makeing smarter purchases and counter attack your everyday routine with something that would cost you less out of pocket expenses and use those savings towards paying off your debts. As an example, rather than going out to eat during lunch time, bring your own lunch -- I save $100 a month and that money goes towards my credit card. Rather than paying the $15 minimum, I am able to pay 6 times that amount which brings me even closer to being [url=http://www.debtconsolidationcare.com/debt-free.html]debt free[/url]. You can also make simple sacrifices such as shopping less at expensive outlets, carpooling, buying a membership in a bulk outlet store such as Sams Club (the membership literally pays for itself), cancel your newspaper and magazine subscriptions and read them online, etc. Use the money you save from these small sacrifices towards paying off your debt.

Answer Posted by |Amanda Webb

Answer 5: There are several things one can do to increase income. One of the things one can do is get a second job, even if it is part time, every little bit helps. This can be one person or both people if they are a couple. My husband works a second job but does not want me to because he feels that one of us needs to be home for the kids, well now for my daughter. Another thing that can be done is cut out or at least reduce the amount of eating out and unnecessary things. Not saying that they have be cut out 100%, but cut back anyway. One could have a yard sale and get rid of things that are not needed or used. That can give one some extra money to help with whatever needs to at the time. We had a yard sale a few weeks back and made over $200. Stay away from payday loans for they get one further in debt. Do not accumulate any more debt by taking out loans or anything on that order. Make a budget and stick to it. Start paying off what you owe, even if it is a little at a time. One has to start somewhere. If you have credit cards, pay the minimum on all but one and pay over the minimum amount, even if it is $10 extra each month. Once that card it paid off, then take the amount that you have been paying on that card and apply it toward another card, and when that card is pay off, continue on until you have all your cards paid off. This can work on other debts too. Do not use credit cards unless it is an absolute emergency. Learn how to say no to the kids once in a while. They do not need to get everything they want...their needs should be taken care of first. Do activites that do not cost anything or costs very little to do. Go to the park, museums or someplace like that. If you want to go to the movies, go some place that offers discount tickets. Around here we have a couple of theaters that sell tickets for $1.50 or $2.00. Granted they may not be new releases, but if they are something we havent seen, that is ok. Another thing we do is save our change. We put our change in a jar and it can add up fast. It is great to know it is there when we need gas or milk or something like that. In a way, it is like paying yourself.

Some of the ideas I mentioned may not be earning extra money, but it will help with not having as much money going out, which in turn puts more money in your pocket and more money to help toward paying down your debt.

Answer Posted by |2nband

Answer 6: One good way to earn some extra money is registering at any market research places in your area. Also, check craigslist daily for any research groups you could qualify for. They usually pay $50 to $200 for a couple hours of your time, and many times you get to try some new product or make your voice known. If you live near a major city, these are usually going on weekly. You could also do surveys online, but these are harder to qualify for, and pay much less then the focus research groups mentioned above.

Answer Posted by |goudah2424

Answer 7: You can get a second job. Put all that income towards your debts.

You could sell some of your things you dont need. Ive sold jewelry to get extra money when I needed money for payments. It hurt, but I needed to do it.

You could ask to borrow money from a family member or friend. Might be awkward, but you could work out a payment arrangement that would be better for you. At least a family member wont charge you 30% if you are late on a payment.

You could brown-bag it to work. Eating out & getting coffee everyday is a lot of money. Take that money you would have used & put it away somewhere safe (bank, secret stash in house) somewhere that you wont be tempted to spend it.

You could try & restructure other bills. Contact the lender & see if they can lower payments for you. Take the money saved there & apply to other debts.

Apply for a [url=http://www.debtconsolidationcare.com/debt-management.html]debt management[/url] program. The DMP can negotiate lower rates, get you one lump payment-which might end up saving you in the long run. I know for me entering a DMP saved me about $150 a month.

Dont spend as much. Think about what you really WANT vs what you really NEED. Budget it out. See if your budget can allow for it.

Freeze your cards. You could put your credit cards in water and then freeze them. Keep one out for emergencies-just in case you have one. The others, if you feel tempted to use them, then you can take them out of the freezer, let them defrost while you think about what you want. By the time they defrost you can have a clear head.

DONT take a out a Pay Day Loan. They sound nice but they are TROUBLE. They will get you deeper in debt FAST.

Answer Posted by |lawn1016

Answer 8: I generally prefer to live alone in my apartment. But sometime back I was in the middle of a "Debt Soup" (I prefer to call it so). To get out of it I decided to open up one of my two-bed-room apartment. It helped me a lot to payoff my debt.

I was also a fashion buff and used to spend a lot of my income towards funky clothes and accessories. But after I got debt ridden, I sold most of these funky stuffs to the vintage store in our locality. To my utmost surprise, I got a considerable amount of money out of this. Wow…there are so many idiots like me to buy these funky old items.

Thanks to the above that I am living a [url=http://www.debtconsolidationcare.com/debt-free.html]debt free[/url] life. :)

Answer Posted by |phoenix

Answer 9: I have done numerous things in the past to get more money to help me out of debt. When it was posssible, I took a second job and applied all of the money from that job to a debt, along with the original payment to get it paid off sooner.

I have also gone to some businesses around here and done some office cleaning at night. I went to the Historical Museum and asked them if they had a job, I knew they had meetings and banquets in their basement. They hired me and I was able to do it on weekends or a few hours at night. There are also some schools around here that advertise for night janitorial positons.

I have also gone to different churches and worked at the nursery on Sunday and Wednesdays.

And the last thing I did was, to go apply for a substitute teacher. They pay more if you are degreed, but the pay is good if you arent, and you work when the kids are in school and off when they are off.

All of these things and a few other little things has helped me [url=http://www.debtconsolidationcare.com/getoutofdebt.html]get out of debt[/url], along with cutting out alot of extras, and a little sacrifice. In applying the extra money to my debt, I did the lowest one first, along with the original payment, slowly got me out of debt, where I intend to stay!

Answer Posted by |Bossy4455

Answer 10: Ive always had a part-time job to supplement my regular income--even working a couple hours in the evening or on weekends helps! I also complete surveys for a small amount of cash--its nice to get a check in the mail for $5-25, just for spending a little time giving your opinion! Selling items at garage sales or Ebay can also be a nice supplement to your income.

Answer Posted by |saxy_soprano

Answer 11: My husband and I have been able to secure side jobs that take up one night a week and are able to earn enough to help cover the cost of gas. Weve also been cleaning out items in our home that we no longer use and have been selling them on eBay, Craigslist, at yard sales, anywhere we can. Also, any extra cash we are able to stash away, even if its only $20, we put into an interest bearing savings account. Although its not earning much right now, its at least something and every penny counts these days.

Answer Posted by |Kristine Norton

Answer 12: I just found out through a great member here on this forum that ebay is a great and real way to sell what you have and earn good money by doing it. You can start out with a little and over time turn it into a full time job if you want. That is my plan. I always wanted to work from home making good money and all the benifiets it has with it.

This ideal has not only giving me hope but something great to look forward to instead of worrying about stuff I have no control over anyway.

EBAY is the name and the Way!!

Answer Posted by |Lukeskywalker

Answer 13: Most americans can just change one thing in their daily routine and save money. For me, it would be not going out to eat as much and eating home more often. If I did that, I would save over $200 a month. That is a lot of extra money.

Answer Posted by |Bobbie Hendricks

Answer 14: Option 1 : Become a member here if you arent already and earn debt cc point to cash in for money.

Option 2 : Why not recycle? You can earn money and help save the environment at the same time. You would be surprised how much those cans and bottles add up.

Answer Posted by |mobile0311

Answer 15: Take a second job? Babysit? Sell unneeded items? Ditch the car and get a bike? If I knew the best answer for this I might not be needing help!

Answer Posted by |lindsay.haller

Answer 16: figure out what your hands can do free, example: braid hair!
pick wild flowers let them dry out and create arrangements! then sell them at the beach.
let your hands make money for you!!!!!!! with what you love to do. do you bake ? bake and sell cookies and small cakes
at the beach. try it!!!!!
mrs. stokes

Answer Posted by |stokesstokesco

Answer 17: Sell unwanted items on Ebay. Have a garage sale. Make crafts and sell them at a craft show. Get a part time job. These are just a few things. My mom and I actually went to estate sales and bought things that we knew would be hot sellers on ebay. Like collectible cups and saucers. Old plates and things like that. We then listed them and watched the money double. It is a little time comsuming, but also fun to watch the prices go up on the auctions. We did this every week for about 6 months. I would say we pretty much doubled our money.

Answer Posted by |strangclan

Answer 18: I use a Keep the Change account to accrue extra funds and it actually accrues interest. When I get to a decent amount, I simply transfer it into my checking account to help pay off some credit debit Im working to reduce as quickly as possible.

Answer Posted by |Betsy Meffert

Answer 19: go through your house and find items that are no longer needed items or that you can live without and sale them in a garage sale, get a second job, capitalize on a talent or skill you have and charge a fee for that service such as babysitting, yardwork, housecleaning, etc.

Answer Posted by |jayoq

Answer 20: I can clean my closets and open an Ebay store.

Answer Posted by |Cadiibrewer

Answer 21: work at two jobs so 1 can pay bills and second one can pay credit cards

Answer Posted by |oakhaven126