Holiday shopping season means a lot of fun! It also means high profits for the merchants and big spending for the customers. Another side of the fun is that often customers fail to plan all their purchases wisely - in advance. Impulsive buying is what may lead to sad financial stories...
Both retailers and consumers are excited about the upcoming holidays. Really so! It all begins with celebrations and happy days but is all (way too often) differently. While the sales industry is happy with all the money it has earned, most of the people remain with huge unpaid bills that need to be paid.
I swore myself thousands of times to pay all the bills in a period of two to three months after the holiday days. But... It always took me about 12 months to be back on track. Sad. Most of us get caught in the circle. This whole situation repeats annually.
The reasonable way out is to prepare a plan of your purchases so as to be ready not to spend too much. This may help you manage your finances.
Credit experts usually advise to select credit cards that you will use during the holiday time. An appropriate credit card deal would be the one with very low interest rates. Moreover, you better not use more money that you can repay in 90 days. The longer the length of the loan is the higher the interest costs usually are.
It is wise to plan your budget monthly - this way you will gradually save up cash for the holiday shopping and avoid collecting debts.
Decide whom you would like to make a resent. Assign some money of your budget for the presents to every person on your present list. Don't go out of the bounds!
Your next step is to make (so to say) a comparison shopping. If you have left enough time for the holidays, this would not be that easy. Use the Internet to compare the prices. It may help you to save some time and save money. Many stores provide 10-25% on certain goods (for instance, decorations) prior Thanksgiving or Christmas. Then decide: what is more important for you - the price or the selection of the products.
Try to put aside your credit cards. Try not to go to the malls. If you are financially unable to buy someone a present, try to make it yourself! This will show how much you care! And save some money.
Don't forget that you can also use all the rewards you have saved up as presents for your family members, relatives, and friends. Many consumer credit cards provide the cardholders with gift certificates and rebates - they all can be used during the holidays!
Let us sum it up. Always (and especially during the holiday shopping season) try not to push yourself into debts. If you will actually manage this - believe me - it will come as a surprise to you that you have so much money left by the end of holidays. Never, never, never let the retailers, shops, malls, temptations get control of your spending, especially credit card spending. Still can't keep your credit card balance under control? Then - call your financial counselor.
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