6 Sensible Holiday Savings Tricks

Sensible Savings Tricks During the Holidays

The holiday season is filled with extra expenses including travel, decor, food, and gifts. The average American spends about $1,000 on holiday expenses. Spending that kind of money at one time can be tough on your budget.

Here are the top six tricks to consider this season:

Plan

Don’t start your holiday spending without some kind of a plan. Make a list of your holiday events and the food, decorations, and travel costs they will include. When creating this list it is important to include all of your typical expenses like gas, mortgage or rent, and daycare. Neglecting your regular monthly expenses can cause an unwanted halt in your holiday spending.

Create your Shopping List

Create your complete list of holiday gift ideas and the stores that sell them. Create a rough estimate for how much each item will cost and a total amount to be spent on all the gifts. Don’t forget to check over your list multiple times to make sure you have not miscalculated.

Sign up for Loyalty Programs

Show your loyalty to your favorite stores and receive great savings for the holiday season. Coupons are handed out like candy around the holidays. Sign up for email savings and deals, sign up for a store loyalty card or sign up to receive mail-out coupons. This will help you save extra money on gifts.

Wait and Watch for Store Deals

Black Friday is not the only day that provides holiday shoppers with great deals. Keep an eye out for different store deals and keep track of how an item’s price varies from store to store. If you aren’t much of a shopper, check out ShopAdvisor; they track down the gifts you are looking for at the lowest price.

Shop Online

One of the best deals you will receive on your holiday shopping is free shipping. Shipping is a cost that not many people remember to include in their budget; however, it can get expensive if you are ordering from multiple sites. Be sure to search for stores that offer not only free shipping, but also free shipping on returns.

Shop with a Holiday Loan

We Florida Financial’s holiday loan is an option to help you get through the holiday season. A holiday loan will give you the opportunity to get everything on your shopping list without neglecting anything important. Use it for the expenses of the season or as a cushion to protect you in case of emergency or if you underestimated your budget.