10+ Best Real Estate Side Hustles To Try In 2024

Today’s gig economy offers plenty of side hustle opportunities for everyone.

And if you’re looking into the real estate industry for other sources of income, we have great news.

You don’t have to be one of the so-called real estate professionals to earn money from the real estate business.

In fact, you have various options and avenues to kickstart your real estate career.

Today’s article discusses some of the best real estate side hustles you should try.

With these gigs, you can make extra income in your spare time, regardless of your experience.

The Best Real Estate Side Hustles (Overview)

From investing in real estate to becoming a property manager, you have several options you can choose from.

Here’s a quick look at the best side hustles to earn additional income:

• Investing in Real Estate: BEST OVERALL
• INVESTING IN DIGITAL REAL ESTATE: BEST FOR TECH SAVVIES
• INDEPENDENT REAL ESTATE AGENTS: BEST FOR FLEXIBILITY
• MANAGING PROPERTIES: BEST INCOME RATE
• WRITING A REAL ESTATE BLOG: BEST FOR ONLINE CREATIVES
• STAGING HOMES FOR BUYERS: BEST FOR DESIGNERS
• GETTING INTO REALTOR PHOTOGRAPHY: BEST FOR ARTISTS
• OFFERING SHORT-TERM RENTALS: BEST PASSIVE INCOME
• HOSTING AIRBNB ROOMS: BEST FOR AFFORDABILITY
• FLIPPING REAL ESTATE HOMES: BEST HIGH-PAYING

Getting Started With Real Estate Side Hustles

Before diving into the side gigs, you should understand real estate side hustles, including the benefits you can expect from having one.

What are Real Estate Side Hustles?

Real estate side hustles refer to property-related jobs.

It can be land properties with natural resources or permanent structures such as homes and commercial buildings.

Dipping into the real estate industry provides several opportunities to earn decent cash.

These side hustles offer a flexible and continuous income source, depending on the time or money you’re willing to invest.

Why Should You Consider a Real Estate Side Hustle?

A real estate hustle is one of the few jobs that offers flexibility and high-earning potential without requiring a college degree.

And it’s diverse, too, with dozens of gigs you can learn and profit from.

With the demand for housing steadily rising in 2023 and an expected uptick in real estate prices by 2024, now is the best time to try your hands at the thriving real estate business.

The Best Real Estate Side Hustles at a Glance

Below are our top real estate side hustle picks based on ease and profitability.

What is the Best Real Estate Side Hustle?

Real estate investment is the best source of hustle income in this industry.

By investing, you can diversify your portfolio while enjoying several tax benefits.

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need a huge capital to invest in real estate properties.

Some successful investors even started with as little as a 20% property down payment.

What is the Most Profitable Real Estate Side Hustle?

Property management is one of the most profitable side gigs in the real estate sector.

Hence, many real estate agents choose it as another income source.

How does earning hundreds or thousands of dollars monthly from passive income sound?

That’s what you can expect to make as a property manager.

Best Real Estate Side Hustles

Are you ready to find your newest side hustle? Here are ten of the best side hustles in the real estate industry you should try:

1. Investing in Real Estate

Investing in real estate is the most straightforward path into the industry. As a real estate investor, you can profit by acquiring homes, lands, and other properties. After the acquisition, they can sell, rent, or flip the properties to make a profit.

The average salary of a real estate investor in the US is around $100,000 per year, with experienced individuals earning as much as $148,000.

There are three methods to get into real estate investing. The cheapest option is through real estate investment trusts (REITs), which cost $1,000 to $25,000. Rental estate investment groups (REIGs) and similar alternatives could cost between $5,000 to $100,000 or more.

You could use real estate investing platforms if you’re a beginner in the industry. This way, you can avoid the legwork of extensive research, finding clients, and asset maintenance.

Some of the best websites and apps you can explore include Fundrise, Roofstock, RealtyMogul, EquityMultiple, and DiversifyFund.

2. Investing in Digital Real Estate

Investing in the digital real estate market is a fantastic option for people who own digital assets like cryptocurrencies, websites, or apps. You find, purchase, and manage digital assets and make a profit by renting, selling, and more.

This method of investment works similarly to a traditional real estate investment. You can earn between $85,000 to $105,000 annually through this side hustle.

Thankfully, investing in a digital asset doesn’t need enormous initial investments or intimate knowledge of technology. Investing in cryptocurrency, for example, should only take a few hundred dollars off your savings.

Investing in digital assets works similarly to investing in traditional real estate. And there are plenty of websites online hosting digital investments of any kind.

You can try Uphold, Kraken, Gemini, and Coinbase for crypto coin assets. Or, explore Flippa, Motion Invest, Empire Flippers, and Exchange for website buying and selling.

3. Independent Real Estate Agent

Independent real estate agents work autonomously and separately from an agency. However, they offer similar services, from assisting clients with buying and selling to representing clients in real estate transactions.

As an independent agent, your salary will largely depend on the transactions you can complete. But you can expect to earn 5% to 6% of each property sale price.

There’s no cost in becoming an independent real estate agent if you already own a license. Otherwise, expect to spend around $400 to $1,000 for the real estate course, licensing examination, and profiling.

As an independent broker, one of your tasks is marketing yourself and looking for potential clients. One way to do this is through gig economy platforms such as Upwork, Fiverr, and Freelancer.

4. Becoming a Property Manager

Property managers are individuals or companies overseeing real estate units for property owners and investors.

They manage the day-to-day operations of these assets, such as collecting rents for rental properties or handling overall maintenance.

Property management is a lucrative side hustle. Managers in the U.S. earn between $78,000 to $142,000 managing assets for clients.

The upfront costs of becoming a property manager can depend on your location.

Some states, for instance, require managers to have a real estate license, which can cost $400 to $1,000 to acquire.

So, check your state’s licensing and certificate requirements for property managers.

To start your career as a real estate manager, you can apply to companies offering property management services.

A few examples of the best property management companies in the U.S. include Greystar, BH Management Services, and Colliers International.

5. Writing a Real Estate Blog

More people are becoming interested in the real estate industry. In 2020 and 2021, the Harvard Business Review reported a 60% increase in people acquiring a real estate license.

This rising trend is the perfect opportunity to start a real estate blog.

Capitalize on your creative talent and start making real estate content, from videos to informational articles, and earn an average annual salary of $45,000.

Blogs need a host and a blogging platform. As such, expect to spend at least $50 to $200 to set up your blogging side.

Monthly expenses can go between $20 to $60, depending on the website you want to run.

Blogging platforms are the easiest ways to capture your desired real estate blogging site.

Companies that provide such platforms offer helpful tools for marketing and branding your content.

Squarespace, Wix, WordPress, and Weebly are among the most popular blogging websites you should visit.

6. Staging Homes for Buyers

Home stagers are individuals tasked to prepare a property for potential buyers.

The goal is to make the property as attractive as possible, which can mean rearranging furniture, landscaping, cleaning, and other aesthetic strategies.

Staging homes as a side gig can earn you $30,000 to $50,000 annually.

Becoming a home stager is an affordable job to have. And luckily, it doesn’t demand a bachelor’s degree either.

But home staging does require some interior designing knowledge, which you can have by taking courses costing between $100 and $300.

There are two ways to start a gig as a home stager. First is applying to companies providing home staging services, such as ShowHomes, Meridith Baer Home, Barrion Design, and Stucco.

Another method is selling your staging services through freelance platforms.

7. Getting Into Realtor Photography

Not all of us have a knack for investing or managing properties.

But if you have talent behind the camera, you can turn your skill into a profitable side hustle capturing pictures for realtor clients.

Your job is to take aesthetically pleasing photos of residential and commercial properties.

Making $40,000 to $100,000 as a realtor photographer is possible, depending on your skill and availability.

Aside from an artistic eye, you’ll also need equipment for a gig capturing home photos.

You want the best cameras for real estate, tripods, lenses, lighting, and photo editing software.

A safe estimation for the startup costs is between $10,000 to $15,000.

If you’re starting from scratch, taking a course in photography is a fantastic way to prepare.

Getting an associate degree in photography typically costs a few thousand dollars for two years.

Realtor photographers typically work alongside real estate agents.

So, try contacting realtor companies in your area for photography services.

Another route is to vendor your skills on online freelancing platforms like Upwork.

8. Offering Short-Term Rentals

People with access to the latest listings can purchase affordable properties and rent them temporarily to others for additional income.

We call this real estate hustle short-term rentals or STR.

In this gig, you’re essentially a landlord renting out spaces for temporary tenants.

Based on the size of your units, you can make between $100 to $300 per night for a single or multi-bedroom apartment.

The cost of launching short-term rentals is minimal.

Depending on your apartment’s conditions, you could spend a few thousand dollars on renovation and repairs.

Listing your rental spaces to online platforms usually requires payments as well.

Some websites ask for a small portion of your booking fee, while others require an annual subscription.

TripAdvisor, Vacation Rentals By Owner (VRBO), Rentals.com, and Airbnb are popular platforms for short rental postings.

But you could also use websites like Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace to scout potential clients.

9. Hosting Airbnb Rooms

If you’re not ready for the responsibilities of a landlord but would still like to earn from your free space, hosting Airbnb rooms is a great alternative.

It’s a great way to help pay your bills while saving up investment for a rental side hustle business.

The location and demand can affect your income, but according to CNBC, renting out a space in your home via Airbnb can translate to $1,000 per month.

Renting out Airbnb rooms is a low-investment side hustle you can execute immediately.

The only investment you have to pay is Airbnb’s flat service fee, a small percentage (3%) of your booking for every confirmed reservation.

To become a host, read and follow Airbnb’s guidelines for space listings.

Then, list the room or space you want to rent out, set the dates and times, establish a price and payment method, and wait for reservations.

10. Flipping Real Estate Homes

If you have the budget to spare, house flipping is one of the jobs with the highest earning potential in real estate side hustles.

This strategy involves purchasing properties, refurbishing them, and selling them at a higher price.

By renovating and staging, you increase the property’s market value to earn $100,000 to $400,000 annually.

Costs to Get Started

Becoming a house flipper can be costly, as you’ll pay for the entire house, including its renovation, staging, and marketing.

Considering these factors, you’ll need at least $100,000+ to cover the cost from purchasing a property until closing a sale.

Online property listings are an excellent resource for starting your house-flipping career.

Advertising sites like Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, and Realtor.com are good places to explore.

Finally, join real estate platforms to find flipping opportunities. Visit leading websites like Zillow.com, Offerpad, Knock, and Opendoor.

How to Start a Real Estate Side Hustle

Real estate can be a daunting industry to wade into as a complete beginner.

So, below are some basic rules to follow to succeed in your real estate side hustle:

1. Educate Yourself

As with any business or investment, you should understand what you’re getting into before committing time and money.

Keeping yourself updated with terminologies, regulations, and trends is vital to succeed in the real estate industry.

Consider trying real estate investment courses to learn the fundamental skills and knowledge you’ll need as a newbie investor. 

2. Plan Ahead

Real estate investors must always approach the business professionally to ensure short and long-term success.

Writing a business plan beforehand is a fantastic way to establish your goals.

It lets you visualize the big picture while focusing on the goals you want to achieve.

3. Familiarize Risks

Prudent real estate side hustlers understand that the business comes with risks.

While not as volatile as the stock market, investors can still experience issues such as poor property location, negative cash flows, problematic tenants, and lack of liquidity.

4. Manage Risks

Risks are unavoidable, but it doesn’t mean you can’t minimize them.

The primary rule of risk management in real estate is to avoid going deeply into debt.

Diversifying your portfolio across different markets, locations, and types as an investor is another golden rule to remember.

5. Account Your Finance

Taxes make up a considerable portion of a real estate investor's expenditures.

However, understanding the complex tax regulations in your state can take time.

So, don’t hesitate to invest in a reputable accountant to handle your business books.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are you deciding whether or not to invest in real estate?

Here are a few commonly asked questions about real estate side hustles to help you.

Is Real Estate a Good Side Hustle?

Yes. Real estate is an excellent side hustle for its flexibility and high-earning potential. The value of assets in this sector tends to increase with time.

For example, rent and land don’t depreciate, which means higher and more consistent cash flow.

What Type of Real Estate Makes the Most Money?

Dealing in commercial properties is the most profitable type of real estate hustle.

Managing properties, rental spaces, and house flipping are examples of the most high-paying real estate gigs.

Wrapping Up

Everyone wants to grow financially over time. But with the increased economic disruptions we experienced these last few years, finding a job capable of supporting your bills and financial goals can be challenging.

That said, the real estate sector provides growing opportunities to earn.

For beginners, investing in real estate is the top choice for its ease and tax benefits.

But if you have experience and are gearing for more profit, managing properties and flipping houses are the best gigs to get into.

Related Side Hustles to Consider

Do real estate gigs don’t interest you? Here are some side hustle alternatives you should check out next:

• PASSIVE INCOME SIDE HUSTLES: Passive income side hustles let you earn money to pay debts and bills with minimal effort and investment.
• SIDE HUSTLES THAT PAY WELL: Side hustles that pay well are opportunities to make a $1,000 monthly salary or more.
• SIDE HUSTLES FROM HOME: Stuck at home with kids? Side hustles from home can turn your skills into a profitable income source.