6 Great Opportunities to Top Up Your Income

Living in London can be expensive, and the majority of us find our bank accounts looking a little sorry in the run-up to payday. That’s completely understandable; with the price of living in London, it’s easy to see your wages vanish, and so it might be worth considering potential options for making a little spare income on the side. FatLlama allows you to rent out anything you own, cameras, laptops and more.

Luckily, we’ve summarised some of the best ways you can quickly make extra money to boost your income and allow you to really make the most of all that the big city has to offer. Let’s go.

6 Quick Ways to Top up Your Income in London 

Living in London is expensive – but that’s not to say there aren’t opportunities! In fact, there are numerous ways you could potentially make extra money quickly and easily while living in this great city. Read on to find out more about some of these opportunities; maybe one of them could help get some extra cash in your pocket this month?

#1 In Employment? Boost Your Salary

One method you could consider for boosting your income in London is to simply increase your salary. This might seem like an obvious point for us to make, but it’s surprising the number of people who don’t consider taking on extra work even though they need a little more cash in their pocket. 

If you think you can manage more hours at work, taking on overtime can be a great way to boost your income. Even an hour a week could result in another £50 a month or so, if not more, and while it might not seem like much, even that little boost can be a pleasant change. You could buy a couple of takeaways throughout the month for you and your family to enjoy. And after all, isn’t it the little things in life and the time with our loved ones that often mean the most to us?

You could even use the extra cash to take a weekend break to unwind, or enjoy an overnight stay and night out in London to recharge your batteries. 

What if I’ve Not Been Offered Any Overtime?

If you’ve not been offered any overtime at work, don’t be disheartened; letting your manager know that you’re happy to take on more hours is a good start. It may be that they’re unsure if you want the extra time. Many businesses will prioritise workers who actively offer to do more. It makes sense, given that you already know your job role – so, it’s far more valuable for your employer to pay you to work overtime compared to taking on and training a new hire.

Don’t Overwork Yourself!

Working longer and taking on a little overtime at work, be it another hour a week or multiple hours, will inevitably eat into your time for other activities. So it’s worth pointing out at this point that a solid work-life balance is critical.

Of course, it’s important to be working regularly enough that you can afford your bills and other expenses. But with that being said, it’s very easy to take on too much, and this can leave you feeling exhausted at the end of every working day. That’s never a nice feeling for anyone, and too much overtime could impact your productivity and ability to cope with the workload.

Overworking yourself will only lead to immense stress and potential burnout. You shouldn’t have to face this. So we highly recommend that you consider carefully whether you can genuinely cope with extra hours at work before taking on any more. 

If nothing else, taking on a second part-time role in a different setting may help take some of the burden off by changing things up a little. Just take care to ensure that the two jobs won’t clash, or leave you rushing to get between destinations. Again, there’s no point in piling any extra stress onto your plate just to earn a few more pounds a month!

There are plenty of London job sites where you can find work if you’re looking for new employment.  

#2 Spare time? Consider Gig Work

More and more people are turning to working from home and “side hustles” to make an income these days, so you may want to consider gig work for your own income too. 

The nice thing about gig work is that it often doesn’t require specific expertise to complete; often, a passion for doing the job right will be enough in and of itself, and you may simply need to prove your ability to provide a particular service through portfolio examples. What’s more, when you choose gig work, you’ll also enjoy the added benefit that you can work on your own terms, at any time that best suits your requirements. If you have free time in the morning or you’re an early bird and want to get a bit of productive work done before your normal work shift starts, that’s fine. Otherwise, if you’d rather chip away at a little work while watching television with your family in the evening, that’s fine too. It’s really your choice – and you can take on as much or as little work as you want.

There are so many potential options for gig work that you could consider. Some people even turn gig work into a full-time job, with time – but there’s equally no pressure if you’d rather continue working part-time with gig work. It’s up to you!

What Could I Do for a Gig?

At this point, you’re probably wondering – what are the different types of gigs you could try? With so much choice, don’t just limit yourself to a few options. Keep an open mind, as you could find an ideal part-time or full-time gig with a little patience and thought! Nevertheless, some of the most common gig types that people often choose include the following:

• Writing, proofreading, and editing services
• Transcription services
• Graphic design or artistic services
• Crafting / creation 
• Ride sharing
• Deliveries
• Help-desk support
• And more!

The options for gig work are pretty numerous, and you only need an online connection and a device to get started usually. The amount you can earn for gig work will vary depending on your level of expertise, but it’s still easy to make a decent top-up income doing something that you enjoy and are passionate about through gigs. Plus, being in a location such as London (with easy access to large communities right on your doorstep) can further enhance your possibilities and opportunities with simple gig work. It’s a low-pressure job role, which is part of why so many people choose gig work for their own needs.

#3 Own stuff? Rent Out Anything You Own!

These days, there’s a huge amount of potential in renting out your possessions and belongings – and so, if you own anything that could be perceived to be valuable, you can actually earn a little extra income by renting out that space or that product to other people who need it.

Of course, before we go any further, we should point out that there is some risk to your possessions when you rent them out to other people. As such, if you’re looking to rent out professionally, you should ensure you have the correct insurance in place to cover damage to the products and to protect your renters from potential dangers. Still, the cost of this is potentially minimal compared to the possible earnings, so it’s still highly worth considering. Plus, if you’re considering renting out storage space, you should also have insurance for your customers’ possessions.

What You Can Rent Out

For example, let’s consider you’ve got a double parking space for your property – but only have one car, or can otherwise leave other cars elsewhere. If this is the case for you, then you could be sitting on a potential source of income right there. At best, parking spaces in London are hard to come by, if not nigh-on impossible. So you can absolutely get a decent top-up income by renting out this space to someone who needs somewhere to park their car. 

It’s not just parking spaces that you can rent out to other people, though. In fact, the options for renting are numerous and potentially this is really only limited to your imagination! For example, any of the following could be prime candidates for renting out:

• Furniture and equipment, such as vacuum cleaners, exercise machines, etc.
• Spare rooms and property space (think AirBnB, Vrbo, etc.)
• Storage space in your property for other people’s belongings

#4 Like Animals? Look After Other People’s Pets

We all love going on holiday from time to time – but most of the time, we can’t take our beloved four-legged (or winged) companions with us. That’s why many holidaymakers find themselves searching tirelessly for someone who can take good care of their pets while they’re away – and often, this choice will end with a pet staying at a kennels, cattery, or some other sort of facility.

This can be a great cause of distress for many pets, which is why there is actually a growing trend of people boarding their pets with other families while they’re away. For example, Barking Mad actually offers a pet board service for hosts and pet owners alike.

Once again, if you’re considering going down this route, you should ensure you’ve got insurance in place to cover the services, and have a think about whether your property is suitable for pets. For example, do you have a garden (something that can of course be a premium for London homes) or do you have other pets in your home already? Can you commit the time to ensure your “boarders” are comfortable and happy in your home until their human family comes back from their hard-earned holiday? 

Still, if your home could be suitable for hosting other people’s pets, this could return a nice income to supplement your main income, and also give you the joy of hanging out with other people’s pets all day! Plus, you’ll be giving their family the reassurance that their pet won’t be staying in some cold, dark kennels – so, it could be worth thinking about.

#5 Complete Online Surveys

It might sound like a cliché option, but did you know that completing online surveys can be surprisingly lucrative? If you have a spare half an hour, or if you want to make your R&R time a little more productive while watching the TV, completing online surveys can be an almost effortless way to earn a little bonus. 

Online surveys are often paid out either in gift cards or cash, so there’s lots of options, and certain survey sites – such as PopulusLive or Prolific – can even offer hourly rates for surveys comparable to what you might get from an unskilled job. Alternatively, some surveys enter you into a prize draw; at the end, you could end up hundreds richer if you were lucky enough to win, while still sharing your opinions and possibly driving change. 

This option won’t leave you rich. Nevertheless, it’s almost effortless and could certainly represent a nice boost to your normal income.

#6 Homeowner? Add Value to your Home

Do you own your own home? If not, then this option probably won’t be on the cards for you just yet. However, for anyone who owns their own London home or property, adding value can be a great way to make a little extra money in London. 

Let’s face it – the prices of properties on prime land in London can be extortionate, so there’s definitely potential for you to make some extra cash here. In fact, your home is likely one of the most expensive possessions you probably own. So, adding value to it – even if you only succeed in increasing the value by a small amount, such as 1%, could see you looking at a few thousand pounds more in the bank account.

How to Add Value to a Property

But how can you go about adding value to your home? If you’re looking to add value to your home for a profit, you need to think a little outside of the box for opportunities. Indeed, installing a £20,000 swimming pool would certainly add value to your home – but unless it increases the value of your home by more than you paid out, it could be a fruitless endeavour.

Instead, you should start by thinking small. There are numerous cheap and simple ways to increase the value of your home with minimal investment; usually, these require a little elbow grease, but can be simple and cheap to pull off otherwise. 

One such option is to paint your home in a neutral colour, ideally a light colour such as beige or white. This simple step can make your home feel more spacious and increase its appeal to a broader audience, thereby increasing the perceived value of your home by buyers, and give you increased returns overall. 

This is just one DIY tip for adding value to your property, but if you need some more simple and fairly inexpensive ideas that will make a big impact in your home and add a touch of luxe, this advice for making your home look luxurious gives 10 great tips.

What to do After Doing Up Your Property?

Just increasing the value of your home alone won’t get you any extra money, though; in fact, chances are you might be slightly down on money by the time you’ve purchased supplies and furnishings. You could then look at remortgaging your home or otherwise selling it and moving away – potentially giving you a quick return on your investment. 

Of course, many people will be hesitant to sell their family home – that’s understandable. There’s still options for you with adding value to properties, though. Along a similar line (if you have the funds to begin with), there’s potential for making spare income through renovating run-down properties. Think “Homes Under the Hammer” here – if you get this right, you can quickly make a decent amount of money by buying a property, fixing it up, and reselling it. Or, if you’d prefer an additional longer-term income, you could rent this out to get a nice sum of money into your bank account every month through rent.

LondonNet: Here to help…

Making a little extra money in London shouldn’t need to be hugely difficult – and hopefully, this article will have given you some inspiration. While it’s imperative that you do your research into these topics to begin with to ensure you’ve got any necessary insurance etc., these are often simple and effective ways to earn a top-up to your normal income. 

So, why not try one of the ideas we’ve listed in our article for earning a little extra on the side – it could just help you find the perfect way to stretch out your savings and make them go that extra mile this month. From using your free time to fill out surveys or complete gigs to transforming your unused space into a money-making opportunity, there are options for everyone!

Have you tried any of the ways to earn a little extra money we’ve listed above? How did they go for you? Let us know in the comments section below; we’d love to hear from you about your own experiences with side hustles, too!

Looking for even more ways to make your money go further? Our Money Saving Guide has lots of tips on how to be savvy with your finances, including instant price comparison tools that could save you up to 70% across a range of services and industries.