2017 is now in the books and boy what a year it has been. I think most people can agree that almost all asset classes have risen this year, and it has been extremely productive for our passive income streams.
This year I set out some lofty goals and was able to make over $13,000 in additional income by continuing to invest in my passive income assets. Primarily, 89% of our side income streams came from the blog and Airbnb. I look at this like a two-legged stool, and my focus next year will be making the third leg of our stool. My hope in the next 1.5 years we will be able to establish some rental properties after the house is paid off in June. After June 2018, then we will be able to focus on leveraging our paid off house to buy one or two more houses to generate rental income.
This year I've been blown away by how well Airbnb has performed (and that was really only over 9 months). I initially had a goal of $2500, and that was completely blown out of the water with it generating more the $5000 this year. Next year I'm shooting for $10,000 from this income source and also hoping to grow the blog income too.
Here is a breakdown of where we now sit with our mortgage payoff at the end of 2017:
Mortgage Pay Off Countdown
Balance: $17,633
Paid last month: $5,198
Extra Money That Was Applied: $3,890
Goal of Pay Off Date: August 2018 – (new estimate: June 2018)
Here is a breakdown of my passive income streams from this past month and how we are doing it:
2017 Goals & final results for the year
- Pension – [2017 Goal $1308] [made $1308 in 2017] – didn't lift a finger this past month to cash in on my previous employer's pension and collected $109. Sweet!
- Blog Income – [2017 Goal – $7500] – [made $6,937 in 2017] – income has been consistently above $600 per month! I'm thinking I'm going to be a little short of my $7500 goal, but it'll be close.
- AirBnB – [original 2017 Goal $2500 (completed in July) – new 2017 goal $7500] – [made $5,181 in 2017] – This income totally blew my expectations away in 2017, and I'm anticipating for a big year in 2018!!
- Sell Stuff – [2017 Goal $2500] – [made $54 in 2017] – as I near mortgage payoff I think I'm going to be looking for things to sell around the house, minimalize, and sell some coins to either invest in my Schwab monthly income fund or start a dividend portfolio. It might be a blend of both in order to
- Peer-to-Peer Lending – [2017 Goal $25] – [made $31.36 in 2017] – since starting LendingClub in 2015 my realised rate of return is -3.41%. Ugh!! That frustrates me to lose money. It due to the fact that I have had 5 loans default out of the 17 that I have originally held. Not very good odds. I can't get out of this investment fast enough and move onto investing in dividend stocks!
- YouTube Channel – [2017 Goal $25] – [made $201 in 2017] – earned $21.12. So far this year I've produced, 10 Ways to Save Money on Your Electric Bill, DirecTV Review and How to Get Discounts, How to prepare for a Greater Depression, Passive Income Streams Require Continual Work, and Unused appliances that are using energy (and I didn't even know it!). I'm really surprised at the little amount of work I've put into it and how much I've made!
- Schwab Monthly Income Fund – [2017 Goal $10] – [made $16.23 in 2017] – as I finished out the year I was pleased to see my yearend capital gains dividend and push me way above the $10 goal for 2017. Not bad for the chicken eggs sales I had in 2015 & 2016. If you haven't checked out the Schwab income fund, then read my review! Pretty cool investment option for consistent income and has required little to no work!
2018 Goals
- Pension – [2018 Goal $1308]
- Blog Income – [2018 Goal – $10,000]
- Airbnb – [2018 Goal $10,000]
- Sell Stuff – [2018 Goal $2500]
- Peer-to-Peer Lending – [2018 Goal $15]
- YouTube Channel – [2018 Goal $500]
- Schwab Monthly Income Fund – [2018 Goal $25]
- Pay Off Mortgage – [2018 Goal – June 1st]
This is my report of how I'm making side income and using that to pay off my mortgage. I'd be interested to hear what side hustles you've got, and what you are doing with your extra cash! Leave a comment below!
Charlie and his wife use the 2 Checking Account System to manage their finances – check it out for free.
Check out Robert G. Allen's book, Multiple Streams of Income, that Charlie recommends. Allen researched hundreds of income-producing opportunities and narrowed them down to ten surefire moneymakers anyone can profit from.
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2 Comments
That’s great that you’re making that extra money. I need to make $800 more a month to be able to make my bills. I’m interested in perhaps having a blog. Do you have any steps or information on starting a blog?
Hi Betsy. You can certainly make some extra money starting a blog – but it takes a little bit of persistence and finding a niche. Today, I think that last part is most important w/ all the sites that are out there. While we don’t have a guide here at the site (yet) I would check out some writings by Pat Flynn on the subject: https://www.smartpassiveincome.com/blogging-tips/. Also, you can usually get a free domain / hosting for under $8/mo at Bluehost. Let us know if we can be of further assistance. Best!