Boost Your Income
50+ ways to bring in extra cashThere are scores of legal and legit ways to add to your income. After-all no matter how hard you try to keep your relationship with money afloat, sometimes you need a bit on the side. This guide to gaining £1,000s of extra cash is specially designed to interact with your suggestions in the Forum
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iPods How much? Up to £55. How do I do it? Do an iPod selling comparison on MobileValuer, though as only a limited comparison is included it's worth checking Cash4gadgets as well. . Mobiles |   |
Make your money work harder Too many of us let our money languish in accounts or products paying rotten returns. Shake off this laziness to give yourself better returns and hunt down any forgotten funds or concealed cash; you'd be amazed at what you might find. Give yourself a 25% pay rise. There's nothing more powerful than sorting out your own finances. By shifting to the best deal on every product you can give yourself as much cash as a 25% pay rise, without needing to cut back. Before doing anything else, this is the most important starting point. How much? The average UK family should be able to gain £2,500 to £5,000 a year doing this. How do I do it? Use the step-by-step Money Makeover guide. |  |
Use your credit rating to 'stooze'. Many credit card companies are willing to lend you money at 0% interest, so why not take this cash and save it yourself earning 6% interest on it. This is known as stoozing, it's legal and very profitable; yet it's only for the really financially savvy. How much? If you get a 0% card with a £5,000 credit limit you should comfortably be able to earn £250 a year on it. The biggest reported stoozer was making £6,000 profit a year from stoozing. How do I do it? Use the step-by-step Stoozing: Make free cash from credit card guide. Get paid every time you spend. Cashback credit cards pay you back a proportion of what you spend each time you use them. Therefore set up a Direct Debit to pay it off in full each month so there's no interest cost and you can earn. Just use the card for all your normal spending and you'll make money. How much? The top cashback cards pay up to 4% cashback for a short period and then a standard 1%. So if you spend £10,000 a year you stand to make £200, just by paying with a different piece of plastic. How do I do it? Use the Top Cashback Cards guide. |   |
Cameras, other MP3 players, sat navs, games consoles How much? Cameras get around £20, sat navs up to £60 and games consoles around £40. How do I do it? New site Weeebuy*, which recycles a mass of goods and does home pick-up, has launched (we've no feedback yet but it's got the same parent as Mopay - a good sign). Yet it isn't always the best payer; also worth checking is Cash4gadgets. |  |
Don't accept pitiful rates on your savings.
If you've got savings, ensure they're working well for you. Many people leave their savings in pitiful high street bank accounts where the money is actually shrinking. Even worse, you may have it in a current account earning just 0.1%. Stop this - five minutes work'll let you increase the interest massively.
How much? For every £5,000 you have in a top savings account as a basic rate taxpayer you'd earn £220 a year more than in a poor account.
How do I do it? Use the Best Savings Accounts, Starting Saving, and Best Bank Accounts guides.
Always pay off debts with savings.
Most people who try and save while they're in debt are simply throwing their money away; even if the debt is a mortgage. The amount of interest you pay to borrow is much more than you earn on your savings, so pay the debt off with your savings and you're quids in.
How much? Someone with £5,000 on a credit card and £5,000 saved is likely to be £700 a year better off by paying off the debt with the savings.
Find out more: Read the full Should I pay off my debts?, Should I pay off my student loan? and Should I pay off my mortgage? guides.
Most people who try and save while they're in debt are simply throwing their money away; even if the debt is a mortgage. The amount of interest you pay to borrow is much more than you earn on your savings, so pay the debt off with your savings and you're quids in.
How much? Someone with £5,000 on a credit card and £5,000 saved is likely to be £700 a year better off by paying off the debt with the savings.
Find out more: Read the full Should I pay off my debts?, Should I pay off my student loan? and Should I pay off my mortgage? guides.
Get all benefits / state pension.
There's a plethora of benefits available, the key is working out whether you're entitled to them. A rather niffty site turn2us.org.uk does the work for you: it has a regularly updated calculator that works out everything you can get, in one go. Plus it may be possible to get more in your retirement by purchasing extra National Insurance Contributions (NICs).
How much? If you've a family income under £66,350 it's worth checking, as you could get any of Working Tax Credit; Council Tax and Housing Benefit; Pension Credit; Child Benefit; Child Trust Fund and Child Tax Credit. Plus by boosting your state pension you could end up £1,000s better off.
Find out more: Read the full Benefits Check-up, State Pension Boosting and Childcare Costs guides.
There's a plethora of benefits available, the key is working out whether you're entitled to them. A rather niffty site turn2us.org.uk does the work for you: it has a regularly updated calculator that works out everything you can get, in one go. Plus it may be possible to get more in your retirement by purchasing extra National Insurance Contributions (NICs).
How much? If you've a family income under £66,350 it's worth checking, as you could get any of Working Tax Credit; Council Tax and Housing Benefit; Pension Credit; Child Benefit; Child Trust Fund and Child Tax Credit. Plus by boosting your state pension you could end up £1,000s better off.
Find out more: Read the full Benefits Check-up, State Pension Boosting and Childcare Costs guides.
