Serving your country as a military member is an honorable job that comes with many sacrifices, but it’s not the best way to obtain wealth or earn passive income. Even though you have to actively work to earn your W2 income as a military member, this career choice can jump-start your passive income journey by having a steady flow of capital that can be utilized to invest in different sources of income that will generate passively. When you think passive income, imagine the thought of making money without the need to expend much of your time and effort on a daily basis. For instance, you can make hundreds of dollars each month without the 9-5 hustle.
And this is vital so that you can establish financial freedom even when you’re on active duty. So that when you retire from the military, you can still have a regular source of income. Or better yet, you could retire earlier because your passive income is thrice the amount of your paycheck. With such, here are the top ways to earn passive income:
1. Start A Real Estate Investment
One best way to establish this kind of income is to get into real estate. As a military member, you have the advantage of learning and experiencing living from various places. This means you’ll be familiar with the location, housing, and culture of a place during your assignment. With such knowledge, you know the best properties to buy.
You can start by using your VA loan program to purchase a house. You don’t need to buy the most renovated one; a simple house without modern upgrades is much better. Since you’ll be living in it for at least a year, you can renovate or upgrade it. That way, you can increase its value. When it’s time to relocate, you can sell it at a much higher price.
Or better yet, you can rent it out. Then, purchase another home at your new base. Repeat the process above so you can turn it into a rental once again.
What’s best about this way is you can use the rentals to cover your mortgages. It’s also a way to build the properties’ equity without paying a dime for it. As a result, you can earn passive income from such properties.
If you’re unsure how real estate works, you can read this guide for military members. Or you can always work with a real estate agent for better decision making.
2. Become An Affiliate
Businesses use affiliate marketing to generate online revenue and drive sales. This happens when an affiliate or advertiser promotes their services or products online. As an affiliate, you’ll receive a commission from every sale you generate for them.
You can do this by blogging or vlogging about their products. Then, in your content or posts, you’ll be adding the links that potential clients will click. These links will lead them to the site or checkout page to purchase the services or products you’re promoting.
And voila, you’ll earn a percentage from successful purchases.
Imagine if there are hundreds of people checking out every piece of content you make. This means you could earn a lot from just one post.
At first, you may have to build an audience and regularly create content. After gaining some traction, this strategy will provide you income for as long as your content is published.
3. Invest Your Military Paycheck
Most importantly, you should invest a portion of your paycheck in various investment options. These include stocks, index funds, mutual funds, IRAs, and the like. Treat it as part of your retirement fund since these investments may not give you instant passive income.
But over the long run, they can multiply through the power of compound interest. Some investment options like stocks even give quarterly or yearly dividends. And these earnings are much higher than the bank’s interest.
Start Earning!
Receiving a regular paycheck as a member of the military is okay. But wouldn’t it be better if you’re earning passive income aside from your pay? Try the suggested ways above. They may not be ‘get rich quick’ schemes, but when you’re patient, you can make money from them over time.
