When Joy Baines moved back to Sydney in 2014 she realised she wouldn’t be able to afford to live in the city on her salary.
Now she has no fixed address and is saving $2,000 a month in bills and rent.
The 41-year-old looked at a variety of ways to generate more cash on top of her full-time digital media job.
‘Sydney is very expensive and I went through a hard time a few years back and I wanted to live in Sydney but couldn’t afford it,’ Joy told FEMAIL.
‘So I knew I had to be entrepreneurial as rent is really high and I had to pay off my car.’
When Joy Baines woman moved back to Sydney in 2014 she realised she wouldn’t be able to afford to live in the city on her salary (pictured)
In only four days Joy sold most of her belongings, stopped renting and decided to start house sitting full time.
She managed to pay off her car within a year as by renting it out for $30 a day or $6 an hour when it’s not being used.
Working as a television extra generated a bonus of about $5,000 a year and she is renting out her cat Kiya, which cuts the costs of looking after her.
‘I have a full time job, I like to travel and I like nice things but I haven’t bought bitcoin, landed on a bunch of money or started an online business so what I did was sell everything and outsourced my cat on Gumtree and outsourced my car on Car Next Door,’ she said.
Joy has been renting out her cat and currently has a 12 month contract in place (stock image)
Her cat lives with another couple and Jenny is allowed to visit as well as cat-sit when they are away
‘My cat now lives with a wonderful couple who miss their own cat and I cover the odd expenses,’ Joy continued.
‘Now I’m a professional house sitter as I couldn’t afford to pay rent and I offer an array of services to home owners. I’m fully booked until the end of August this year.’
Although this means she moves from house to house, she often spends a month staying at each one before moving on.
She also has two clients who have her on retainer so it is easy for her to go back to their home.
‘I’m full time on the share economy now because when I’m not house sitting I’m using Airbnb’s,’ she said.
In only four days Joy sold most of her belongings, stopped renting and decided to start house sitting full time
Her cat has been rented out for 12 months and once it ends she will find other foster owners.
Although she isn’t making any money off of her cat, renting her out has decreased her expenses as her foster owners pay for things like her food and her upcoming $600 dental bill.
‘I’ve never been happier because I have no possessions to worry about, my cat’s safe and I can go cat sit my own cat when they’re away,’ she said.
This isn’t to say that Joy didn’t do thorough research before she found foster parents for her feline.
‘I interviewed between six and 10 people and I found one that were very fitting, they then spent time with my cat before we made the deal.
‘If you can’t afford you animal perhaps there’s an opportunity where you can have your animal sat.’
She managed to pay off her car in its first year as she clears $200 to $400 a month on it by renting it out for $30 a day or $6 an hour when it’s not being used
Renting out her car has also allowed her to have an extra cash flow and cover the cost of owning a vehicle.
She uses Car Next Door and in her area there are only four available vehicles but 51 people wanting to borrow.
‘People are more mindful when they’re using someone else’s car but even if you get a scratch the company is very helpful,’ she said.
‘I’ve only had very good experiences with the borrowers and people are very careful with the car.’
When Joy is house sitting she also looks after the owner’s pets
If Joy’s car is busy and she needs to drive somewhere, she will borrow someone else’s car using the app.
Joy said that making extra cash is easy and if she can do it, others can too.
‘Here I am in my early 40’s creating a better life for myself. It’s hard work and it doesn’t come easy but it’s worth it,’ Joy explained.
‘I inspire anyone to do it. It’s okay to fail but give it a go.
‘I came up with this last week: share your car, share your house, share your pet but don’t share your husband and wife, my only mistress is my car and she’s the gift that keeps on giving.’