Earn extra cash? Yes, please!

With the new year brings new expenses from the holidays. Earning extra cash is helpful to pay off those credit cards, buy new fitness equipment or join the gym.  I want to share some of the ways I make extra cash. Now, I am not getting rich off from these ideas, but it definitely helps do the things I want to do with other expenses.  Once Upon A Child: Mason grows out of his clothes fairly fast. He seems to always need new shoes/sneakers and pants. Most of the clothes are gently used and in good shape. I like to separate play clothes from good clothes for resale purposes. A good resource I use is Once Upon A Child. They have a great service that I have used for a few years now.  Once Upon A Child takes gently used or new clothing, toys, furniture and equipment. The items have to be next to new, good quality, clean and have been checked for safety standards. I take the items washed and folded, usually in a bin or tub to one of the locations. They will look over the clothes and pay you for what they want to keep or you can choose store credit. I have really good luck with them. I will say that you will want to take items that are of that specific season. They tend to buy back more if you have that season. 


Poshmark: I also love using Poshmark.  Poshmark is a digital marketplace where people can buy and sell new or used clothing, shoes and accessories. It is a great way to earn a little bit of cash for items that still have life in them. I will say, it does take time to list the items. In the past, I have listed items In this new year, I plan to list the items right when I find that we won't be using them any longer. In the past, I put them all in a pile and took a day to list everything. Don't do it that way. The only downside to using Poshmark, is that they take a percentage so sometimes it is not worth selling the item because you may not make any money. I also like purchasing from Poshmark. I have found some really good deals on name brand items. If you think this would be something you're interested in, head over to Poshmark, sign up and use my name as a referral and you'll receive a credit of $5. 

Ebates: If you know me, you know I love to shop. If I could get paid to shop and make it my career, I totally would. Well, I found a service that will pay you to shop. Everyone is going to shop for something sometime in their life, right? Why not get paid to shop. Ebates allows you to shop at more than 2,500 stores and while earning cash back on purchases. How cool is that? You will get paid every 3 months and as an added incentive for joining, you will get a cash bonus. How does it work? Ebates makes a commission off from different retailers and sites. They in turn, split the commission with you. Becoming a member is free and they have a convenient app you can download. Retailers such as Amazon, Walmart, Macy's, Target, Kohl's, Lowes, Expedia and Sephora are just a few that participate with Ebates. If you sign up today, you will get a $10 cash bonus. 


Ibotta: I also like to use Ibotta which gives you cash back on everyday purchases. Download the app, complete simple tasks to find offers, buy the products at the participating stores, scan your receipt with the Ibotta app, and redeem your offers.  Ibotta is offering a $10 welcome bonus when you sign up.  The same concept is true to earn cash back on purchases with the Walmart app, Target's Cartwheel app, Walgreens and most grocery stores. For local purchases in New York, Wegmans has an app that gives you coupons and cash back on purchases as well. Almost every retailer offers some sort of cash back or a discount app. 


Home based businesses are a great way to earn some extra money and could potentially become part time or full time income for your family. Most start ups require little or no capital to start and little investment. The potential growth is endless and really up to you. When I decided to stay home with Mason, I was sold jewelry for a few years and loved it. I was able to make some income for my family and have some time outside of the house. I have friends who sell oils, home and kitchen products, jewelry and cosmetics.  I hope this helps!! Let me know in the comments if you have any other suggestions.