Make money from your own backyard or garage

The silver lining of spending more time at home and having our normal routine interrupted means that we have more time and energy to invest in other activities, such as your side hustle or passion project.

Not only does focusing on your side hustle give you a creative outlet, it may also provide a future income stream.

Here are a few projects you could take on during this time spent at home:

Turn to sustainable innovations

Herbs and vegetables such as tomatoes, lettuce and carrots are easy to grow and maintain and there’s no better feeling that picking your very own produce!

From recycling old desk drawers to premade Bunnings buys, there are many ways to create innovative herb and veggie gardens. Not only will growing your own herbs and vegetables save you money at the supermarket, you’ll also be able to market these sustainable creations in your local area through word of mouth marketing.

If you have old clothes and unwanted fabrics lying around the house, transforming them into reusable grocery bags is yet another sustainable innovation that could earn you money.

Likewise, beeswax wraps are quickly becoming a popular alternative to cling wrap in the kitchen, and they’re pretty easy to make from the comfort of your garage. You’ll only need a handful of materials, including leftover cotton fabric, beeswax pellets and a few other items lying around the house to create the wraps. Here’s a recipe to try!

Create a workshop station for this project in the garage and create a stock area for your final products which you can sell to family and friends.

Create a rental business for your tools and equipment

If your garage or home is filled with rarely-used tools and occasionally-required appliances, creating a rental business for others to borrow your equipment may be a great strategic project worth the time investment.

This is ideal for the types of equipment that are only rarely used and that consumers are hesitant to purchase, such as sewing machines, lawn mowers and whipper snippers, power tools and even mix masters.

Listing your available tools and appliances online through various platforms including ShareGear will allow others to see what equipment you’ve got on offer and easily rent and return them.

For the most part, this is a minimal energy project: once you’ve listed your equipment, people will generally come to you with their rental requests and offers. All you’ll need to do is regular maintenance to keep your tools and equipment in good condition for customers!

Host a virtual garage sale

Many of us are guilty of hoarding old possessions that we no longer use or need; whether it’s clothes, furniture, electronics or jewellery and everything in between.

Garage sales can be an excellent way to get rid of items you no longer need or use while earning some extra cash in the process. As they say, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure!

Use this extra time spent at home as an opportunity to de-clutter your home and cupboards by targeting one room at a time. Consider parting with anything that hasn’t been used in the last six months, questioning the item’s value to you and usefulness now and in the future.

Take photos and make a note of what you think the items monetary worth is, listing its condition and any faults. With the items you’ve decided to part with, store them in the garage for easy access, should you receive buyer interest.

Rather than hosting a physical garage sale, sell your spare items online through platforms like Trade Me and Facebook Marketplace to connect with potential buyers.

You don’t need a fancy office to make money. Get creative with your side-hustles and maximise the value of the time spent at home.

To learn more about Merlin’s range of garage door opener accessories, visit our website or call 0800 653 667.