Recycling paid off: Man buys his dream home with bottle return cash
Damian Gordon, 36, from New South Wales, Australia was able his two-bedroom house after seven years of saving his money earning from a similar initiative in Australia.
The new homeowner began to take recycling seriously when he noticed so much rubbish on the beach during his walks. The Deposit Return Scheme can be a bit of a nuisance, but what if I told you it was possible to buy a house out of your earnings? Pic: Sam Boal/RollingNews.ie
Sharing his story on That's Life, he admitted he found it 'impossible to ignore' and was spurred on my the Return and Earn scheme in his area.
The scheme paid out 10c for every can returned, as well as glass bottles and plastic containers.
Damian recalled how he made it his mission to collect rubbish during his walks and then had the idea of going to festival grounds after the events to collect empties. Damian recalled how he made it his mission to collect rubbish during his walks and then had the idea of going to festival grounds after the events to collect empties. Pic: Shutterstock
One 2017 festival saw Damian and other volunteers collecting 40,000 recyclable containers, resulting is an earning of $4,000 (€2,273).
Realising he was making money from the scheme, Damian sought out to use the earnings for a house deposite and managed to save $20,000 (€11,369) within the first three years.
Damian revealed the sum of earnings 'spurred' him on to continue with his endeavour. Damian has since bought his very own house with the savings from recycling along with a little bit extra. Pic: Shutterstock
Last January marked seven years since Damian began his savings fund, earning $45,000 (€25,000) from it.
Damian has since bought his very own house with the savings from recycling along with a little bit extra.
He has been able to find other treasures out and about for his home such as a fridge, microwave and a juicer.
The new homeowner has confirmed he doesn't plan on stopping collecting containers any time soon, noting mortgage repayments are 'coming hard and fast.'
He told the publication he is now 'paying off my dream home, one bottle at a time.'
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