Best Jobs to Work While House Hacking
House hacking is an excellent investment strategy that can help you offset your mortgage payments while generating rental income and building equity in your property. There are certain jobs that are better suited for this lifestyle than others, especially if you’re managing everything yourself.
This article focuses on flexible jobs so you can address property issues yourself. Check out our other article for some of the Best Jobs to Work to Learn About Real Estate.
By selecting the right job that provides flexibility and consistent income, you can make the most out of this strategy. Whether you choose to pursue remote or part-time work opportunities will depend on your lifestyle preferences and financial goals.
| Key Takeaways |
|---|
| – Consider flexible jobs in close proximity to your property |
| – A consistent, salaried income can make it easier to qualify for financing |
| – Utilize time management strategies, set boundaries with your tenants, and use technology tools to make the balancing act easier |
| – Choose a job that allows for effective balance between work and rental property commitments |
| – Realize that a house hack might not need as much time to run as you might think |
Best Jobs for House Hackers
If you’re looking for a job that will allow you to work from home while also managing your house hack, here are some jobs to consider:
Remote Jobs
Let’s start with remote jobs. This is an increasingly broad category, as more and more careers can be worked from home.
1. Freelance Writing
If you have excellent writing skills and love working from home, freelance writing might be the perfect job for you. Freelance writers can work on a variety of projects, including blog posts, articles, and e-books.
One of the benefits of freelance writing is that it allows you to set your own hours and choose your own assignments. This makes it easy to balance your work responsibilities with your duties as a landlord.
And you can write from anywhere. So you can stay plenty flexible to deal with building issues if and when they arise.
2. Virtual Assistant
Virtual assistants provide administrative support services to clients from their home office. The tasks could include scheduling appointments, answering emails or phone calls and data entry among others.
While this might be less flexible than a truly self-employed route, you’ll still be able to work from anywhere. And that would let you jump on any issues that come up with your property right away.
3. Web Developer / Graphic Designer
If you have technical skills in web development or graphic design field and can create stunning designs, working remotely as a freelancer might be an excellent opportunity for house hackers who want freedom in their schedule.
4. Other Freelance Jobs
There are many other freelance opportunities out there. And they start with understanding your own skills.
Do you have a technical background? Are you great at editing videos? Do you understand social media strategies?
Pretty much any skill can be turned into a lucrative career. The tricky part is finding clients once you pick a niche.
Sites like Fiverr and Upwork have made it easier to find potential customers from all around the world, but asking around your network might be the best strategy when starting.
You’ll never know how you can provide value if you never ask.
Part-Time Jobs
Part-time jobs often have flexible schedules. At the very least, you’ll have more hours to spend on your property than a full time job.
Here are some part-time job options:
1. Tutoring
If you have teaching experience or knowledge in a particular subject area, tutoring might be a good choice for you. You can work with local students or offer your services online.
Tutoring is perfect for those who want to work flexible hours and want to avoid any long-term commitment. This allows you to balance your work and house hacking responsibilities.
And you might be able to turn this into a remote job as well.
There are a lot of possibilities in the world of tutoring.
2. Dog Walking/Pet Sitting
Dog walking or pet sitting might be one of the easiest part-time jobs to start with. And it’s a great way to earn some extra income given the amount of people with pets.
Especially in urban areas with lots of pets (and busy pet owners), you can quickly build up a customer pace with a little hard work, especially if you use popular dog walking apps to help you find customers.
Whatever the case, this is a completely scalable job that lets you do as many hours as you want, giving you plenty of time to work on your property.
3. Uber/Lyft Driver
Driving for Uber or Lyft allows house hackers to work as independent contractors and enjoy a flexible schedule that suits their needs. However it requires the driver to have their own vehicle As long as there is demand in your area, this option can be both rewarding financially while still giving the house hacker ample time to manage property responsibilities
4. Your Current Career
You don’t always have to switch jobs if you’re looking for a part-time arrangement.
If you’re already employed, ask your current employer if they’d be open to a part-time schedule.
Then you won’t have to switch jobs and you’ll get some time back to devote to other things (like renovating a unit, showing it to potential tenants, or anything else).
Factors to Consider When Choosing a Job for House Hacking
When choosing a job to work while house hacking, there are several factors to consider. These include the flexibility of your work schedule, income stability and consistency, and proximity to your property.
Flexibility of Schedule
Working a flexible job can be very helpful when house hacking. You never know when you will need to be available for tenant needs or maintenance issues.
That said, it’s not always necessary to have a super flexible job. Especially if you’ve maintained your property well and have set reasonable expectations with your tenant from the get go, the chances of you having to spend tons of time on your house hack are slim.
But it never hurts to have the flexibility anyways.
Consider jobs that allow you to work from home or set your own hours. These may include freelance writing, virtual assisting, or web development, all of which were discussed in the previous section.
Income Stability and Consistency
Another factor to consider is the stability and consistency of your income.
Thankfully, because of the income from the house hack itself, you can likely get away with a lower income from your job. Your housing costs are already subsidized by the rent, after all!
That said, a consistent salary is looked on more favorably by lenders than a more volatile, self-employed income. So if you’re looking to more easily qualify for a mortgage, consider a job with a consistent salary.
Proximity to Property
Consider how close your job is located in relation to your property.
Commuting takes time and money out of your day that could be spent on managing the property or working to improve it.
Choosing a job close by may save time and make it easier for you to manage both responsibilities without sacrificing one over the other.
Tips for Balancing Work and House Hacking Responsibilities
A: Time Management Strategies
House hacking means juggling multiple responsibilities at once – being both a landlord/roommate as well as an employee with work commitments can be challenging at times.
Here are some time management strategies to help balance these responsibilities:
- Make a daily schedule – Write out a schedule every day that includes your work hours, time for tenant needs and other daily tasks
- Delegate tasks – Consider hiring a property manager or outsourcing tasks like cleaning to free up more of your time. Don’t feel like you have to do everything yourself.
- Set boundaries – Be clear with tenants about when you are available and which issues are truly emergencies. More on this below.
B: Setting Boundaries with Roommates/Tenants
One of the biggest challenges of house hacking is finding the right balance between being a landlord/roommate and maintaining healthy relationships with tenants.
Set clear boundaries from the beginning can help ease tensions and prevent misunderstandings:
- Maintain open communication – Encourage tenants to communicate openly with you so that any issues can be addressed before they become major problems.
- Create expectations – Set rules and expectations from the beginning, including quiet hours or guest policies, to prevent confusion down the line.
- Make it clear which items are truly emergencies – Not everything needs to be repaired that same day. Make that clear from the start.
C: Utilizing Technology Tools
Certain tools can make it easier to manage multiple responsibilities at once. Here are some tech tools that can be helpful for managing both work and house hacking responsibilities:
- Scheduling apps – Use scheduling apps like Google Calendar or Trello to keep track of all appointments, deadlines, maintenance requests etc.
- Property management software – Consider using property management software as your portfolio grows to help keep track of your units, leases, and related projects.
Conclusion
Working while house hacking is an excellent way to generate income and create financial stability.
However, it’s essential to choose a job that allows you to balance your work responsibilities and rental property commitments effectively.
By considering factors such as flexibility of schedule, income stability and consistency, and proximity to your property, you can find the perfect job for your house hacking needs.
Setting boundaries with your tenants can help make the balancing act easier.
With the right mindset and tools at your disposal, working while house hacking can be a rewarding experience both financially and personally.
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