I can't explore to find better pay either, or I won't make the payments... what can I do here?
I haven't played the game in all seriousness for a couple of months already, and I don't know how much has changed, but here's what I'd typically do in any of my normal runs.
1. Immediately go to the beach, dress in swim clothes, swim to the rocks, dive into the pool and just go to the end even if breath runs out. Get the coin, then enter cave and just exit it right away so that you don't pass out on the way back. Easy 2000 at the museum.
*Once your athletics and history are leveled sufficiently, you can explore the cave to obtain more things to sell at the museum & get a decent reward for going all the way to the end.
2. Before week's end, go barefoot into the sewer (ordinary shoes reduce swim %) and collect the 5 relics. These regenerate every week and are worth 500 at the museum, I think. This is one of the easiest sources of weekly income with the least time investment attached to it.
3. Although slow, obtaining seeds, growing and selling flowers once you obtain a bunch, is a decent way to get a little bit of extra income.
The above are all what I consider to be "neutral" in terms of obtaining money without any real commitments. No need to slut yourself out, steal, or commit most of your awake time to grinding the pittance they give you at the starting jobs, unable to do anything else.
4. Working at the farm can be very productive, even though I find it to be mind numbingly dull, especially the commute.
5. Skullduggery is always easy. Just steal everything that isn't bolted down. Start with the school lockers and move on from there to the Domus Street houses, and so on...
6. Selling your services at various establishments is easy enough.
7. Monthly temple gibs are pretty self explanatory. Just stay a virgin and keep the temple in good order and your grace high and you'll get some good pocket change, forgot how much it was. I think the max is 4000?
8. Avery's weekly dates. Roam the streets every weekend for a chance to encounter Avery after triggering your first meeting with them (School science project - Lichen at park). Just suck yourself up to them, literally and figuratively and you'll get a pretty penny for your effort.
9. By repeatedly working as a waiter at the cafe and choosing the selfless options when dealing with customers, you eventually become able to replace the chef and create cream buns. The cream, is of course your own, regardless of your gender. And for whatever reason, the people can't get enough of it. If you have the right traits (like whatever the endless libido and breast milk things are), you can make over 1000 or more per day, I forgot.
All of these things pile up and eventually money becomes just a hassle, not a real worry.