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Three Bizarre Sources to Make Extra Cash

Jimmy Moncrief
2 min read
Three Bizarre Sources to Make Extra Cash

I’m exhausted with writing about traditional sources for down-payments. My solution: I’ll list the three most bizarre, yet actual, sources of cash I could think of.  I’ve actually done two out of the three sources mentioned. Have you tried any of these?

Let’s face it: your real estate investing strategy would be a lot easier to implement if you had some extra cash for a down-payment, renovations, etc. So, below are three ideas to make some substantial cash in a limited amount of time.

(I also recommend reading Ben Leybovich’s AWESOME blog post: 5 Ways to Buy a House with $2,000 or Less )

Make Extra Cash by Selling Novelty Products

Extra CashI’m not going to get too detailed here because I don’t want to get political (I’m politically agnostic), BUT I’ve actually written an Amazon best-selling book… and its blank inside.   I’m not going to reveal how many copies I sold, but I will give you some data for other blank books:

Blank books aren’t the point.  The point is having  a product that is fairly cheap and will make people laugh.  As real estate investors, we sometimes get bogged down in the numbers and long-term strategy.  I can tell you from first-hand experience that selling a novelty item is extremely freeing.  There is no long-term strategy (it’s a gimmick) – it either makes you laugh or it doesn’t.  Additionally, there are huge margins in novelty products so you can make a lot of cash in a short-term time frame.  Christmas is just around the corner, and millions of dollars will be spent on white elephant gifts.  The only question is, will it be spent on your product?

Make Extra Cash by Selling Your Plasma

Make Cash Selling PlasmaOk, so I did this through college and saved every dollar.  At the end of college, I used this money for a down-payment on our first house.  It’s a little demoralizing because most people that sell plasma (that I gave with anyway) were homeless.  However, I choose to just love the adventure life throws at me!  Needless to say – I had some interesting conversations!  It only takes about an hour to give plasma and you make $20-$50 every time you give, but you can only give twice a week.  Sure this isn’t a ton of cash, but it adds up and you basically get paid to watch a movie!

Make Extra Money By Signing Up for a Clinical Trial

How to Make Extra CashI haven’t participated in a clinical trial, but I know people who have. Typically, a clinical trial pays between $1k-2k… and this is actually a $24 billion industry! However, these studies can actually be hard to get into and you usually have to have some pre-existing problem with you already. Finally, there are probably some side-effects.  (YOLO!)

To learn more about clinical trials, check out www.ClinicalTrials.gov/

Bonus for the Females: Sell your eggs!  You can make $8K-$15K.  Obviously I haven’t done this but I know people who have.  Cash Talks!

In summary, I hope everyone reads this with a grain of salt and it sparks some ideas in your head to get some cash in the door.  Remember, it’s not the idea that counts, it’s the execution!

Have you ever used a bizarre method for a down-payment?  Let me hear about it in the comments!

Photo: Krissy Venosdale, Mike Willis, jypsygen,Brett Arthur Donar

Note By BiggerPockets: These are opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of BiggerPockets.