HOMEOWNERS looking to make some extra cash could make thousands by renting out an unused driveway or parking space.
Tarek Fergani has pocketed more than £400 since February by hiring out a spot in the car park where he lives.
The 33-year-old, who works at the University of Portsmouth, came up with the idea when he ditched his own car two years ago.
He said: “I no longer needed a car and the idea of making some extra money instead really appealed to me.
“I’ve used the YourParkingSpace app in the past when I’ve needed to find a space myself, so I decided to try it as a renter rather than a borrower.”
Tarek lives in the seaside town of Southsea, near Portsmouth, where parking spaces are at a premium.
He lives in a block of flats and gets an allocated parking space in a communal car park with his property.
It’s a two minute walk from the seafront, where cheap spaces are hard to come by.
Signing up to the app took less than 10 minutes, he said. You enter some standard details such as your name, email address and the bank account you want to be paid into.
“You need to take a picture of your spot too – I took some from multiple angles so renters would know exactly how to find it,” he said.
Tarek uses YourParkingSpace but there are other similar apps around, so it’s best to find the one that suits your needs best.
He liked that this app didn't change him a fee per booking – it charges customers 20% on their space instead.
If you are considering renting out a spot, it’s best to do some research to find out how much rival parking spaces are going for so you can make sure you’re competitively priced.
Overcharging means you’re less likely to attract regular business.
Tarek found that it would cost around £2 an hour for someone to park at the seafront, so he could undercut this by renting his space out for £9 a day and still make a decent profit.
Typically, parking spaces in popular destinations, city centres and close to train stations will go for more.
When The Sun checked, we found spots in Brighton ranged from £8.75 to £25 an hour, and from £106 to £450 for a month.
In Manchester, hourly rates started at £5, and you could bag a spot for a monthly from £125.
YourParkingSpace estimates that on average its users make around £500 a year.
Those with space to let in London pocketed the most last year, according to its figures, followed by Manchester, Bristol and Liverpool.
The extra cash could come in handy for millions of people who are feeling the pinch in the cost of living crisis.
And a major perk about renting out your driveway is that you can get some extra income without paying any tax.
Under the property allowance, you can make up to £1,000 from renting out space on your property such as a driveway, shed or garage.
Meanwhile, if you have a spare room, you could rent it out through a site like Spare Room or Airbnb to tourists or a lodger.
Under the Rent a Room scheme, you can make £7,500 income a year from this before you have to pay any tax on it.
If your parking space is in a communal or shared area, it’s worth checking out whether you’re allowed to rent it out under the terms of your lease – and speak to any neighbours who might be affected.
Tarek said: “Some of my neighbours queried it at first because they noticed people parking there who didn’t live in the block, but I spoke to them and they were all fine about it.”
You should also check your insurance to check hiring out your space doesn't invalidate your policy – if in doubt, speak to your provider first.
At first, Tarek rented out the space on an ad hoc basis to commuters and day trippers, so wasn’t making a regular amount of money each month.
But in February he had a stroke of luck – a user wanted to rent out the spot for an entire month.
“It’s now permanently booked because I have a regular monthly user. I make £120 a month, and have made more than £400 since February because of this,” he said.
“Previously, I did a lot of day bookings so the income wasn’t as steady. The space was usually filled a couple of days a week.”
If you’re considering renting out your driveway or parking space, here are Tarek’s top tips:
Check out the competition
“I looked at rival spots to give me a general idea of the going rate, and I looked at car parking prices on the seafront because I wanted to be cheaper but still competitive,” he said.
“Mine is usually £8 or £9 a day, so if you were to spend the whole day in town, you’d save money with my space.”
Make your listing stand out
With plenty of other spaces up for grabs, you want to make sure that yours stands out.
“I took pictures from multiple angles to show users exactly how to find it,” said Tarek.
As his spot is in a communal car park, he also didn’t want to risk upsetting his neighbours if a user ended up in the wrong space.
Find a regular
Tarek found a user to hire out his space for an entire month.
This means he has a steadier income stream, and it’s also less admin hassle for him.
The monthly rate is slightly cheaper – £120 for the month compared to £9 a day, which would be £X in a month – but there is no guarantee he would be able to rent the space every day.
You can adjust your daily rate to take advantage of higher demand though.
For example, you might increase the price if there is a major event taking place in your town such as a festival or marathon race.
Another reason he decided to go with a longer-term booking was because it was less admin.
Each time your spot is reserved, you’ll get an email and text notification – and another reminder the day before the booking.
Tarek had times when the spot was reserved with just a few minutes’ notice too.
While this doesn’t involve any extra work – you don’t have to be there to meet your customer – he didn’t like having to keep track of the alerts.
“I was lucky that I only had one very short notice cancellation, and I got another booking half an hour later as it was a bank holiday.
“But the monthly arrangement is definitely far easier because once they’ve booked in, I don’t keep getting notifications,” he said.
Tarek uses the extra cash he makes from his parking space to put towards holidays and days out. He prefers to use the money for “the nice things in life” rather than bills or the food shop.
Next month he’s going to Stockholm and his car parking spot will provide some extra holiday spending money.
And he’s even using the app as a customer to rent a space at the airport for the trip: “My friend and I are using the app because it’s so much cheaper than parking at the airport.
“I’m constantly recommending it.”
We've previously looked at all the ways you can make extra money including get paid for surveys or pet-sitting.
And one competition queen has won thousands of pounds' worth of free holidays and prizes through her comping holiday.
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