How to Earn Extra Money While You’re Unemployed and Looking for a Job

If you’ve recently been laid off and are temporarily out of a job, you’re still going to need money to eat and pay the bills. Sometimes it takes a month or two to find your next job or move onto the next thing when the economy isn’t doing so well. You still need money in the mean time, so what do you to do make some sort of income while looking for “the big job”?

Here are some ideas that will help free up some extra money:

Amputate Stuff - If you have more than one car in your home, have a boat, a skidoo, expensive electronics, or anything else that you don’t absolutely need, seriously consider selling them. It will bring in some extra money and eliminate a payment if you owe money on the item.

Hold a Garage Sale - A lot of us fill our homes with stuff that we rarely ever make use of. Sometimes we have things that just sit in the basement in a box, and go completely unused. Maybe it’s time to team up with a couple of your neighbors and have a good old fashioned garage sale. It’ll help get rid of clutter and bring some money in.

Take an “Easy to Get” Job - Pizza Hut and Dominos are always looking for delivery drivers. Chances are you’ve worked some sort service-level job in the dining, hotel, or retail industry before. It would be very easy to pick-up where you left off, even if it’s on a temporary basis. It’ll help bring in a paycheck while you are looking for the next job.

Use Savings When Appropriate - If you have money in the bank in a savings account specifically for emergencies (as everyone should), this certainly counts. It’s okay to use some of your savings to help pay for your life while you look for a job. Money in certificates of deposit, money market and traditional savings accounts are okay to withdraw from, as long as you don’t exhaust the money before finding a new job. It is not okay to take money out of your retirement plan (401K, IRA, or otherwise) to help pay the bills right now. Chances are you’ll end up having to pay your tax rate on the money, plus a 10% penalty. You’re essentially borrowing money from yourself at 40%, it’s not a winning game plan to do that.

Perform Personal Services - If you have any sort of ability in mowing lawns, painting houses, cleaning houses, or anything that people need done on a semi-regular basis, Consider posting flyers around town with your contact information on it. There’s always a well-to-do family that wouldn’t mind having their house cleaned on a weekly basis and a family that would rather do something other than mow their lawn.

Unemployment Insurance – If you were laid off from your job, you will probably qualify for unemployment insurance. Don’t be too proud to take it, it’s not welfare, it’s insurance that you paid for. If you were the beneficiary of someone’s life insurance policy, you’d take the check, you wouldn’t be ‘too proud’ to take it. It’s the someway with unemployment insurance, you paid for it and now hat you need it, you should benefit from it.

These are just a few ideas to get you started. There’s no magic formula making money appear when you don’t have an income. It’s as simple as getting rid of stuff you don’t need and doing what it takes to create some sort of income while looking for the next big job.