You’ve given it the best years of your life, stripping and polishing its floorboards, repairing its sash windows and pumping a huge chunk of your salary into its mortgage. And how does your house repay you? By dropping hundreds or even thousands of pounds in value a month. These days, it could be losing as much as you are earning. But there are ways of making the ungrateful thing pay its way.

1 Rent out the dead space

Offspring finally flown the nest? Then renting out their room can be a good idea, especially if you were smart enough to create a cordoned-off area for them when they were teenagers. Take Nick and Sarah Fer, in their early fifties, who have let out the top floor of their three-storey house in Hove, East Sussex, since their daughter, Ellie, went to Leeds University.

“Renting out Ellie’s room has worked out really well for us,” Nick says. “The key is getting the right person, of course. We have had two nice mature ladies so far – our tip is to put ‘quiet household’ in your ad.” So, what does Ellie think of it? “We redecorated a smaller room in the house for her instead, which is fine for when she comes home,” he says. “She’s a practical sort of girl and, anyway, she knows it’s not for ever.”

Sounds too intrusive? If you live in London or another big city, you could let to a commuter who needs a room only during the week. This is a growing market – and dedicated sites have sprung up to cater for it, including www.mondaytofriday.com and www. spareroom.co.uk , which has a section for part-time letters. You should charge 60% of what the rent for the whole week would be. Either way, provided the room is furnished, the first £4,250 per year you make is exempt from income tax under the government’s Rent a Room scheme.

2 Carve a separate flat out of the basement

Many Georgian or Victorian terraces have a basement, and creating a flat in your “below stairs” space and renting it out can be a money-spinner. If you don’t have one, why not dig one?

“This will work best in high-density areas,” says Michael Holmes, editor-in-chief of Move or Improve magazine. “That means large areas of London and other high-value towns and cities – don’t attempt it in Lincolnshire.” Holmes estimates that converting an existing space will cost £2,000-£3,000 a square metre. If you have to dig out a new one, it could be double that.

You’ll need planning permission to dig a new basement, but request it as an extension, rather than as a separate flat, advises Holmes, or you could end up paying two lots of council tax. If things get tight, you can live in the smart new basement and rent out the rest of the house. If they get really tight, sell the basement flat.

3 Holiday house swap

Don’t pay to go on holiday – do a house swap instead. You may be pleasantly surprised by what you get in return, especially if you live in a pretty village or tourist city, or near a coast or national park. Once you’re in that Tuscan villa or Parisian apartment, you won’t be worrying about what’s going on back home. Leave detailed instructions on how everything works and what is and isn’t included. For more information, visit www.homxchangevacation.com , www.homelink.org.uk and www. homeexchange.com .

4 Bring in focus groups

All you need is a large, comfy sitting room and an address book bulging with friends and acquaintances who don’t all know one another. Qualitative research companies use “recruiters” to find groups of people to discuss what they think of various products – from disposable nappies to the latest iPod.

As a recruiter, you would round up, say, six women who buy Pampers and get them to come to your house for a focus-group discussion. They get wine, nibbles, a chance to air their views and, perhaps, a small incentive in products or cash provided by the client; you get £120-£180. The Association for Qualitative Research lists companies on its website, www.aqr.org.uk . Alternatively, why not hold Ann Summers parties?

5 Cash in on big events

If you live near a festival, concert or other event venue, you could make money by turning your home into a temporary B&B. And this doesn’t apply only to those who live in obvious places such as Wimbledon, Cheltenham or Edinburgh. With the proliferation of mini-festivals across the country,some-thing is bound to be happening near you. Nor is it just the ticket-holders: an army of organisers and exhibitors need somewhere to stay, too. Register your home with event organisers that list accommodation on their websites, so they can keep you on their database. You need a health-and-safety check and a fire certificate, so get in touch with your local Environmental Health office. Visit www.bandbassociation.org for further useful information.

6 Outdoor moneymakers

Do you have a pool or tennis court that others would pay to use? You might feel awkward charging your friends, but desperate times call for desperate measures. If you’re any good, maybe you could offer coaching to local children – which might restore your standing in the community.

No pool, but a nice garden, with room for tables and chairs? If you live in a pretty village or along a walkers’ route, and can bake, running a tea garden in summer can bring in profit for minimal outlay. As a sideline, you could sell your garden produce, herbs or cuttings to a captive audience – call it organic and it should go like hot cakes. For further inspiration, get a copy of Barty Phillips’s Making Money from Your Garden (available on Amazon).

7 You’ve got the power

With the average household energy bill climbing to £1,200 a year, your house should be working harder to save you money. Install enough solar panels, wind turbines and the like, and you can not only supply your own needs, but sell power back to the grid. Large systems can cost well in excess of £10,000, though, and it will take several years to recoup your investment.

Less glamorous, but more efficient in the short term, are draught-excluding tape, new boiler jackets and cavity-wall insulation, which can quickly pay for themselves. And just think how good you’ll feel when you’ve reduced your carbon footprint to Tinker Bell dimensions. To apply for grants under the Low Carbon Buildings Programme, go to www.energysavingtrust.org.uk.

8 Rent out a parking space

If you have off-street parking or a garage that is unused during the day, rent it out – for between £50 and £300 a month, depending on location. Websites such as www.yourparkingspace.co.uk or www.letmepark.com match desperate drivers to those with spaces to hire. Spots in London are the most valuable, but another site, www.parklet.co.uk , advertises spaces in some less obvious places, including Plymouth, Worcester and Reading.

Car-sharing schemes such as Streetcar (www.streetcar.co.uk ) are also on the lookout for places to park vehicles.

9 The house is the star

Is your house photogenic? Film companies, advertising agencies and magazines are always looking for new locations. Handing over your home to a photographer or film crew can net you £500-£3,000 a day. Large and open-plan spaces in and around London are most in demand, but scouts look for properties all over the country, including terraced houses and cottages. Try www.uklocations.co.uk , www.freshlocations.com or www.shootfactory.co.uk .

10 When all else fails...

If you really want to get your revenge on your house for losing you money, and you’ve got a big garden, parcel up that chunk at the end that nobody uses and flog it to a developer. Or why not sell ’em the whole house?

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