Canadians continue to have a difficult time making ends meet, and some are doing something about it. Whether that’s getting a side hustle or cutting back, Canadians don’t believe 2024 will start with them rolling in cash.
This comes after a new survey by Bank of Montreal found that the cost of living and inflation are coming down hard on Canadians. Nearly 30% of Canadians plan to cut back on spending in 2024, with 81% remaining anxious about their overall financial situation. Moreover, the average Canadian believed it would take around three months to pay back their holiday bills.
So, what can Canadians do about it? Let’s get into how to make some cash, with zero start-up costs and start the new year off right.
Make a reasonable passive-income plan
If you’re looking to create extra passive income, you’re not going to want to consider a side hustle — and not a side hustle that costs you a dime to start it. Because what if it doesn’t work out? What if it doesn’t break even? You’d be even worse off than you started!
Instead, consider passive-income streams with no start-up costs. This can include carvertising, where Canadians drive around with advertisements on their cars. It might include renting out their parking spots, their storage spaces, or simply asking for a raise or finding a new job with more money.
The key is to find the passive income stream that works best for you. This is why we’ll now look at how much you could make this way without worrying about any start-up costs.
How much to gain from these passive-income streams
First, let’s say you decide to do a few of these passive-income streams. Right off the bat, I’m going to tell you that finding a new job can bring in the most cash. On average, a survey in the United Kingdom found there was an increase of 9% in salary from switching jobs.
But if you don’t want to throw your life up in the air, I get it. So, instead, let’s say you use applications such as Rover, SpotHero, or Stashii to rent out what you have, such as parking and storage. This alone could bring in as much as $300 per month from each item you use!
Now, the key, however, is to put all this cash aside. Place it directly into a Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA), making automated contributions wherever possible. This is now extra income that can be used for the next step.
Find a great investment
Next up, you’re going to have to put that money to use to create passive income in the long term. Let’s say you carvertise, rent out parking, and rent out storage at $300 each. That’s now $900 each month for a total of $10,800 each year! Then you take that cash and put it in your TFSA (staying within your limit, of course).
You then choose a Dividend Aristocrat to make even more passive income. A great option right now could be BCE (TSX:BCE), as it’s a telecommunications giant with shares down for now. The company has seen sales come down after a huge boost during the pandemic. However, it should rise once more in no time. Meanwhile, you can grab a dividend yield at 7.2% as of writing! Here’s what that could get you when shares hit 52-week highs.
| COMPANY | RECENT PRICE | NUMBER OF SHARES | DIVIDEND | TOTAL PAYOUT | FREQUENCY | PORTFOLIO TOTAL |
| BCE – now | $53 | 204 | $3.87 | $789.48 | quarterly | $10,800 |
| BCE – highs | $66 | 204 | $3.87 | $789.48 | quarterly | $13,464 |
So, let’s review. You’ve made $10,800 a year from your passive-income streams that require no funds and no start-up costs. You’ve invested it, seeing returns of $2,664 and dividends of $789.48. That’s total passive income of $3,453.48, tax free! And it’s something you can do again and again, creating more passive income than you ever dreamed.
