How to Invest $1,000 (and Double It!)
How to invest money to make money fast? That’s the million-dollar question. We always hear about people making passive income or buying a new house with the profits they made in flipping houses, but there aren’t a lot of resources on how you can do it.
Most are centered around people with huge sums of money to spare. And they’re all about ‘hustling.’ But that isn’t helpful because they don’t give you direction. We are going to fix that problem and tell you exactly how you can make 1000 dollars fast on any investment.
The Only 3 Ways to Double Your Investment
There are only three ways to turn 1k dollars into 2k dollars. They’re universal in the sense that they work for any amount of investment. Whether you have 1 dollar or 1,000,000 dollars, if you can figure out how to implement even one of the following techniques, you’ll be set for life.
1. Double Your Investment With Time
Compound interest is your best friend if you want to invest over time. Say you put in 1k dollars into an account with an 8% interest rate – you’ll double your investment in just nine years.
2. Double Your Investment With Hard Work
Use whatever money you have and buy equipment or start a business. For example, you can mow lawns in your neighborhood or shovel snow. Provide people with services and charge for them.
You will need to put in a lot of effort and direct a significant portion of your time towards making the most out of your investment. For instance, if you’re using our example and mowing lawns, your investment will be the equipment. Once you buy it, it will sit in your shed. And it’s up to you to utilize it and make profits.
3. Double Your Investment With Skill
The last way to double your investment incorporates both time and hard work. Learn a skill and apply it to make money. For instance, real estate is a lucrative business. Similarly, the stock market promises huge returns. However, both are complex, and you can’t dive in headfirst. You’ll lose all your money if you do so.
Take a course on the various tangents of real estate. Figure out how to identify a good deal and separate it from a bad deal. Learn what makes people tick and what makes them want to spend their money on the house. Should you invest in beautifying a house before selling it? And if so, how much should you invest it in?
5 Ideas to Invest $1,000 and Double It
We have five ideas for you on how to invest 1k dollars and double it. Having tried all of them, we assure you that each will bring a hefty profit. Each uses a combination of the concepts of skill, hard work, and time.
1. Double Your Money Instantly by Investing $1,000 in Your 401(k) or Canadian RRSP
If you want to double your investment quickly and with the least effort required, get involved in a 401k. Don’t know what that is? We’ll break it down for you.
A 401k is a retirement savings packages offered by your employers. It gives you a tax break on any money you contribute. They’re cut from your paycheck automatically and invested into a fund. You get to pick one from a list of available offers. Remember to do your homework and choose a reliable fund. Try to avoid target-date mutual funds.
In 2020-21, you can put in up to 19.5k dollars annually. For people above the age of 50, you can contribute 26k dollars.
Depending on how much money you contribute and when you do so, your company will match a certain percentage of it. For instance, almost all businesses match at least half the money you put in, and most go up to all of it.
Since you can’t make lump-sum additions in this type of investment, use the 1k dollars as a cushion. You’ll be losing some part of your monthly salary, and this makes up for it. It can come in handy as a means to pay bills, buy groceries, or balance out credit card debts. Then return the difference every pay period (weekly, bi-monthly, monthly, etc.).
In the unlikely situation that your employee doesn’t support a 401k plan, don’t worry. You can open an Individual Retirement Account (IRA). It works the same way as a 401k, but because you’re doing it on your own, no one matches your investment. Even so, you’ll get several tax-related benefits and get huge returns.
Some banks are stingy about how much minimum investment they accept, but you can easily find ones that take 1k dollars.
2. Invest in Yourself Through Entrepreneurship
Want to make money? Start a business. You’ll have complete control over your venture, get a raise whenever you want since you’re the boss, and get to set your own deadlines. What could be better than that?
Even if you think you’re not the entrepreneurial type, give it a go. You can’t know if you’re good/bad at something until you try it. A great idea is starting small and finding a side hustle like being an Uber driver. Decide your work hours and make your own schedule.
Alternatively, you can flip objects from garage sales. Buy stuff for around 10 dollars, clean it up, and sell it on eBay or in a shop for double or triple cost. This simple business idea has the potential to bring you over 200% profit per sale.
The same principle also applies to real estate. Buy something at an estate sale and flip it on Craigslist. Small things like decorating a house with furniture and repainting the walls can drastically increase its value.
Lastly, you can set up a small neighborhood business. For example, mow lawns or shovel snow and make huge profits. Invest in equipment, charge around 5 dollars per house and make more than 300 dollars a year.
3. Invest in Real Estate to Double Your Net Worth Many Times Over
You may think that 1k dollars aren’t enough to get started in the real estate business. But that isn’t true. Sure, you won’t be able to buy a house; however, you can still be involved. There are plenty of opportunities in this industry that don’t require a huge upfront investment, making it perfect for you.
We’ve invested most of our money in this business and have learned that setting up a passive income stream is fantastic. It’s easier than trading stocks and requires less effort too. Making profits this way is all about working smarter, not harder.
If you only have 1k dollars to invest, you can do a couple of things.
Flipping houses
Learn how to identify good deals on property and find one. Then go to a bank and ask for investment. Use this money to purchase the property; try to cover rehab costs with it too.
Irrespective of how much the bank gives you, you will need to contribute money too. Most times, this is for closing costs and incidental expenses and can be covered with a small investment nest egg; your 1k dollars is perfect for it.
Wholesaling
After flipping a bunch of houses, we were introduced to wholesaling. This involves finding a great deal, getting a contract on it, and convincing another investor to buy it from you. The trick here is getting an attractive package that others will want to acquire.
While wholesaling isn’t very complicated or difficult, it does require a lot of grunt work and effort. You’ll need to be consistent and push through any obstacles in your way. At times, you won’t find the right deal immediately, it will take a while, but that’s okay.
As soon as we got the hang of this technique, we started making a profit that was five to ten times the initial investment. And now you can too.
Real estate jobs
Invest in education and training programs that will help you land a job with considerable pay. Once you get a license, you can easily make up to 20k dollars annually by taking on a few clients here and there.
As a side hustle, real estate jobs are fairly lucrative. You can easily get a 500% return on your initial investment because the income far outweighs the cost of getting the required qualifications.
Crowdfunding
With 1k dollars, you meet the minimum requirements for several crowdfunded real estate platforms like RealtyMogul, Fundrise, and Streitwise. Each has its own particular investment mechanisms, but the principle is the same for all of them.
A group of people combines their money to form a big pool that is then put at the disposal of a real estate developer. The profit is divided among the individuals, and everyone makes money.
4. Get a Guaranteed Return on Investment by Paying off Debt
Think about it for a minute. Debt is the polar opposite of investment. It accumulates and costs you more as long as you refuse to pay up.
Holding onto it will hold you down and overshadow any profit from investments because it will cancel out. Use your 1k dollars to pay off credit card debts, and then think about retirement plans like the 401k.
If 1k dollars isn’t enough to cover all your debt, organize them and make a plan to get rid of the most harmful ones first. Organize them from highest interest rate to lowest interest rate and start ticking them off. You’ll save money in the long run and improve your financial situation.
5. Start a Savings Account for a Rainy Day
Several investment plans require long-term holding. For example, if you buy stock or real estate, it’s probably going to give you huge benefits, but they won’t come any time soon. So while you should have them, it’s also important to have an account you can access on a rainy day.
If your car breaks down and you need to get a new one, you don’t want your money to be stuck in the stock market. It’s extremely volatile, and unless you are a day trader, you could end up losing all your money by removing it in the short term.
Additionally, it will give you a cushion in emergencies like the pandemic that shook millions of households. For people living from paycheck to paycheck, there isn’t a lot of room for emergency funds. And in the case of losing a job or an unexpected medical expense, they’re left helpless. If you’re in this boat, it’s imperative that you start a savings account and add to it regularly.
We typically look for accounts with at least a 2% interest rate. While this won’t double your money soon, the nest egg will slowly become bigger. And that’s all that matters. If life hits you with an unexpected blow, you’ll have a cushion to reduce the impact.
The goal for all families should be to have at least three to six months’ worth of cash in an account. This sounds like a lot, but it is possible. You don’t need to contribute all of it. The bank will add to your money and give you profits.
Investing $1,000 – The Options Are Endless
There are several ways to invest 1k dollars and double it. From real estate to starting a savings account and even simple things like paying off debt have the potential to drastically improve your financial situation.
Some of these techniques can even triple or quadruple your initial investment. For example, if you choose to become a licensed real estate agent, you will receive high salaries. With the industry growing steadily, there is a lot of room for promotions, raises, etc. too.
Just remember that you need to be consistent and put in the work. Thinking or idealizing investment opportunities won’t help. You need to get up, pick a scheme, do your homework, and starting working on it.
