Side hustles: Aussies making extra cash as cost of living soars
Father-of-one Tyler Hutchinson is one of many Aussies looking for extra sources of income to make ends meet as the cost of living soars.
To supplement his full-time job in marketing, Hutchinson has three side hustles on the go.
He managed to get a gig doing wine tastings, where he gets paid to go to restaurants and sample their menus.
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Hutchinson has also started a blog about energy drinks, called Energy Powder World.
He said there wasn’t much information out there about energy drinks, and he saw an opportunity to educate people on the topic and get paid for it.
“So it's sort of my mission to try and help people understand what's in these things,” he said.
The blog is only fairly new and isn’t making much money yet.
Where he is making decent money, however, is in freelance marketing, where he’s getting paid as much as $1,000-1,500 a month.
Hutchinson hopes the extra cash will help him and his wife save for a house while dealing with immense inflationary pressures.
“Things have been pretty tight,” he said.
“Inflationary pressures are weighing on everybody, and things are getting more expensive - petrol, rent, everything.”
Eventually, the pair hope to buy a house.
“But it’s pretty tough on the average salary,” Hutchinson said.
In 2021, a record 6.5 per cent of workers held multiple jobs, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data.
Other easy ways to make money
Another easy way to make money is to rent out under-utilised assets.
Bella Burgio, an accountant in her early 30s, is renting out her wardrobe to help pay her bills.
Burgio is making around $10,000 a year sharing her dresses on peer-to-peer, dress-hire platform The Volte.
Another option is renting out your car space.
Steve McDermott, who owns three houses in Perth, has started renting out a spare car spot on peer-to-peer storage app Parkhound.
The $200 a month he makes helps cover the mortgage on his negatively geared property.
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