Holiday spending

a note from Tilly Titewad ...

Are you dreading the season of overspending? I sometimes wonder what ever happened to the real spirit of the holidays ~

We all want to have fun and enjoy our friends this time of year, and there are lots of social events to attend, but it takes all the joy out of celebrating if you're still paying for your 2007 & 2008 celebrations in 2009 when it starts all over again. That kind of stress is a real kill-joy!

Try a simple formula that I just discovered ...
1) Spend no more than 1.5% of your annual take-home income this year. For example, if your household's take-home is $62,000, your limit would be $930 (62,000 x .015) - you could round up to $950 for your budget. That limit includes the cost of gifts (+ taxes & shipping), parties, dining out, travel, etc.
2) Pay for purchases with cash or check (except for online or catalog orders where using your credit card affords protections not available if you use your debit card).

The goal is to incur no more debt than you can pay off in two months. If you put the whole $950 on a credit card at 18% interest, you would have to pay $87.10 on just that part of your balance to pay it off in 12 months and that $950 would turn out to cost you $1,045.20. Oops! That means you would not have it paid off before you have to begin spending for next year's holidays. You can do your own calculations using the calculator you find by searching 'amortization schedule' online.

You'll be surprised at your own creativity when you follow the 1.5% rule. Gift giving takes on a whole new meaning.
* What does Uncle Joe really need or want? Maybe he likes to wash his car. Buy a bucket, put in a bottle of his favorite car wash & a mitt. If he can't do it himself any more, you could promise to wash his car on the first Saturday of each month all year long. The visit, the exercise and outdoors, and the holiday gift will all be remembered long after a bottle of Old Spice after shave would have been gone.
* Does Aunt Millie really want another rhinestone brooch? Maybe she'd rather have a manicure. You could wrap her favorite nail polish in a fancy kerchief and add a card promising to do her nails once a month all year. You may find you enjoy the visits more than you ever expected.

I do make some gifts, but only because I want to make them. With the prices of sewing & crafts supplies, it is no longer a cost-saving thing to do like it was when I was a kid.

There are also some online sites for deals and coupons to help with shopping anytime of the year. Everyday stuff like Papa Murphy's pizza, Lowe's, Home Depot, Target, JoAnn Fabrics and lots of others as well as specialty stores ---

http://www.bradsdeals.com/

http://dealnews.com/

http://slickdeals.net/

http://www.fatwallet.com/

http://www.shipgooder.com/ - for shippping cost comparisons. It gives you a spreadsheet to compare various shippers' rates. In the few samples I tried, I found FedEx to be cheaper than the post office.

I've made and retained a list of what we gave to whom for the last ten years. Actually I started the list so I wouldn't repeat last year's gift to any of our ten grandchildren! I look for bargains all year long and stash the presents with the recipient's name and my list for this year.

When 'Black Friday' rolls around, I don't feel compelled to rush out and get trampled in the crowds. If I want to join the fracus, I have a lot of fun doing it because I'm not stressed out trying to buy a cajillion gifts and running up my credit card.

Come February when you have all this year's holiday partying paid off, believe me, it will feel really good. It will feel even better when next year's holidays approach and you realize you're starting without a hangover of last year's debts.

I hope you'll try this budget trick and keep the holiday simple so you can more fully enjoy the holiday spirit with friends and family every year.

Now I'll go fold some paper airplanes from the junk mail we get and call that your Christmas present! ha!ha!

Shopping Season will soon begin ~ ready, set, go!