Christmas is around the corner, in fact, it’s just 87 days away! It’s a great time to gather with family and have fun but it can easily become a financial burden with the many expenses that can add up quite fast. There’s much advice on ways to save for Christmas, but what if you take another approach? Like saving for Christmas by putting together a foolproof plan that will get you ready for Christmas on Budget, then keep reading!
Do not let Christmas sneak up on you, these Christmas finance tips will help you to save money fast for Christmas. This list will walk you through some tactics you can apply for Christmas as early as September.
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Start Early
The biggest gift you can give yourself is time by starting to plan for your Christmas expenses as soon as possible. If you are highly organized, you can start as soon as Christmas ends from the previous year – usually around January or February.
If you are like most of us who are not early preparation people, then starting around the end of Summer and early Fall might be our best bet.
What exactly will you do when you start? Write out all the things you would like to do during the Christmas Holidays. Will you be traveling to your in-laws? Write that down. Will you be going on vacation? Make note of that. Will you be attending your office’s Christmas party? Copy that. Whatever it is that you will be doing, make a list and get yourself organized.
Next, write out all the tasks you would like to accomplish month by month. For example, if you want to travel for Christmas, ensure your tickets are booked by end of September.
If you are ordering fancy Christmas ornaments, then ensure those orders are completed by mid-October so you have sufficient time to do your Christmas decorations. Assign timelines to each task so you have a work-back schedule to keep you accountable.
Make a Budget
Now that you know what your goals and plans are for Christmas, the next thing you need to do is make a budget. This is where you will determine how much money will go toward your Christmas plans. Budgeting will help you save for Christmas in an easier way.
Use this budgeting system and set the amount you will allocate towards gifts, Christmas food, traveling (flights, etc.), decorations and clothing. Once you’ve allocated the amount you will spend, start by putting aside money now so that you are not faced with a deluge of expenses and end up in excessive credit card debt.
Another cool idea is to open a high-interest saving account and call this account your Christmas savings account. Use this account to save up for all your Christmas expenses and keep it separate from your other bank accounts.
A great way to save extra money is to use the Acorns app, you can check it out here. This can help to keep you accountable and ensure you are on track with your Christmas savings and expenses. This is truly one of the best ways to save for Christmas.
Make a Shopping List
This may be a simple thing to do but you will be surprised at how many people skip this step. It is very important that you make a list of all the people you will be shopping for and the types of gifts you will be buying for them.
Study the price points and see if they are within your price range and if they are more pricey, start saving early to cushion the blow to your finances.
Also, look at ways to consolidate the list, maybe you buy one large gift for an entire family or maybe organize a Secret Santa or gift exchange program.
These can reduce the number of gifts you have to buy while also ensuring that you are giving meaningful gifts that can bless people’s lives. All in all, focus on making a shopping plan and stick to it as much as possible.
Shop During Black Friday
Black Friday is the day after American Thanksgiving and a critical sales day with huge deals on electronics, clothing, and appliances to name a few.
Once you’ve put your list together, then you can go and attack Black Friday sales with confidence! Try to do as much Christmas shopping during this time as possible and save some serious money while purchasing great gifts too.
It also means that you can finish your shopping very early and enjoy your holidays with all the egg nog and gingerbread cookies you can enjoy. Shopping on Black Friday is the best pro-tip and one of my favorite ways to save for Christmas.
Use Store Flyers
That’s right, store flyers will be your go-to guide to ensure that you are saving money on the gifts you will be buying and also saving money for things like Christmas dinner (turkey!). You want to ensure you have collected all the flyers from your favorite retailers, even the local ones you love.
Flyers are in print or electronic form, you can use whichever form you are comfortable with. Take a look at the deals that are available, make a note of them and save money, it’s as easy as that!
I remember saving over $50 on a Christmas gift for a friend because I saw a major deal on a wonderful sweater in a retail flyer. If this is a practice you don’t use, you are losing out. Flyers are the real deal, my friend!
You can use the app, Flipp to help you to look at different flyers, and add your shopping list which will automatically pull up all the deals that are available at any given time on your list. When you look at these flyers, you might see the exact item you are looking to buy on sale. What a treat!
Flyers are a little-known secret that are a very powerful tool to achieve great savings!
Conclusion
These key tips are quick ways to save money for Christmas and will help you to put together a plan that will improve your financial position this Christmas. Apply these easy principles and you will be cruising during Christmas without the January blues of paying for all your Christmas expenses in the new year.
After all, the new year is a time for fresh beginnings and rebirth, not a time to carry over the stresses of the previous year, so get your plan in gear and get cracking today!
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