Renting Out a Room In Your Home

Mortgage woes got you down? Out of cash?

Maybe you should consider "sharing" your home to ease your burden.

We all know that we are living in uncertain times. Money is tight, and seems to be getting tighter everyday, Prices are soaring and the country is seeing record foreclosures happening at an alarming rate. People are getting really stressed out and don't now where to turn. Jobs are getting tight, and many of us wonder from day to day if that previously secure job we had is even that secure anymore.

Add a mortgage payment to the mix and the strain can get unbearable. People wonder how to pay their mortgages when they no longer have a job, their medical expenses are unpaid for or their mortgage rate just adjusted to a no longer affordable payment.

It's times like these when it gets harder to think and harder to find a way out of what seems an impossible situation. This is the time however when one of my favorite sayings from my dad comes into play " It's when you're hardest hit that YOU MUST NOT QUIT!"

Sounds simple I know, and easy to say, but this is the time when thinking out of the box needs to happen. For some, this is easier than others, as some of us have very creative minds and others have a harder time coming up with creative ways to solve financial problems.

So maybe you are one of those people who are struggling with your mortgage and don't know what to do. You want to stay in your house but you really can't afford to do it. Maybe this is the time to think out of that box.

Maybe your kids are gone, you have an empty spare room, or a charming little cottage in your yard that sits vacant?

Have you considered renting out a room or two in your home?

Renting out a room is not for everyone but it can certainly help ease the strain of that monthly mortgage payment. Sure you have to give up some privacy but maybe keeping your home is more important that that privacy?

Here in the bay Area where I live rent is outrageous. If you look on Craigslist you'll find lots and lots of people looking for rooms and room mates. Alot of people just plain can't afford renting an apartment for $1,200 a month, then utilities and the deposit on top of that on an $8.00 an hour job.

So maybe this article just gave you a little ray of hope, and maybe you're wheels are turning a little different way right now with thoughts of relief, Maybe the thought of renting a room out had never occurred to you. Take some time to chew on this a little bit, and in the next article we will discuss some of the pitfalls and things to look out for when renting out a room in your home.

There is hope, you just have to open your mind to a new way of thinking. You don't have to lose your home, you may have to give up some privacy but hey, what's more important, a roof over your head or your privacy?

We'll discuss this further in the series ahead: "Thinking Out of the Box When It Comes to Money".