Everyday Skills You Can Turn Into Extra Income

As a stay-at-home mom homeschooling two kids, and moving multiple times, I haven't held a regular 9-5 job in over 20 years.  But I have done a variety of things from home, sometimes together with the kids.  When moms in our homeschool community ask, "What can I do from home to earn money?", my first advice is always to look at what you can already do, what you are already good at, and what people already ask you to help them with.  Is there a way that you can monetize a skill you already have?  

• Cleaning - Offer general housecleaning services, Airbnb or VRBO turnovers, move-out cleans for apartment buildings, commercial cleaning for local offices, post-construction or post-renovation cleaning.  If you live near a military base you may be able to be put on a list for move-out cleans when people are posted.  Connect with local property managers and realtors.
• Lawn Care - Our local help wanted page is often full of people looking for mowing, trimming, weeding, spring and fall cleanups, leaf raking, and so on.  Again here, try connecting with local realtors to inquire about providing lawn care for empty homes.  
• Snow Removal - Obviously this is seasonal work in most places, but doing a good job will often get you a quick referral to neighboring homes.
• House Sitting - Some people are looking for live-in house sitters, but many are just looking for someone to pick up their mail, mow the lawn, water the plants, and keep an eye on things for insurance purposes while they are away for a week or are working out of town.  
• Pet Sitting - Some people want a live-in sitter and others want someone to take their pet for a week while they're away, but we have found consistent gigs where we do daily visits to check in on, feed, and play with small pets and cats. 
• Organization - If you're good at bringing order to chaos, offer to help others with organizing their closets, garages, pantries, etc. Having someone there who is objective can be a huge help for someone who is trying to cut down on clutter!
• Handyman & Assembly Services - All those little things that need hands-on skills - assembling furniture, minor repairs, basic plumbing or electrical work, etc.  A local young man has made a small business out of handling the furniture assembly that frustrates many people!
• Cooking or Baking - I think you need to be careful about costs with this, and you do need to check into local health requirements, but selling baked goods, holiday treats, etc can bring in a little extra money.  You could also look into offering in-home cooking help for homebound seniors who have found services like Meals on Wheels to be unsuitable. 
• Teaching & Tutoring - Which school subjects, musical instruments, or hobbies are you particularly good at?  Can you find a niche to offer instruction in? 
• Office Support - This can be a great choice for someone who has experience in administrative work - look into being a virtual assistant, or consider offering services like bookkeeping. 
• Design - In spite of the rise of generative AI and platforms like Fiverr, there are still people out there who are looking for good designers to put together logos, flyers, websites, etc.