The holidays are the same time every year, but they always seem to sneak up on us.
This year don’t get caught without a plan. Holiday shopping doesn’t have to break the bank, especially if you start planning throughout the year. Here are some tips for planning holiday shopping before the holiday season.
1. Open a Christmas Savings Account
One way to offset the amount of money spent on Christmas is to save for Christmas shopping throughout the year. You can create a Christmas envelope and add $5 every pay period or open a savings account specifically for the holidays. Like Camino’s Christmas Club account that automatically deducts from one of your Camino accounts throughout the year. It goes into an account and accrues dividends that will be waiting for you when the holiday season arrives. By putting small amounts of money to the side during the year you can have extra money saved when the holidays arrive.
2. Save That Spare Change
An underrated, but effective way to plan for the holidays is by saving spare change. By taking advantage of apps that automatically round up every dollar you spend and save it you can put aside a good amount of money for holiday shopping.
3. Purchase Gifts Through the Year When They Are on Sale
If you catch a good clearance sale during the year don’t hesitate to stock up on gifts! A great way to plan ahead for the holidays is to pick up gifts for those extra, unexpected Christmas gifts that throw off your Christmas budget. Gifts for teachers, family friends, and colleagues are great to buy in bulk, in advance when they are on sale.
4. Plan Out your Gift List Early
By planning out your gift list early (and being very specific) you can create a gift budget. This allows you to start shopping or saving now if you know how much you have to spend. For instance, if you decide to buy your 2 children each 4 items that total $100 each you‘ll know to save $200 or spread that spending over the months leading up to the holidays!
Having good finances really boils down to one thing – planning. Developing a plan for your finances can help you avoid making financial mistakes that are hard to recover from. Even if that mistake is overspending on holiday gifts! To learn more about our Christmas Club, or other ways to plan your financial future contact us online or call us at 800-835-3400. We are here to help you on your financial journey.