I’m a Stay-at-Home Mom Who Turned My Car Into a $55K a Year Income — Here’s How I Did It
Many women who leave the workforce to raise children ultimately feel a desire to contribute financially to their families.
Michelle Perez, a former supervisor at one of the nation’s largest health insurance providers, left her job when her son was diagnosed with autism at 18 months old. After 10 years as a stay-at-home mom, she found a way to not only contribute to her family’s income, but to give back to the autism community through Turo, a car sharing platform.
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“When my son was first diagnosed with autism, it only took a few weeks before we felt completely burnt out — juggling our new life as parents while navigating two full-time jobs and adding several in-home therapy visits,” Perez told GOBankingRates in an exclusive email interview. “We sat down and made a terrifying but overall smart move in order to help our son reach his full potential in life …. I was a stay-at-home mom for the next 10 years until Turo changed my life.”
Earning To Give Back
Perez explained that, in July 2022, she found herself with some extra time in her day while her son was at school. “I started to look around for a job that would allow me to earn money, while still having time to look after my son who has autism,” she said. “After hearing about Turo from a friend, I decided to seize the opportunity and listed my own 2020 Toyota 4Runner on the platform.”
A year later, she said, she is bringing in an extra $55,000 a year for her family through her company Ausome Rides LTD.
“My husband has always been the sole earner in my family for years, but I’ve always wanted to contribute in my own way,” Perez said. “My son is considered non-verbal and although he’s had speech therapy since he was a toddler, today he speaks in two- to three-word phrases. He uses an iPad with an AAC (augmentative and alternative communication) app to communicate with us when he cannot find the words.”
Her son’s needs inspired part of her mission with Turo. She donates a portion of each booking to provide talking devices to families who may not have the means for their kids, she said.
“Now that Turo has helped me create this new source of income, I am able to give back to the community that I know all too well,” she said. “I work directly with my son’s offices to help find families to whom I can donate.”
What Is Turo?
Turo is a car-sharing marketplace where guests can book cars from hosts, in the same way a traveler might rent a vacation home through Airbnb. Fully scalable, the Turo platform is designed to allow hosts to earn extra revenue from their underutilized personal vehicles, or to build an accessible, flexible car sharing business with a fleet of any size.
How One Stay-at-Home-Mom Built a Fleet — and a Thriving Business
How did Perez launch a new business and, in less than two years, earn enough to cover her family’s mortgage, while still donating a portion of her earnings to help other families with autistic kids?
With an intuitive, user-friendly platform, Turo allows entrepreneurs like Perez to promote their vehicles, earn top ratings and reviews, and garner a following of loyal customers.
As one reviewer on Perez’s page wrote: “Michelle was very helpful throughout the trip and had all the answers for my first timer questions. I highly recommend renting from her. The 4Runner was great very capable and smooth vehicle …. I think I may be in line to get one of these myself, but until then if I need another vehicle like this I know where I’m going!”
Based on our assessment of the website, it looks like, in just a few clicks, virtually anyone in the U.S. with a late-model car can become a host. From there, the business can grow as large as you’d like or remain a side gig to earn extra cash when you’re not using your personal vehicle. The website noted that there may be income limitations, defined by current legislation, in California, Oregon and Washington.
Create a Profile That Shares Your Mission and Vision
The first step, after deciding you want to share your car through Turo, is to create a profile — ideally one that shares your mission and vision. Perez’s profile emphasizes her passion for the outdoors and her mission to help Autistic kids.
Perez, a Denver resident, said on her Turo profile that her family loves to hike and explore Colorado on the weekends. “[W]e know how important it is to have a safe vehicle while out exploring. Rest assured, each one of my vehicles are very well maintained, clean and are ready for your trip!” her profile reads.
Build a Fleet
After having success renting her 2020 Toyota 4Runner, Perez financed additional vehicles to expand her fleet. Her car choices currently include Toyota 4Runners and Toyota RAV4s, all with 5-star ratings across hundreds of trips, combined.
“I am now working on building my fleet through my business entity — Ausome Rides LTD — which highlights both my awesome cars available to book on Turo and my mission to help non-verbal Autistic kids find their voice,” she told GOBankingRates.
Understand the Investment — and the Potential Rewards
Perez was open and honest about the investment required to be a successful Turo host — and it’s less than most people might imagine.
“The main resource is probably my time since I personally detail, clean, and maintain each one of my vehicles to make sure each trip is an ‘Ausome Adventure,’ as I like to call it,” she said.
Other costs of being a Turo host, of course, include any car loan payments, personal auto insurance and maintenance costs. Perez listed car washes, oil changes, tire rotations and cleaning supplies as a few of her monthly business expenses.
“I also have an unlimited fleet membership with CobbleStone Car Wash that has over 32 locations in Colorado, for guests on longer-duration trips who might want to clean their cars in between,” she said.
Choose a Turo Host Protection Plan
Your personal auto insurance is unlikely to cover accidents that occur while you’re renting your vehicle, according to the Turo website. Turo offers host protection plans at different tiers to cover these types of incidents, along with wear-and-tear reimbursement on eligible vehicles (on some plans), replacement vehicle reimbursements if a car needs repair (on some plans), and other benefits.
The more benefits you opt to be covered by Turo, the smaller your percentage of pay will be — ranging from 60% of earnings for “top-tier protection with the full suite of extra benefits,” up to 90% earnings with a higher deductible and fewer benefits.
Turo retains at least 10% to cover operational costs, marketing and advertising, and the financial responsibility Turo incurs for any potential vehicle damage, according to the website.
Rely on Turo as You Grow
Perez said that the Turo platform provides the information and resources she needs as a busy mom and business owner.
“Turo played a key role in helping me scale my business, giving me more than I could have ever imagined in my first year of being a host on the platform,” Perez said. “One of the best parts about Turo is the unparalleled support it provides to the host community. They truly see us as partners and offer a number of helpful tools and resources to make sure we are set up for long-term success.”
She mentioned Host Tools as one of the resources. The host resource page helps hosts get started, including tips on taking photos to help their cars stand out and how to configure the settings on listings so hosts can work on their own schedule and receive the results they want.
Turo recently announced the capability to create “hosting teams” on the platform, enabling hosts to partner with friends, family members or employees to scale their business more easily. Hosts can create teams within their Turo accounts and allow co-hosts to manage trip functions such as vehicle check-in and check-out, messaging guests and uploading fleet photos, according to a press release recently issued by Turo.
How Much Can a Turo Host Earn?
The Turo website shows that the average Turo host with one car earns an average of $10,516 per year, before tax-deductible expenses such as maintenance, cleaning, insurance and deductibles.
The owner of a three-car fleet earns an average of $31,547, while the owner of five cars earns an average income of $52,579. Build a fleet of nine cars and your income could approach six figures. These numbers were reported on the Turo website and reflect earnings from January 2018 to March 2020.
These income estimates are in line with Perez’s income claims, too. “I was able to grow my business to earn almost $55,000 this year, thanks to the busy holiday season coming up,” she said.
Is Being a Turo Host Worth It?
For Turo hosts, as with many entrepreneurs, the attraction to a business like this is the scalability and flexibility. “Being a host on Turo has allowed me to consistently contribute to my household financially while sticking to my hectic schedule at home,” Perez said.
Of course, being a Turo host requires a functional, desirable vehicle, but it doesn’t have to be a high-end luxury car. It also requires a willingness to work.
“After I drop off my son at school, the rest of my mornings are dedicated to my Turo fleet,” Perez said. “I only have time in the mornings to manage my fleet, but that’s really all I need. The best part about being a Turo host is the flexibility, which allows me to work on my own schedule.”
Perez noted that even on a busy day she spends just two or three hours in the morning managing her fleet. And her business ramped up quicker than some people might imagine.
“In the first month of listing my car, I earned enough on Turo to cover our groceries for the month,” she said. “This was earth-shattering for me after over a decade of being out of the workforce.”
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: I’m a Stay-at-Home Mom Who Turned My Car Into a $55K a Year Income — Here’s How I Did It
