4 Side Jobs to Help You Pay Off Your Student Loans

Student loan debt is now the second highest debt behind a mortgage. Imagine being a graduate in 2015 and starting your life with $35,051 in student loan debt. The figure is even higher for 2017 graduates.

This is a massive amount of debt for anyone who wants to raise a family or even buy a home.

In fact, a new study found that millennials are holding off on buying their first home for at least 7 years because of student loan debt. You can only do so much to pay off this mountain of debt. But, if you’re willing to hustle, do some student loan planning, and get a side job, you can use this extra income to start paying down your student loans.

It’s not going to be easy, but it’s possible.

What side jobs can you do? There are dozens to pick from. The ones I like the most are listed below.

1. Uber or Lyft

Uber and Lyft offer you the opportunity to become a taxi – essentially. You’ll be able to drive people around, make money and choose when you want to work. This is a great way to make some side money, but you’ll also need to consider wear and tear on your vehicle.

You’ll need to maintain your vehicle more often.

Lyft is a great choice for starters because the company does offer a minimum fare, so even if you’re dropping someone a mile from the pickup location, you’ll make money.

2. Spinlister

I found Spinlister during my search for ways to pay off student debt. This is a really neat site, and it allows you to rent out other means of transportation. You set your fees, and you rent out your:

• Bicycle
• Skis
• Surfboard

This is a great way to make money off of items you might not use often. You’ll have to pay Spinlister 17.5% of your earnings as a commission, but that’s a small price to pay when people charge $12 – $55 (in my area) per day to rent a bike.

If you have a high-end bike, you can make a lot of money for doing nothing at all.

3. Be a Dog Sitter with Rover

If you don’t like dogs, move along to the next item on our list. But for everyone who is like me and stops to pet dogs every time they see them, now is your opportunity to be a dog sitter. This is an awesome job, and I know what you’re thinking: too much work to get clients.

Well, you would be right, but there’s an awesome service called Rover that opens your service to the world.

You can board a loving pup for $30+ a night. All you need to do is feed, love and board the dog. Some people charge $25 a night, while others charge $50+, but the rate is up to you. Even if you board three dogs a week, this is $75 – $90, or $150, depending on your rate.

That’s a lot of money you can put towards your student loans.

And there are also a lot of benefits offered. Rover even provides pet insurance to you, so it’s really all about showing a pup some love and collecting your money.

4. TaskRabbit

You’re good at something. Everyone has that “thing” that they do well. But if that thing has anything to do with work around the house, it’s time to go to TaskRabbit. You’ll become what’s known as a “tasker,” and your job will be whatever you list it as.

There are a lot of jobs for:

• Home improvement
• Yard work
• Moving and packing
• Furniture assembly

General handyman work is available, too. There are options for organization, rearranging furniture and even painting. If this sounds like something you might want to consider, sign up, wait for approval and be on your way to making some great side money.