Budget

“‘Tis the season to be jolly,” goes the old song, but for many of us, ’tis the season to go in debt and feel financial strain.

You might have thought that the days of resisting peer pressure ended in high school.  However, if everyone around you is spending elaborately for the holidays–for presents, decorating, and parties–you may feel the pressure to do the same, which can pack a painful punch to your wallet.

There is nothing worse than the holiday spending hangover that hits in January when you get that large credit card bill.

However, every December doesn’t have to be a financial strain if you begin implementing steps to rein in your spending.

7 Strategies to Manage This Year’s Holiday Spending

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Yes, it is only just Fall and the leaves are barely starting to change color but before any of us realize it, the snow will be on the ground and Jingle Bells will be playing at the mall (OK, the holiday music will start once Halloween is over).

Budgeting for Christmas shopping now may sound like a chore but it can be the life line you need to avert debt.

Typically when a person goes Christmas shopping and there is no budget, then this gives the illusion of having no limits – and no limits often leads to January credit card bills that hurt.

I’ve heard people talk about how they counted on getting a big tax refund in order to pay for the previous holidays.  Is that you?  That doesn’t sound like healthy finances to me.  It doesn’t have to be that way.

According to a survey from PricewaterhouseCoopers, the projected household spending for this coming holiday season is $684.  Do you have that in your savings, ready to spend on gifts?  Some people do.  A lot of people don’t.  And where they tend to turn to are credit cards (read: debt).

Designing a budget helps you to avoid that steep downhill in January; and this helps to keep the happiness of the holidays lasting well into the new year.

Read on and I’ll walk you through the steps you need to make so you can budget for the holidays now.  This way you have the money you need to pay for the gifts you want.

How to Budget for Christmas Holiday Shopping So You Don’t Go Broke
[Read more…] about How to Budget for Christmas Shopping – Your Guide to Survive the Holiday Season

For most of our married life, my husband and I have had a very tight budget.

When we were first married and living in an area with a high cost of living (the near suburbs of Chicago), we had $24,000 in student loan debt and $10,000 in credit card debt from getting my Master’s degree and a year of working adjunct until I could get a full-time job.  My husband was not working (he was a graduate student and was volunteering in a business related to his field), and I was making a mere $34,000 gross a year.

Every single purchase was carefully analyzed.

Paying for Christmas presents required a few months’ worth of careful savings, and we made our money stretch by carefully shopping deals and discounts.  We spent a lot of time at home, and our entertainment came from the library for free.

About five years into our marriage, I had almost doubled my salary, and my husband was bringing in a small income as a Ph.D. teaching assistant.

We didn’t have to be so careful with our money, so we weren’t.  We bought things we didn’t need (that we later sold at a garage sale), and we went out to eat several times a week.  Besides having more material things, we were no further ahead than we were at the beginning of our marriage.

And now that we have three kids and I have quit my full-time job to raise them, we’re right back to a super tight budget, just as we were when we were married.

Only this time, I welcome the super tight budget because it’s teaching me to be a better money manager.

The Benefits of a Tight Budget – 6 Reasons It Will Make You Better With Your Money

[Read more…] about Why a Tight Budget Will Make You Better With your Money – 6 Benefits