Gone do the days when a mortgage was a ball and chain – now own a home can be the perfect way to make an extra income per year.
A new tax break of £1000 will encourage home owners to use digital platforms like Storemates.co.uk to rent out their lofts, garages or spare space as storage.
For many who can earn a rental income of up to £4,000 a year, the first £1000 will now be tax free.
As the Chancellor’s budget speech was the first ever to recognise the potential of the UKs growing ‘Sharing Economy’, now worth £9B globally (PWC) the UK’s largest storage sharing website Storemates.co.uk is urging homeowners to get on board and start earning today.
Ben Rogers, Co-Founder of Storemates.co.uk said “This news from the Chancellor is fantastic for the micro entrepreneurs out there wishing to make money from the assets they already own, earning from the explosive new ‘sharing economy’. We launch our crowdfunding campaign today through Seedrs to seek investment to market our service to the whole country so that everyone can benefit from the opportunity.”
“Storemates is one of many ‘Sharing Economy’ start ups that are now using crowdfunding platforms like seedrs.com to raise investment to what the Chancellor hopes will become a growth industry for the UK.
“Ben adds “Many people are looking to back the next Uber or AirBnb before they become globally successful brands, We are confident that Storemates will be just as disruptive to the booming self storage industry.”
Homeowner and editor of EcoThriftyLiving.com, Zoe Morrison shares her experience of renting her garage space for £20 per week: “My husband and I have been looking at ways to save and make money – Storemates is one of these.
“We rent out a third of our garage space to a local lady, who uses the space to store archive paperwork. We’re now making £80 a month out of space that was previously full of junk – how thrifty!”
Householders are increasingly turning to online peer-to-peer renting, loaning and sharing services both to earn and save money.
This emerging trend is often referred to as ‘the sharing economy’ where existing assets are shared for a fee.
Time Magazine refers to it as one of the “10 ideas that will change the world”, while The Economist recently heralded peer-to-peer rental as a major shift in consumer behaviour.
Now there is a new tax break and considerable momentum, it is envisioned that the Sharing Economy will move confidently into the mainstream.
