I quit my job. I make $1,200 a month by doing one simple thing

When I retired at age 43, I already had six years of side hustle income saved and was feeling ready to go from W2 to financial freedom! Although I was excited for this next chapter, I definitely felt nervous leaving my traditional 9-to-5 and consistent paychecks.

I spent nine years working on Amazon‘s real estate team, managing warehouse leases for their global specialty division, and had used my earnings to create a thriving real estate portfolio. Over time, I’ve purchased (and still own/manage) dozens of rental properties across Seattle, Milwaukee, Detroit and Des Moines.

Between January and June 2022, my income from these rental properties and flipping real estate nearly matched what I was making at Amazon in the same six-month span ($100,000 at Amazon and $95,000 from my real estate investments). It was then I realized retirement wasn’t too far away and I had the long-term passive income as my safety net, if I needed it. So, I officially retired in late 2022.

Earlier this year, in January, I was on a business trip in Detroit and met up with a friend of mine, who is also a real estate investor. Over coffee, he told me about a platform called Neighbor where you can make a profit by renting out an extra parking space that comes with your property.

I started thinking about all the extra parking available in the duplex I live in and own in Seattle, which was purchased back in 2016.

Once I learned about Neighbor and its high demand for people seeking long-term parking options at affordable rates, I realized there was more than enough parking for me and the other tenants in the building. In fact, the parking lot was adjacent to three other fourplex buildings, which also had excess parking spaces which added up to two-thirds of an acre.

I reached out to the other building owner, who happened to be a real estate investor like me, and he let me purchase his building’s extra parking spaces. From there, it was a no-brainer to list all of these unused parking spaces and turn them into passive income.

When I created my own Neighbor profile, I started with five parking spaces. This took minimal time and effort to set up. Before uploading the additional parking spots, I needed to clear the lot from overgrown weeds.

As I started making money, I used my earnings to pay a landscaping company to clear off the rest of my lot. Now I am able to fit 20-25 cars, RVs, trailers, and boats.

Each space is priced between $125 and $200 a month. As spaces are cleared out —and the lot is at maximum capacity—I will gradually raise the price for the next interested renter.

The area my duplex building is located in is very close to the Seattle-Tacoma airport. Therefore, the majority of my renters are using the platform to park their cars for at least one month or more.

I also have one small pet waste disposal company that parks their truck nightly in my lot. As their business expands so does mine! It is a great win-win setup for us to mutually grow together.

In my first month, I made $232 from my five available spaces. Creating a Neighbor profile and listing my spaces did not incur any upfront costs. Now, as my parking options have more than tripled, my income has gone up accordingly.

However, I do spend approximately $150 a month on landscaping the area to make sure shrubs and other weeds are not infesting the parking lot.

Since expanding my Neighbor profile to 20-25 available spaces, I am making almost $1,200 a month as supplementary income. This extra money goes toward my travels and other just-for-fun expenses. With monthly landscaping costs considered, my gross profit per month from my parking spaces alone is around $1,000.

To keep track of this side hustle income, I have a separate bank account for my monthly earnings. These earnings aren’t needed to cover any monthly expenses. So instead, I plan to grow these savings and use them for a vacation later on.

Since retiring, I have discovered a new passion and this endeavor has lit the entrepreneurial spirit in me.

I am in no rush to build out my portfolio of parking spaces, but I do enjoy sharing my experience of passive income side hustles on social media and encourage others to list the extra space in their garages, basements, driveways, or backyards on Neighbor.

Turning extra space into someone else’s storage is the easiest money I make. I spend no more than 15-30 mins a month on the app and I’m making $1,000 a month. It’s a set it and forget it, no hustle side hustle.

Justin Cambra is a real estate investor.

All views expressed in this article are the author’s own.

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