HE’S not quite in Donald Trump’s league but a young entrepreneur is raking in loads of cash – without leaving his neighborhood.
The 14-year-old reckons he’s “making more than my teachers” with his $5,000-a-month side hustle.
Savvy teen, Maddox, explained on TikTok that he launched his local gardening service one year ago.
“I started a lawn mowing business at 13 years old, and I’ve got it at over $5,000 per month,” he explained.
“And of course you’re wondering, like, how am I doing this at 14 years old, how the heck do I make more than my teachers?”
Maddox said that he’s stuck to some basics, to lessen the stress of running his own side hustle.
“It’s pretty simple – literally, you start a lawn mowing business, and you advertise it,” he explained.
“And since I have a big neighborhood, all I need to do, is do it in my neighborhood.”
He received nearly 180 responses to his video on the platform.
The average side hustlers make $891 on average per month in extra income.
Bankrate survey, July 2024
One viewer was keen to know whether he “paid taxes” to which he replied, “everyone does.”
The IRS has issued useful tips on this question – on what people need to know if they have a side hustle.
That’s because the extra income may need to be reported to the department.
Several also wondered about the transport situation – as Maddox is too young to have his driver’s license.
“How do you move your lawn mower without a car?” asked one person.
“Once you can drive, what’s your plans for the business?” added another.
He explained that he is currently “hiring people” to drive him to mowing jobs.
Another viewer said he couldn’t do a similar side hustle for one good reason: “Step one live in a state with grass – I live in New Mexico!”
SHOW ME THE MONEY
And one man wanted advice on what to charge clients.
“My neighborhood and town is basically full of older people so if I were to charge $25-35 per smaller lawn, and $35-45 for larger lawns would [that] work?” he asked.
“I would also mow the lawns of the big churches for like $60 or 70.”
One person suggested that he should “charge more.”
But another viewer said they had tried something similar to Maddox – and failed.
“I tried this, made my own slogan and flyers and pass[ed] them around my entire neighborhood; once I ran out of flyers, I just started knocking on doors – only got two people,” they said.
“Gotta advertise for free first to show them how good of a job you can do,” suggested another person.
More side hustles
Don't forget, extra income made from side hustles may need to be reported to the IRS
A TikToker shared how he makes $500 a day painting mailboxes.
And see how to make $12,000 in a month by making Halloween decorations.
A teen has figured out how to make thousands of dollars online and build a massive fanbase by reviewing social media profiles.
An influencer makes most of her revenue through TikTok and brand deals associated with the app, where she has over 321.9K followers and racked up 9.2M likes.
And one complained that Maddox was able to rake in the cash because he “lives in a rich neighborhood where people don’t care about giving a kid $50 to mow 50 square feet of grass.”
GOOD GIGS
“The gig economy is still big in the U.S. and growing,” reported USA Today on Monday.
More than one-third (36 percent) of U.S. adults earn extra money through a side hustle, according to new data from Bankrate’s Side Hustles Survey.
“For many Americans, it’s another way to pay their bills,” it added on July 10.
“The average side hustlers make $891 on average per month in extra income aside from their main source of income, up from $810 in 2023.
“Many Americans don’t feel they can sustain their lifestyles on one income alone.”
In other money news, Target’s attempt to make shopping in-stores more convenient for its customers is being slammed by shoppers for its revamped self-checkout policy.
And, an angry Costco customer has claimed they abandoned their cart after being stopped by a worker at the checkout