Yahoo Finance Here’s how to save $2,290 by Christmas
The end of the year usually spells two things: festive cheer and extortionate bills.
End-of-year drinks, long lunches and holiday plans all stack up, and according to Canstar data, comes with a whopping $3,342 price tag.
But if you tap into the share economy by picking up a few odd jobs here and there, you could help to dampen the sting in your inevitable new year ‘statement shock’.
Here are six straightforward ways to avoid sinking into Christmas debt that you didn’t even know about.
Tip 1: Be picky about how often you eat out or order in
Saving: $240
Naturally, you’ll want to celebrate the silly season over special meals.
But if you cut down on your non-essential dinners out or eliminate your weekly UberEats order ($36.50) and cut out your one coffee per day ($94.50), you could save around $240 between now and the end of the year.
Tip 2: Rent out your car
Saving: $250-350
If you’ve got a 9-5 job and you take public transport to work, you could use peer-to-peer car rental platforms like Car Next Door to turn your under-utilised vehicle into a source of supplementary income. This way, your insurance, rego, and other car expenses effectively pay itself. Over the course of a year, your car could earn you $250 to $350 a month.
Tip 3: Rent your driveway out
Saving: $200
In the same vein, you could use parking marketplace Spacer to rent out your unused driveway or parking space to make an easy $50 a week. Little things add up!
Tip 4: Rent your room out
Saving: $680
Who doesn’t want a holiday that pays for itself? If you’re going away or if you have a spare room, now could be the best time to consider renting out to Airbnb. If your room rent is $170 per week, that’s a cool $680 in your back pocket.
Tip 5: Become an Uber driver
Saving: $870
Drivers on this ride-share platform earn on average $10,490 a year. Set your own schedule – if you pick up a few hours here and there until the end of the year, you could earn as much as $870 in the next month.
Tip 6: Odd jobs
Saving: bonus pay
Other ideas for odd jobs are pet-sitting, house-sitting, or dog-walking through platforms like Mad Paws, or picking up gigs on Airtasker.
And there you have it – you’ve just clawed back $2,290 from your Christmas spending.
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