Recurring income simply means money that someone regularly receives. Forms of recurring income are consistent payments from an employer, payments of either government or court-ordered funding, and more.
What Is Recurring Income?
Recurring income refers to continuous and usually scheduled payments directed to a specific person. If you’ve ever had a job that pays you on a set schedule, or received money from a government program each month, then you can say you have recurring income.
What Are Different Forms of Recurring Income?
There are more options than just a typical 9-5 job for getting recurring income. Here are some of the most common methods people use to get consistent funds coming in:
Paychecks
Have you ever filled out a W-2 or W-4 tax form for an employer? If so, then you probably had recurring income from that employer for a certain amount of time. This consistent paycheck, whether on a weekly, bi-weekly, or even monthly basis is recurring income.
Government Funding
The state and the federal government have specific programs to aid qualified people who are unemployed, disabled financially, and more. This financial aid from the government could be considered a recurring income.
Court-Ordered
Suppose you’re raising a child as a single payment. In that case, you may qualify for regular payments from your child’s other biological parent. While these payments would need to be assigned legally by a court of law, the payments could be considered recurring income.
Revenue from Certain Assets
Some forms of recurring income can make money for an individual “on their own.” Assets like real estate, investments, and more have the ability to give someone recurring income with little-to-no effort on their part at all.
How Do I Get a Recurring Income?
Having a steady stream of income can be a huge financial relief if you’re ever in a situation where you need money right away. Because of this, most people want to make sure they have a recurring income. Take a look at the different ways you can get recurring income for yourself.
Get a Consistent Job
When you have a steady job, your employer will usually ask for your banking information so they can set up a direct deposit. Then, on a set schedule (usually once every two weeks), you will receive payments for the time you spent working. These regular paychecks are referred to as recurring income.
Apply for Assistance if Needed
Are you in need of money and currently without a job, have a disability, or in another situation where you cannot work consistently? If so, there’s a chance you could be eligible for some kind of government financial assistance.
For example, suppose you have a chronic injury that prevents you from being able to work a traditional job. In that case, you may qualify for disability payments. Or, if you lost your job, you could apply for unemployment benefit payments.
Start a Business
Going into business for yourself could result in bringing in quite a bit of recurring income. Selling a product, working online, or even opening a brick-and-mortar business has the potential to give you a steady stream of income. If successful, you could be in a position to hire other people to run your business while you benefit from the profits.
Buy Real Estate
Purchasing real estate could be a great way to get recurring income that doesn’t require your constant attention. Buying a house, condo, apartment, or even timeshare and renting out that property for other people to use while you’re not around could bring in a considerable amount of cash.
Keep in mind an endeavor like this may involve some spending or labor on your part in the beginning. But if done right you could end up earning thousands of dollars a month just by owning property.
Consider Investing
Another convenient hands-off way to receive recurring income is simply investing a portion of your budget and watching it grow. Successful stocks or investment opportunities could give you hundreds to thousands or more depending on how much money you initially invested. However, it would be best to be careful about how much money you invest and what you invest your money in. Poor investment decisions could end in the loss of recurring income and the loss of the original investment.
Why Is Recurring Income Important?
So why does recurring income even matter? Recurring income can aid you in financial endeavors such as getting approved for loans, having a high credit score, and contributing to someone’s overall quality of life.
When you apply for a loan—like a bad credit loan online—the lender will consider your recurring income when they decide on factors like interest rates, loan terms, funded amount, and loan approval. If you have a considerable amount of recurring income, lenders are more likely to grant more favorable interest rates, more manageable loan terms, and even higher loan amounts.
When determining a credit score, the major credit reporting agencies—TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian—all look at someone’s recurring income. Since factors like your debt-to-income ratio go into your overall credit score, these agencies need to know your recurring income.
Recurring income can also have an impact on someone’s general quality of life. If someone has a family to take care of and a small recurring income, it may be difficult to provide everyone with essentials. It can even get difficult for a single person with a small recurring income to care for themselves properly. The more recurring income someone has, generally, the easier it is for them to have a more comfortable living situation.