Quickest way to $30,000 profit after taxes?

[airwick]

I'm a programmer employed full time. I need to find a way to earn 30,000 dollars or so after taxes to pay for some health related debt I incurred last year. What kind of site or online activity would you start in your free time to make that kind of money?

[rms]

I've got into ticket scalping lately. It's not legal in many states but it is completely legal in my state as long as you do it online and conduct business using your real name. Check your local laws.

It is really, really easy. All you do is check http://ticketstumbler.com/blog/ for upcoming sales and refresh ticketmaster at 10AM when they're on sale. I don't use a script, though a simple one to get you direct to the CAPTCHA would save 2 seconds which definitely makes a difference in quality of seats.

Some intuition about what will be instant sellouts is needed. This is the best one going on soon: a legendary performer known for rarely touring and he is playing tiny venues. http://www.ticketmaster.com/Leonard-Cohen-tickets/artist/733...

Don't buy seats at the back of large amphitheaters unless it is for Phish.

It's easiest to sell on Stubhub but using Craiglist can add 8-10% to your margins. It's annoying to have to email/call back and forth with the people though.

[zain]

Wow, that's genius! Let me make sure I have you straight (I've never heard of this before)...

You check the TicketStumbler blog for hot pre-sale tickets. You buy them for face value when they go on sale (10AM?) hoping they'll get sold out. Then, you flip them on StubHub/Craigslist after they're sold out? What if the show doesn't get sold out?

Also, did I understand you correctly in that TicketMaster gives the best tickets to the first people who buy them, and you might get bad seats buying at 10AM? How can you tell if the seats are good enough?

Thanks for the info :)

[fallentimes]

Ha, we actually created that to add transparency and because most of the presale blogs out there are spammy.

But since you brought up the topic:

-Dividing metropolitan area by venue capacity is a good indication of how in demand a given set of tickets will be (all else equal).

-Google insights is also an excellent indicator of what's popular:

http://www.google.com/insights/search/#q=concert%20tickets&#...

[timcederman]

No guilt for skimming some extra money off a fan who wants to go to the show? Or do you rationalize it as "someone else would do it anyway"?

I'm saying this as someone who goes to ~20 shows a year, and so it's obviously a sore point.

[GrandMasterBirt]

The higher the risk the higher the payout. As long as it is not gambling. Hell try the stock market, oversell and wait for the stocks to drop then buy.

To make quick cash you must be willing to risk. Risk means that you have a chance to not win, in fact lose. So weigh your options wisely.

[nostrademons]

Porn, drugs, or gambling. ;-)

Joking aside, I think the easiest way to make $30k after taxes is to drastically cut your living expenses and save $30k. To make $30K after taxes, you'd have to make close to $50K before taxes (I assume you have a decent programmer's salary already, and this'll put you in a high bracket). There aren't many ways to make $50K in a hurry without a long ramp-up period. If you could, everyone would quit their day job and make their freelance business their real one.

[falsestprophet]

Good news, you can deduct medical expenses over 7.5% of your income.

http://www.bankrate.com/brm/itax/tips/20010323a.asp

[GrandMasterBirt]

Pron: You will be killed.

Drugs: You will be killed.

Gambling: You will be broke.

You can deduct medical expenses from your earnings. You can file for bankruptcy, which can nullify the debt. Talk to re-financing companies, they also can cut that number down a bit.

If we knew how to just make 30k, I think we all would be doing it, nonestop.

[vaksel]

Well first things first you need to realize that the $30,000 price tag takes into account the fact that they think they are charging insurance. If the hospital realizes you are actually paying this yourself, the price will come down.

Second of all you need to realize that there is absolutely no reason for you to pay that amount in a lump sum. Do you think your average person has $30K on hand to pay? Work out a payment plan with the hospital so that you can pay it off a small amount at a time.

Third you need to realize that there is pretty much no way to make $30K after taxes "quickly" as a sidejob. So you need to think long term for the solution.

[mattchew]

What vaskel said.

You may have more leverage than you think. I'm pretty sure in my state (Kansas) your credit rating cannot be dinged for late payment on a medical bill. Used to be the case anyway. It would be handy to know if that was true for you too.

When my father got sick there was a flood of bills. I just sent every creditor $20 a month. I figured they would be happy to get anything since so many people pay nothing. I never made any formal payment plans or arrangments. This worked fine.

Another thing you might do is challenge large bills. I challenged a big bill with several charges, don't remember why, but they ended up adjusting it down more than what I asked for, on different charges than the ones I was objecting to. They could not explain this, just "that's what the reviewers came back with". Give them the opportunity.

[ars]

"takes into account the fact that they think they are charging insurance. If the hospital realizes you are actually paying this yourself, the price will come down."

Unfortunately it's actually exactly the opposite. The truth is that if you have no insurance you pay more (or at least are billed more). At the minimum get full deductible insurance - it doesn't cover anything (except massive emergencies AKA bills), but they do negotiate good prices for you (usually as part of their full pay plan).

For a tiny example: lots of stores have $4 discount drugs. It's a good deal yes - but my insurance got me a price of $2.16 (I don't see how the pharmacy makes any money at all at that price BTW).

As a starting point don't ever pay more than half of what they ask! Tell them: I'll pay half, or I'll pay nothing - you pick. You'll see, they'll agree. And you can probably get away with paying just a third.

Don't forget to look into all the government and private programs for people in your situation. They exist, and they have lots of hoops to jump through (on purpose, to discourage people from actually using them, while being able to claim they exist) - but if you do it, you can save a lot.

[staunch]

If you can't afford to pay back $30k for health care don't forget to try to negotiate with the hospital/doctors. You should be able to get a large discount on that amount if you agree to actually pay it back (instead of never paying a dime, which is what they're used to).

[viggity]

Just ask them one simple question: "Is that the best you can do?"

http://www.popswallet.com/2009/02/is-that-the-best-you-can-d...

[Kaizyn]

Just take on a conventional second job to make the money. If you reduce your living expenses at the same time, that will make your earning requirements for the second job lower.

Aside from inventing an innovative idea or finding an existing business idea that is good but not yet being done, that's the only sure way to make the kind of profit you're needing.

I'm sorry you're in such a position and can only hope that you are now cured of the medical ailments that got you into this position in the first place.

[mindslight]

Sorry for downmodding you - I blame microscopic arrows and lack of undo.

Your advice is some of the best in this thread. Entrepreneurship is about taking on risk, which is exactly the opposite of predictable money.

Perhaps a second "conventional job" isn't what's called for, but consulting definitely is. The important part is to get paid now rather than hoping to strike it rich through sweat equity.

[jhancock]

agreed...along with the other two suggestion of negotiating down your outstanding bills and talking to a tax advisor on finding deductions.

[cellis]

"I need to find a way to earn 30,000 dollars or so after taxes..."

Learn objective-C and create an iphone app that is novel but incredibly simple. Should be based on a humorous topic (e.g. iFart, Sound Grenade) That should be able to bring in 30k in a day. If you don't have a mac to hack on, turn your pc into a hackintosh.

Write me back with the results. Good luck :)

[jneal]

I find this to be the best suggestion thus far. iPhone apps are making more and more money each day. I believe the percentage is 70/30 nowadays. So If you sell 15,000 copies of your game at a price of $2.99 a piece you will bring in 70% or $31,395 which will be pretty close to bringing you to your goal (still have to pay taxes.)

[blogimus]

But there is a chance your app may be rejected, especially if you've crossed their fuzzy line of acceptability:

http://www.pcworld.com/article/159887/rejected_10_iphone_app...

[mattmaroon]

If there were some fast way to make $30k, everyone would already be doing it.

[tjic]

No.

If there was some way that was EASY to earn $30k, everyone would be doing it.

Just like if there was some way that was EASY to lose 30 lbs, everyone would be doing it.

In fact, there are drop-dead simple ways to earn $30k and to lose 30 lbs.

Take on a second job.

Tons of first generation immigrants work 60 and 70 hour weeks.

[brianobush]

No easy route that is legal. if you are innovative, you can find unique business idea - but the sole goal should not be to make money quick, since those endeavors typically don't embody the passion to be successful in the business. See: The Entrepreneur's Manual: Business Start-Ups, Spin-Offs, and Innovative Management by Richard M. White. Though it is out of print, you might find it used on abebooks.com

[quizbiz]

Borrow $3,000,000, loan it, collect loan with interest, pay back loan. Result ~$30,000.

Easier said than done. It is, after all, what got us into this mess.

[HeyLaughingBoy]

Get a second job? You'll start making money the first week, guaranteed!

[anewaccountname]

Bankruptcy is by far the fastest way for this special case where you are using the profit to eliminate a debt. Warning: won't work for student loans from the government.

[nikblack]

I am in the process of doing this right now but I can't tell you my secret. I can, however, sell you my secret to making $30,000 for a low price of $500.

[ryanmahoski]

Record and sell hacker screencasts a la PeepCode.

[cperciva]

The fastest way to $30,000 profit after taxes is to rob a bank. :-)

[mindslight]

No, the fastest way to $30,000 profit after taxes is to be the one collecting taxes.

[Rod]

"Bankraub ist eine Initiative von Dilettanten. Wahre Profis gründen eine Bank." -- Bertold Brecht

In other words, only dilettanti rob banks. True pros found one ;-)

[jfarmer]

It really makes me sad to see this comment on HN.