4 Ways to Get Extra Cash When You Need It

When you’re struggling to make ends meet, life gets stressful. You have to make decisions like which utilities you should pay this month and which ones you can hold off on a bit, and you might even find yourself deciding whether to buy food or pay the bills. Fortunately, there are several ways to obtain some extra cash when you need it.

Consider Getting a Loan

One of the fastest ways to get the cash you need is to get a personal loan. When you take out a personal loan, the money can be used however it’s needed, so you can pay your past due bills, use it to consolidate debt, or to purchase things you need to get by until you’re back on track financially.

Some lenders offer unsecured personal loans, but many also have secured personal loans available to help people who have less-than-perfect credit. Secured personal loans typically require you to use your car for collateral, so when you sign the loan paperwork, you give the finance company the title to your car, which they hold until the loan is paid in full.

Take Out a Payday Loan

If you only need a small amount of cash to get by until your next payday, you might want to consider taking out a payday loan. These are small loans that you pay back with your next paycheck. In most cases, the one-time payment is deducted from your bank account shortly after your paycheck gets deposited.

Keep in mind, taking out a payday loan can put you into a vicious cycle. You might find yourself paying off your payday loan and then immediately taking out another one to stay afloat, which means you end up paying quite a few fees each month. To avoid this, only take out a payday loan if the amount you’re borrowing won’t eat up the majority of your next paycheck so you can afford to pay it back without taking out another loan. If you can’t commit to that, consider taking out a personal loan instead and only using a payday loan as a last resort.

Pick Up a Side Gig

The gig economy makes it easier than ever to make money in your free time. When you aren’t at work, spend a few hours earning a bit of extra cash by picking up a side gig:

  • Driving for Uber or Lyft
  • Delivering food for UberEats, DoorDash, or Postmates
  • Picking up a few service gigs on Fiverr.com
  • Writing articles for a crowdsourcing content company such as Textbroker
  • Walk dogs, cut lawns, clean, or cook for friends, family, and neighbors

Of course, you could always get a part-time job, but then you’re committing yourself to a set work schedule — which you might not want to do if you already work full time.

Sell Stuff You No Longer Use

Have you ever heard the saying, “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure”? Well, there’s a lot of truth to that statement — especially now that the internet makes selling your old stuff easier than ever.

Go through your closets and list items you no longer use or need on eBay, Facebook Marketplace, or LetGo. As long as the stuff you sell is in good shape, you should be able to make a tidy sum of money pretty quick.

Thanks to the internet and mobile apps, it’s easier to get money quickly than it ever has been. Not only can you find decent-paying side gigs online, but you can also apply for personal loans and payday loans without leaving your house. And depending on the amount of cash you need and the method you use to obtain it, you could end up having it deposited into your bank account on the same day.

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