Tough economic periods often have people searching for ways to make some extra income. It’s always nice to have a little cushioning for your finances.

Here are some ideas on how to do this:

Billet a Student or Athlete In a Room In Your Home

Many kids travel for school or sports and need temporary accommodations in a safe and friendly home. Maybe you fit the bill for this and can pocket some money in the process.

To find people looking for billets, check your local papers classifieds, place an ad on Craigslist, Kijiji or similar sites. Or try a Google search on the term ‘billet’, with either ‘student’ or ‘athlete’, as well as your home town.

Rent Out a Room

A longer term option for extra income

Rent Your Garage as Storage Space

You don’t use your garage for anything but storing clutter?  Might as well clean it out and rent it!

Car enthusiasts in particular are always looking for indoor storage that costs less than that of a formal storage facility.

Become a Microlender

The peer to peer consumer loan industry is still in its infancy in Canada, but has taken off in places like the U.S.  What is it?

In short, you lend your money to pre-qualified borrowers, facilitated by an organization who specializes in this. Micro Lending Canada follows changes in this area.

Become an Online Reseller

Many people are already doing it, but there is always room for someone keen and with a sharp eye for value.  What you do is scan garage sales, local classifieds, online classifieds, etc. for items that are selling for less than they are really worth.   You scoop up the deal, and then turn around and resell the item somewhere else for a profit.

Often people are just de-cluttering and happy to get anything for their old stuff they don’t want anymore, so deals abound.   I once made $200 flipping an espresso machine!  For smaller items, I find ebay is usually the best way to get top dollar.

In my experience, the best and most efficient way to do this is to become an ‘expert’ on a narrow range of items, to the point where you instantly recognize a bargain price and are sure that you can re-sell it for more.  Having a broader range can lead to mistakes in valuation.

Start a Blog

Expert in a specific field?  Enjoy writing?  You might be able to able to turn your knowledge into a few extra dollars with a blog. There are many free blogging sites out there such as Wordpress and Blogger.

Build a Dividend Portfolio

With current market conditions, dividend yields are at historic high levels. It might be time to look at stocks again.

This is the ultimate in passive income, in my opinion.  Given enough time, you could build a stock portfolio that funds your entire lifestyle.  In the meantime, it could just be a supplemental source of income.

In my case, it’s about 5% of my monthly needs.  A ways to go, obviously, but in the meantime I use the cash to pay down my mortgage.

Buy a Rental Property

Less passive and currently not cash flow positive in many parts of Canada (due to high prices), it is a great long term way to build an income stream.

When (or if!) prices and rents make it sensible to do so, I plan to start building my empire.

And there you have it, several ways to make passive income in this time of recession. Some require more capital than others, some require absolutely none at all. Making extra money is possible for those who are diligent and this article will set you in the right path to earn that extra money.