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Turn your yard into serious cash

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One of the best calls I’ve had recently on my show came from a listener named Stacy. He casually told me he’s made $80,000 renting the vacant land he covered with gravel behind his house.

That’s it. A rectangle of rocks. No building. No tenants. No fancy business plan. Just a patch of dirt he wasn’t using. Stacy listed it on an app called Neighbor, which connects people who need storage (RVs, boats, trailers, buses) with folks who have extra space.

Since listing it, he’s had over 60 people park everything from luxury campers to school buses. He charges $90 to $200 a month, and he’s booked solid.

He didn’t build anything. Didn’t babysit anyone’s stuff. Didn’t even have Wi-Fi out there. And it’s paid off big-time.

Want to do the same?

You don’t need acres. Got a driveway? A garage you haven’t opened since 2011? A little side yard? People are willing to pay for space to park or store their stuff, and apps make it ridiculously easy.

Yes, Neighbor is one option. But there’s also:

Spacer and JustPark for driveways and parking spots.
Hipcamp, if you’ve got land and don’t mind a camper or two.
Sniffspot, yes, you can even rent your fenced backyard to dog owners.

Real people are doing this:

A guy in Indiana gets $175 a month for his dusty garage.
A couple in Arizona stores a neighbor’s boat in their side yard for $250 a month.
One woman turned her unused barn into year-round RV storage. She doesn’t want to say how much she makes. I bet it’s a lot.

So take a walk outside and look at that forgotten patch of land or extra space. That’s your weird-flex-but-OK income stream waiting to happen.

🤔 If you do give it a shot (or have another unique way of making money), let me know. I want your success story on the show next.

Your A+ checklist

🔔 School’s almost back in session. I’ve done the homework for you.

✍️ Jot this down: Snag a set of gel pens (20% off, six-pack) for journaling, note-taking or doodling during class.

📑 Get out of a bind: These ring binders (20% off, four-pack) double as cheat sheets. You didn’t hear that from me.

📝 Note to self: One college-ruled notebook (41% off, six-pack) per class = zero confusion.

🛏️ Dorm-approved: Drift off after that 2 a.m. study sesh on silky-soft bedsheets (18% off).

📦 Bin there, done that: Stackable storage bins (25% off, two-pack) tell your roommate, “That’s mine.”

💯 Extra credit: There’s a whole backpack’s worth of back-to-school deals waiting for you on my Amazon page.

We may earn a commission from purchases, but our recommendations are always objective.

$80K side hustle or headache?

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Renting out your empty land for storage sounds like easy money, until the HOA, zoning laws, or a nosy neighbor comes knocking.

💾 Windows 10’s doomsday date: Microsoft is pulling the plug on Windows 10 support Oct. 14. Europe gets free updates for a year, but here in the U.S.? You’ve got three options: cough up $30, burn 1,000 Microsoft Rewards points, or back up your stuff to OneDrive and pray you don’t run out of storage. Protection ends October 2026.

💾 Free up space on Windows: Low on storage? Clear out temporary files. Go to Settings > System > Storage > Temporary files, check what you don’t need, then hit Remove files. You might gain back a few gigabytes. FYI: Look inside your Downloads folder first. There might be something important in there.

📱 Fix misbehaving Android apps: If something keeps freezing or crashing, clearing its cache usually helps. Go to Settings > Apps > [App Name] > Storage & cache (or Storage), and tap Clear cache. Careful though: Don’t hit Clear data. That wipes your settings, logs you out and resets the app completely.

⚡️ 3-second tech genius: Some Android phones still let you expand storage with a microSD card. Pop one in and move apps or photos over to free up space. Sorry, iPhone folks.

We may earn a commission from purchases, but our recommendations are always objective.

📱 Disable Android bloatware: Some preinstalled apps can’t be uninstalled, but they’ll still update and eat resources in the background. If you don’t use them, shut them down. Go to Settings > Apps > [App name] > Disable > Disable app. Handy if your phone’s running low on storage space.

📂 Kindle maintenance: If your Kindle feels slow, it might be time to free up space. Go to Settings > Device options > Storage management > Manual removal. From there, browse the Books, Docs, Audible or Others folders. Scroll through the lists, pick what you no longer need and tap Remove.

🎬 Adobe Premiere coming to iPhone: The app includes pro tools like multitrack timelines, frame-by-frame editing, 4K support and more. The catch? You’ll need to pay for AI features or extra storage. Preorder it free on the App Store to get it automatically when it drops later this month.

Windows 11 update breaks SSDs: Last week’s KB5063878 update is making storage drives vanish, showing up as unallocated space. Since the update rolled out automatically, the only real fix is to roll it back. Here’s how.

📂 Follow the 3-2-1 backup rule: Keep three copies of your important files — two in different types of storage and one stored off-site. For example, save the originals on your computer, another copy on an external hard drive or USB stick, and the last one in cloud storage online. Overkill? Maybe. Covered? Always.

We may earn a commission from purchases, but our recommendations are always objective.

🔥 Today is the last day: Microsoft is killing off password storage in its Authenticator app. Your logins were migrated to Edge in early July, and the rest, like payment info, is toast tomorrow, Aug. 1. Passkeys are sticking around, but this is your sign to switch to a new password manager before your digital pantry gets cleaned out on Microsoft’s schedule. I use and recommend NordPass.

📖 New Kindle on the block: Amazon just dropped the Kindle Colorsoft ($250). It’s $30 less than the fancier Signature Edition with wireless charging, an auto-dimming light and more storage. Perfect if you only need the basics in crisp color. Pro tip: Trade in your old Kindle and save up to 20% off.

We may earn a commission from purchases, but our recommendations are always objective.

Clean up your PC automatically: On Windows 11, turn on Storage Sense to help your computer tidy up on its own. Go to Settings > System > Storage > Storage Sense and toggle it On. It can delete temp files, empty the Recycle Bin and clear out Downloads.

✅ You asked and here it is. A cloud backup I trust: Total Drive. It’s simple, secure and just works. And get this: Right now, you can get a massive 10TB of storage for only $18. Don’t wait for a hard drive crash. Back it up before you lose it all for good.

Cold storage, cold betrayal: Say goodbye to the crypto wallet Ledger’s Nano S. No more updates, no help if it breaks. Folks bought it thinking they could just keep their crypto in it, but now are being forcibly nudged to upgrade to the Nano S Plus or Nano X.

📱 The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 is here: It’s thinner than ever at 8.9mm closed (compared to the Fold 6’s 12.1mm). You get an 8-inch inner screen and a 6.5-inch outer. There’s also a 200MP main camera, 10MP selfie, up to 16GB of RAM and storage from 256GB to 1TB. The catch? It starts at $2,000. Yikes.

We may earn a commission from purchases, but our recommendations are always objective.

📱 Android app fix: If an app is constantly crashing or bugging out, try clearing its cache. Go to Settings > Apps > App Name > Storage & cache (or just Storage) and select Clear cache. FYI: Don’t tap Clear data, because that erases your settings, login details and resets the app to default.

Here it is! The cloud backup I trust: Total Drive. It’s simple, secure and just works. And get this: Right now, you can get a massive 10TB of storage for only $18. Don’t wait for a hard drive crash. Back it up before you lose it.