EASY WAYS TO STAY OUT OF DEBT THIS HOLIDAY SEASON
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Are you one of those people who finds themselves with extra credit card debt after the holidays?
The holidays are less than 5 months away. Parties, gifts, and food are some of the biggest budget busters.
Now is the time to start planning if you want to stay out of debt this holiday season.
{This post may contain affiliate links, which means that I may receive a commission if you make a purchase using these links. Full disclosure policy.}
#1 CREATE A GIFT LIST
Start making a list of the people you will be getting gifts for and what you’re getting them. Don’t worry if it’s vague just write it down and change it when you think of something specific.
After family and friends don’t forget people you wouldalso like to give gifts to like neighbors, mailman, garbage man, teachers, pets, etc. Even if you plan on making their gifts or giving gift cards include them onyour list.
#2 BUDGET
After you create your holiday giftlist it is time to create a holiday budget. Come up with a grand total of what you would like to spend and divvy it up as you see fit. If your total exceeds your budget make adjustments.
Stay out of debt this holiday season by sticking to your budget. If you end up buying an item for more than you originally budgeted offset it by getting other items on your list for less money.
I know it sounds simple, but if it was, there wouldn’t be so many people going into more debt each holiday season.
#3 SAVE EARLY
With a few months before the holidays, now is the time to start socking away cash each week.
Calculate how much you should be saving each week by taking your total holiday budget and dividing it by the number of weeks left until the holidays.
Example: Let’s say I want to spend a total of $1,000 for the holidays this year. With 20 weeks to go that’s $50 a week.
A holiday fund can be used to cover gift costs, but it can alsobe used to pay for added expenses such as decorations, food, and parties. If these are things you spend a significant amount of money on include them in your budget.
We get our decorations on sale from the year before (there are a bunch of things we buy after Christmas to save money)and since food isn’t a big added expense I don’t include it in our holiday budget/fund.
#4 GIFT-FREE HOLIDAY
I can hear some of you screaming right now. What?! No gifts for the holidays. Who are you?
I love giving and getting gifts, but I love being debt-free more.
We have been fortunate enough to not have to do a gift-free holiday. However, there are HUGE pros to having one.
1) Saving a ton of money
2) Using that “extra” money to pay off existing bills
3) Donating the money to charity instead
4) Focusing more on time together than on material things
5) Not getting gifts that you want to regift 😉
Check out my Guaranteed Ways to Save Money This HolidaySeason post for more money saving tips and alternative gift ideas that are free/cheap.
#5 SHOP EARLY/COMPARE PRICES
Look on Craigslist, Facebook, eBay, and Amazon (free Prime shipping) and start comparing prices.
Buy some of your gifts now and save yourself the headache of waiting until the last minute. Just remember when you buy a gift to mark it on your list so you don’t end up buying another gift for the same person.
The advantage of getting your gifts this early is you can pay for them as you buy them instead of all at once. You can then wrap them and have them ready to go. I’m all about a “less stress” holiday.
Also, don’t wait until the last minute when buying online. Some retailers guarantee shipping, but it’s happened plenty of times where they get bombarded with orders and can’t get the item to you in time. Bummer.
Don’t forget to use Rakuten(see my full Rakuten review) to get free cash back and Groupon if you do any online shopping!
Related posts:
* 6 Bank accounts you should have
* Best things to buy after Christmas
* Gift bag ideas foreveryoccasion
* 10 Websites to make moneyat home
#6 HUSTLE FOR SOME EXTRA CASH
Start earning extra cash by doing online surveys and using your cash back money.
Sell junk you don’t need and save use that money to pay for your gifts so you don’t have to go into debt this holiday season.
Here are several side hustle ideas to make some extra cash before Christmas.
#7 DIY
Make your own holiday decorations, food, gifts.
I made these adorable Hershey Kisses Christmas trees.
Can you sew, knit, bake? Check out YouTube for some easy and cheap gift ideas to make.
#8 MONEY SAVING CHALLENGE
Make saving some extra cash for the holiday season fun with one of these fun money saving challenges.
I have my free money saving coloring page printable here if you want to involve the kids too.
To make the money saving challenge even harder, only spend on gifts what you have saved. This will force you to hustle harder and be more cognizant of your currentspending.
If you really want to stay out of debt this holiday season come up with a proactive game plan instead of waiting until the last minute scrambling around for gifts.
If you’re tight on cash this year, be honest with your family, friends, and yourself. Maybe you can only afford getting gifts for the kids or a Secret Santa for one person instead of 10 this year. Trust me, most people will understand. Some may even be relieved that you brought it up so they can cut back on their holiday gift shopping too.
If you don’t choose to forgo gifts this year, shop early, compare prices, get creative with gift ideas, and save and make extra cash before the holiday bills roll around.
This reminds me, I need to start making my gift list and shopping around soon too 😉
Good luck on scoring some great deals!
Don’t go into debt this Christmas
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