Christmas Spending, And Getting It Under Control
I read an article recently that pointed to January credit card usage, with a third of British credit card users using their plastic for day-to-day items, including bills and groceries. That kind of credit card usage is defined as financial distress. I was unable to find similar Australian figures, but I wouldn;t be surprised if the pattern had been repeated here. Which leads me to wonder; while Christmas is a wonderful and exciting time of year, surely something has gone awry if it is causing significant parts of our population to be in financial distress the following month? I think it must be possible to celebrate this time of year without getting into debt, and have scoured the web to find some tips to help us achieve that goal.
Shopping List
TorchMedia, a retail marketing company, release figures from a survey last Christmas that suggested 64% of people went to the shops with a shopping list, and 58% made purchases that weren’t on the list. 29% of the group always made purchases that weren’t on their list. So, this year, let’s commit to buying nothing that isn’t on the list. You’ve lost your battle already if your list doesn’t cover everything you need. Work out exactly who you will be buying presents for, and what you will buy them. Then write a grocery list, and work out the costs of both lists. Take enough cash to cover both lists. Whatever can’t be bought within that budget just won’t be bought. For me, I would try and get it over with in one day- the less opportunity I have to be exposed to tempting marketing, the less chance of buying something I can’t afford.
Think About Shopping Online
Shopping online has a couple of major saving offerings- you aren’t likely to buy a coffee to recover from the horror of Christmas stores, you won’t be spending any money on petrol as you drive all around town and you won’t be tempted to buy Santa hats or something else equally annoying as you stand bored in the queue. Search for free shipping, and you could even save on transportation costs. Invest in a debit card that can act as a credit card online to avoid putting any of your purchases on credit.
Buy Early, Buy In Bulk
Buying out of season is always the cheapest way to approach Christmas. 4 weeks out, that bird has probably flown but it’s a great idea to remember for next year. You could use that as your motivation; budget to have enough left over to make some savvy purchases in the first couple of months of next year. As everyone else will be in the same boat as you, why not get together a little cooperative of like-minded amigos and buy in bulk? Christmas dinners are all pretty similar, so invest in big quantities of standard ingredients (or liquor) and make some savings on silly season.
As Little On Credit As Possible
Credit cards make those extra purchases too easy, and they tend to make January too hard. Saving some cash to help with Christmas spending is a necessary step to keeping your festive season spending in check, and making your January a far easier month to endure. Should you need to break out the plastic in order to tide over Christmas presents- not difficult to understand considering we spend $22 billion on Christmas every year- make a pact to not use it after December 25 until the whole thing is paid off in full.
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