See for example the hilarious scene in Angel season 3 where Angel tries to do just that.
Season 7 spoiler:
Didn’t seem to slow Nikki down.
Porn website. She and the scoobies could wear masks, or Willow could cast spells to disguise them.
I don’t think that the teaching self defense thing would work.
“If attacked, simply do a back flip over tehm , thow them against the wall, smash a piece of furniture to make a stake while they are recovering, thrust it through the heart. All done”
It just isn’t that useful for the average non-super hero. It’s kind of like the temporarily mortal Q’s advice in ST:TNG - all you have to do is change the gravitational constant of the universe.
“I could ride you at a gallop until your legs buckled and your eyes rolled up. I’ve got muscles you’ve never even dreamed of. I could squeeze you until you popped like warm champagne, and you’d beg me to hurt you just a little bit more.”
I stand by my “hooker” suggestion. 
According to a number of offers I’ve been emailed and seen stapled to telephone poles, there are a number of high-paying jobs available that you can do from home whenever you want. Perhaps Buffy should look into those.
“Have you ever considered law enforcement?”
Two words: Ponzi scheme
Buffy Summers, Tomb Raider.
Selkie That actually leads us to a feasible way Buffy could support herself- taking the assets of those she slays. Kokistos was ancient. He seems to have gained a lot of wealth in that time. If the slayers didn’t take it, somebody like Mr Trick would. What did Glory and her servitors own? There’s even an episode in which she slays a group of vampires living on the UC Sunnydale campus, and asks about taking their stuff.
way back in season four, Spike unearthed a chamber containing the Gem of Amara and a lot of other nifty stuff. Buffy should of fenced the other nifty stuff.
… and given that her mother had (owned? worked at?) an art gallery and her Watcher was part owner of the Magic Box, Buffy would have had easy access to channels through which to sell some of those treasures.
The obvious argument against that sort of scheme is that many of the objects had mystical powers and shouldn’t have been released into general circulation. To quote Giles in “Dead Man’s Party”:
Buffy didn’t know about the other nifty stuff. She wasn’t with Giles (and Willow and Xander, IIRC) when it was found, and it’s unknown if she ever learned of it.
Giles didn’t own the Magic Box until S5. Prior to her mother’s death, Buffy had no need of her own income, and after her mother’s death Buffy wasn’t around for too much longer herself, and had other priorities. By the time Giles returned, it’s perhaps understandable that the first thing on his mind wasn’t Spike’s treasure cave.
That was Faith.
Yes, SMG said the lines. But it was Faith.
Me, too. I thought it was wrong that Buffy had to get a job at DMP just to pay the bills, when she was already expected to work a full time job keeping the world safe. I mean, what would have happened if she lived long enough to graduate college and get a day job? What if she were a lawyer? Would she be expected to leave a trial because some demon was rampaging through the local shopping mall? If so, then the council should also be paying her for her time. Just because someone is Chosen doesn’t mean they also don’t have bills to pay.
That was always something that bothered me disproportionate to the fact that it was just a TV show.
Capture a vamp ‘alive’. Convince him to give up name, address, credit card number, etc. Raid his accounts. Repeat when necessary.
RE: the Council and Buffy’s bills
She made it pretty clear that she was no longer working for the Council - they were working for her. That’s the only way that she was able to get them to give her info about Glory. So, whle she got Giles his job back, with back-pay, it didn’t seem to me that she got her “job” back. They are clearly her independant contractors in the field of specialized demon research.
If they’re not going to have a pet Slayer, why should they pay her bills?
Actually, I always thought she’d make a pretty good teacher, but there’s that erratic work schedule thing. Perhaps a fashion buyer or stylist? She always knew where to find stylish yet affordable boots.
Well, when she got Giles hired back it was as “my official Watcher,” which strongly implies that she’s working for the Council. That was in episode 12, and Joyce was still alive so Buffy wasn’t in serious need of a Slayer stipend. Very little time passed between Joyce’s death and Buffy’s (six episodes, the last four of which all take place in the span of about two days) so money probably wouldn’t have become an issue assuming Joyce had any savings at all.
What about becoming a street performer?
Given Buffy’s speed, agility, and coordination, I’m certain she can quickly learn to juggle knives while riding a unicycle. The weather in Sunnydale is warm year round (remember everybody’s surprise at the snow in the Christmas episode that introduces the First Evil.). This job would give Buffy an excuse to wander around town. It would also provide her with an excuse to carry weapons and stakes.
Doesn’t change the fact that it was Buffy’s body. After what she did to Spike later on (“When did the building fall down?”) I repeat my previous.