As we near a full year of enduring the COVID-19 pandemic, many people are using their cars less for commuting and travel. That doesn’t mean that your vehicle needs to sit in the driveway when it could be making you money. Most of us could use a bit more cash to cope during the pandemic, especially after the holiday.
There are a few innovative ways that you can put your car to work for you. From searching at home for an online title loan calculator to driving for a rideshare program, you may be surprised at the financial resource you have sitting right in your driveway. Let’s look at a few ways to make extra money using your car.
Title Loan
If you have a car that you own outright that isn’t under a lease or lien, you could qualify for a title loan, which is a secured loan that is generally easier to get for anyone that has little credit or a lower credit score. You can borrow money based on the value of your car.
You don’t need to sign over your vehicle’s title on less you forfeit on your loan repayments.
If you are looking for fast cash, title loans typically take less than 48 hours to process, and you can have money in your hand.
Uber Or Lyft
For the last decade, ride-sharing companies have become the norm for people looking for a cheap ride.
Drivers can sign up to be registered vehicles and use their cars to transport riders to their destinations.
You can make your schedule and work when it’s the most convenient, for as little or as much as you want.
Uber or Lyft drivers work with an application system that forwards rider requests directly to their phones, and they can set a limited area for their service.
Car Pooling
Commuting to work can be a significant expense for many people.
If you are looking to save money in the New Year, you can turn your car into a group ride vehicle for your coworkers.
Make arrangements with a few people from work who need a cheaper ride to the office.
Your passengers will all chip in for your gas and insurance costs, and you will have some company on your way to your job.
Reduce Insurance
Car insurance is necessary for most states, but the required coverage is primarily up to the owner.
The lender often mandates leased vehicles to have a full coverage policy, but there may be room for you to save on your premiums if you own your car.
If you are currently working from home, you could reduce your full coverage liability down to the basic fire and theft policy due to the pandemic.
Deliver Food
Uber provides more opportunities than simply being a ridesharing driver. If you have the time and the will to take on a service role, you can deliver food through Uber Eats.
This job is simply getting assignments through your Uber work app, heading out to a restaurant on your route, and delivering the order to the customer.
During the pandemic, food delivery services have expanded like crazy, so there is plenty of work for those that have a car.
Rent Your Car
A lot of people have converted to working at home during the pandemic and aren’t using their second vehicle as often.
If you have a car that is just sitting in the driveway, you could consider renting it out for profit.
List your car on a car rental app like Turo and you could make over $1,000 a month to add to your budget.
When you list your car on an official app, you will end up with users that are screened through the company along with a 1 million dollar liability insurance coverage for extra protection against damage or theft.
Advertising
Have you ever been waiting at a red light and found yourself reading an advertisement on the back windshield or side of the cars around you?
Why not get on board with car advertising and make some money for yourself? With many advertisers, you can get paid a few hundred dollars a month to drive around with an advertisement on your car.
These types of programs work by paying you for the number of miles that you drive each day.
Different scales of pay depend on whether you are driving in a city or a rural area.
In an urban city setting, you can expect to make about $75 a week with just one advertisement on your vehicle.
Moving
If you have a truck, you can make money lending it out to people that are looking to move or haul something.
Trucks can come in handy if you are moving house or looking to transport a large item too big for a car trunk.
You can list your services or rental of your truck on sites like Craigslist and add a few hundred dollars per month to your bank account.
If you add your labor to your offer, you can charge more for your services with a per-hour rating.
Deliver Packages
With millions of people shopping on Amazon every week, there is an abundance of packages that need to be delivered to every corner of the country.
All you need to do to take advantage of these types of easy-driving gigs is sign up with Amazon Flex.
Once a day you will pick up all of the packages that need to be delivered, plan your route, and start delivering to each address.
Delivering packages just a few days a week can put approximately $500 monthly in your pocket.
Using your car to make some extra cash is easier than you may think.
If you have the time and a quality vehicle to use for a title loan, as an Uber driver, or carpool your fellow employees, you can survive the January crunch and enjoy a happy New Year.
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