Ready to live the dream? Passive income — making money without doing much — could allow you to work less, pay off debt, or build your own business. investment account. But most so-called passive income streams are not so passive.
Real estate investments require you to be an owner (and have plenty of cash up front to invest), and running an e-commerce business requires spending time creating a website and marketing it.
But there are ways to generate passive income with minimal effort and without the need for a commercial loan for a start. Let’s look at four sources of passive income that are actually quite passive.
Put $200,000 in a HYSA or CD
The average rate of return of a high yield savings account (HYSA) or certificate of deposit (CD) is currently around 5%. (Although that figure could decrease as the Federal Reserve continues to lower interest rates.) So if you’re lucky enough to have $200,000 lying around, you can put it away in a high-yield savings account or CD and make $10,000 in a year. There is nothing to sell, nothing to buy and no customer service required.
Yes, this suggestion is a bit ironic. Setting expectations is important – most passive income streams will require a large initial investment or a little of your time. If you have more time than money, read on.
Sell 1,000 digital products for $10
Digital products (planners, coloring books, or worksheets) only need to be created once. Once created, you’ll likely have to do a little marketing to generate sales, but that’s it. Host your creations on Etsy, Teacher for Teacher or Amazon and you can make sales and outsource delivery.
Why a Business Credit Card Could Transform Your Small Business
These business credit cards offer a convenient and efficient way to separate personal and business expenses, simplifying accounting and tax filing.
Additionally, business cards can provide valuable benefits such as rewards points, cash back, and expense tracking tools, improving financial management and the potential to help save money in the long term.
Rent your garden as a dog park for 1,000 hours
You’ve probably heard of renting out your house or car, but did you know you can also rent out your yard for dogs? Just like Airbnb rentals, the amount you can charge per hour depends on the size of your property and the amenities you offer. But renting your garden on sites like Sniffspot for $10 an hour for 1,000 hours will net you about $10,000 a year.
Sniffspot guides you through creating a listing and offers host protection insurance. Gardens that have pools, ponds or agility features seem to be rented for more than just land. Even better, you don’t have to be there or know your guests.
Sell 250,000 $0.04 stock photo downloads
Like digital downloads, selling stock photography is one of the passive income streams where you create something once and can sell it over and over again. While the price of stock photos can vary by site and image type, most cost between $0.04 and $0.06 per download. If you can build a large portfolio of in-demand images, you can build a decent side business.
The market is quite saturated, so do some research to find out what types of images are popular. For example, interior design images work especially well. Most stock photography sites give you access to a dashboard where you can see which images are performing well and where the downloads are coming from. You can use that data to be more strategic with your uploads.
Creating a passive income stream takes time, but it is possible. Just avoid those people who try to sell you a course on how to do it. They have created their own source of passive income, but they probably sell courses.