For us on the pilgrim journey, making crass cash in isolation is kind of like hitting a street drug. It’s a thrilling high, but it fades quickly, and you know you’ll need more to keep the buzz.
That deep down wiring cries out: unless we’re bound increasingly together in healthy community with others as we create wealth, something feels off. In my tenure figuring this dynamic out, here are a few simple ways I’ve profited doubly – by enriched relationships and more dollars banked. You say it sounds smarmy? That it’s probably a farce? I admit, it’s more complex. But that complexity is worth it. Let’s explore a few examples of what this might look like. For ease sake, we’ll go from simple to more nuanced.
1. Hire people to do jobs alongside you, not for you
When there’s a job to do – cleaning the gutters, fixing the plumbing, winterizing the yard – we often think we either have to hire it out to someone and pay a pretty penny, or spend 3 weekends doing it all ourselves. Why not meet in the middle?
I love hiring people to work alongside of me because it makes the task more like hanging out instead of toil. This looks different depending on the complexity of the job. Whether it’s a neighborhood kid I can invest into and train, a friend of mine who I hang out with anyway, or a wiser sage that I can learn from in the process, this mental shift helps. Pay and get your hands dirty. Learn, grow a relationship, and save a little cash.
Let’s be honest. When you hire someone, the energy it constitutes to facilitate them completing the task well absorbs you, anyway. Why not negotiate a cut, pitch in with them, and relish the process? Research shows that when we work together, we form deeper bonds with others, too, strengthening our own social capital and civil society at large.
Just this month, my friend Vladimir helped me fix a bathtub leak, changing out a cartridge that had gone bad. Not only did the work go fast, but I could now (almost) do this myself after watching and working with him. Even more so, we got to talking – about life, our kids…even mistakes we’ve made. We ended one conversation by humming a hymn together in the bathtub as we worked. Ha…you can’t make this stuff up! I’ll never forget that moment.
2. Rent out a space in your house
It might sound obvious to rent out extra space in your house, but again, we often think it as a purely crass financial move, imagining some unpleasant stranger sharing our space. If you have an extra suite, you can rent it to anyone – an old friend, a college student you know – someone who would add value to your life, that you’d enjoy being around. You can even reduce the rent in exchange for cleaning, childcare, or other help. This can be tricky to get right, but worth the time if you can make it work.
In the US, we’re increasingly lonely as a culture, and it’s harming us in all kinds of ways. While it’s always a sacrifice to share space, proximity requires us to be shaped in community with others. It takes work, but it makes us better. Before I married, I had 3 roommates in my house – Drew, Seth, and Kelly. Not only did they pay my mortgage, (thanks, guys!) but we made lasting memories and deep bonds of friendship that I’ll never forget.
Even if you’d rather keep your extra space freed up for guests, you can rent it out when you choose on Airbnb, and block the calendar for when visitors come. Taking it up a notch, you can rent your whole house when you’re outta town! When my wife and I go on international trips for several weeks, we’ve been known to put our entire house on Airbnb. Sometimes, it pays for both of our plane tickets. We’d want someone house sitting anyway, so if they are proven to be responsible through multiple reviews, it’s a no brainer for us.
3. Buy property for relational reasons
“Location, location, location” we’re sold over and again by the real estate world. Usually, this is code for having upwardly mobile neighbors who will overspend on their lawns and be nice to you, but mostly leave you alone. When buying a house, we’re usually looking at number of bedrooms, school zones, appreciation potential, and personal aesthetic. But what if we reimagine buying a house to be more like pursuing a friendship or committing to marriage than like clothes shopping?
What if we bought property for community reasons above individual desires? Keep in mind this isn’t diametrically opposed to making money, either. My friend Ryan bought a duplex and lived in one half of it while renting the other half to friends. Imagine: you retain some privacy, but you know and trust the people that share a building with you. If you play your cards right, they also fund your mortgage. Not only can have cookouts together in the yard, but they can water your plants and you can watch their pet when the other is out of town. The intangible benefits are endless.
Two close friends of mine, Chase and Shane, purchased homes next door to one another to do life together. They each have lovely wives and 7 kids between both families, so it’s always a party. They’ve chosen to do this a low-income neighborhood and do life together with neighbors. It’s not luxury living, but it’s a beautiful, fun place to be. When I visit, there’s no need to spend money on going out, childcare, or the like. When you’re interlocked with neighbors who lift you up on the journey, where else do you need to go?
Personally, the most poignant way I’ve bought property for relational reasons was by buying the house next to me. It was a drug house that was horribly blighted, so it wasn’t an easy ride. After gaining ownership, I was able to sell it to Santos, an immigrant friend of mine who has become such a unique neighbor and friend to my little family. I didn’t realize how much it would change the vibe on our block being able to redirect who inhabits that space. Now, our kids play in the front yards together, we buy tamales from his wife, our kids head to the library together, he teaches me masonry, and we look after the other’s house when outta town. “Location, location, location”, flipped upsidedown. (If you want to learn how to do this yourself, check out my video toolkit: Homegrow a Housing Business for the Greater Good).
These 3 ways really just scratch the surface. What about you? What are ways that you’ve created wealth and deepened community, simultaneously? I’d love to learn from you, too.
