It's not just palatial properties than can earn their keep, people with homes of all shapes and sizes can make additional income - and in some cases it can be particularly lucrative. Read on to see if any of these options could help you top up the piggy bank or pay off those lingering debts. We've ordered them from least disruptive to everyday household life, to ideas that could offer larger returns but may be more intrusive or require a greater commitment.

Rent our your driveway or garage

Anyone can rent out their driveway, garage or parking space but people who live near busy town or city centres, railway stations, or busy leisure attractions can earn the most income. The arrangement is simple enough: as a property owner you advertise your space with a parking space letting agent (similar to an estate agent) who will find a motorist looking for somewhere to park their car in your area. They will also put a contract in place and collect the rent for you (minus the commission they take for the service).

The only downside is you have to be prepared to allow the motorist to park on your drive for either 5 or 7 days a week but if you weren't using it in the first place, then it's not really a hardship. Rental income depends on where you live but the average value of a space (per annum) outside London is £1,019 and £1,848 in London.

Rent our a room or get a lodger

There are a number of options for renting out space within your property - everything from getting in a lodger who could have access to your whole house, to renting a room to a commuter from Monday to Friday (leaving your home solely for family at weekends). Another option is offering lodgings to a language student during terms times - a middle ground where you provide accommodation for blocks of 10-12 weeks.

A year round lodger can bring in over £90 per week, a weekday renter would bring in 60-70% of that and a language student could earn a household anything from £70 to £150. However in the case of the student lodgings you are generally responsible for cooking their meals and helping them enjoy family life. Some colleges and universities do offer the landlord a certain amount of money to cover these expenses.

Let a room as an office

The best types of rooms to let are those that are stand alone from your main property. Outbuildings, converted garages, barns or unused granny-annexes can all be rented out and are especially popular with entrepreneurs just setting up in business or freelancers who just want to get out of their own home. As long as there is access to power, the tenant will tend to bring their own furniture and equipment and they won't need access to your whole house. Rental income varies on location and facilities but if the space was lying idle you could look at it as money for nothing. Typically you will earn less than renting out a room to a lodger and don't forget they'll also need somewhere to park every day.

Rent our your home as a TV or film set

Fancy your house as the next Pride and Prejudice 'Pemberley'? Well most of us would but you don't need acres and acres or a butler to rent out your house as a film or TV set. In fact a house can also be used for shooting advertising commercials or even to set the scene for product or stills photography. You can register with a number of agencies and when your home is selected, the introducer takes a commission.

You can make upwards of £500 a day for stills and £1,000 for film and TV because this type of work tends to be more intrusive with a large crew on location. You may also have to vacate your property pretty quickly and you need to be tolerant of large numbers of people coming and going.

Turn your home in to a B&B

This is a great option for you if you can't afford the upkeep of a larger property but if you don't want to downsize yet: you can continue to enjoy your home by sharing it with visitors.

The downside is that there is often quite a steep initial outlay for property alterations but if you need to make additional income over the long term this can be highly successful. Always check with your local planning department before starting work and if you have a mortgage you'll need to check with your mortgage provider too. Once your property is an approved B&B, you'll need to allocate budget for marketing the property too.

Always thoroughly research the opportunities available in your area before progressing with any of the ideas listed above. In particular you should try to speak to people who are already doing it - there is nothing like first hand experience. Finally, always seek financial advice from a regulated financial advisor or tax planner as you may need to declare some or all of your income from these schemes.