As we approach the festive season, you’ll find yourself tempted to spend a lot more money than you actually have. And even though it feels like a very special time of year, it’s definitely not worth it to be spending hundreds and hundreds of pounds on your loved ones. As much as they may deserve it, the last thing you want to do is start spending above and beyond of what you can afford. So if you’re after some tips on how to help manage your spending this Christmas, then read on!
*This is a sponsored post with Colony Associates.
Have A Strict Budget
Budgeting is something I swear by and our household has a budget sheet that we now have started using for both of us to help track our spending habits. When you’ve got it all down in front of you and you see how much you’re spending each month, you definitely see the impact that it’s having on your finances. Christmas is a time of year that becomes a time where lots of us like to get tap-happy with our debit and credit cards. Creating a strict budget for every element of the festive holidays are important because not only do you need to factor in gifts but you also need to think about travel, if you’re visiting family, food and drink. Depending on how much you earn, you only wanting to be spending about 20-30% of your monthly wages on presents and other things that are needed over the Christmas period. Christmas can certainly be done on a budget and that doesn’t mean it can’t be a lavish Christmas either. Set a budget to spend on each of your family and friends and limit this depending on their age and perhaps group it into one present if it’s for a couple. It means you can get away with spending a little less.
Keep The Credit Card Locked Away
The credit card, although helpful at times, can be dangerous. Especially when you’ve got a lot of credit on there to spend, it can be tempting to put everything on your credit card and then to pay it back at a later date. Credit cards can make you forget about being in debt in the first place and then you end up spending more than you can afford, not factoring in the payments you have to make back on the credit card. A wise decision that can be made over the festive period is to lock this card away and to ensure it never sees the light of day until the new year. If it’s in your purse, it’s there to tempt you and if you’ve saved it online to use, it can also be so easy to pay via that method. Try to keep it under lock and key as best that you can and only use it in an emergency. An emergency is not a Christmas present by the way. I’m talking, boiler breaking down or pest problem emergency. Something that’s likely to cost a lot of money and perhaps you’d rather wait till the new year for paying it back.
Use Colony Associates For Existing Debt
Debt can start to accrue pretty quickly and if you’re not careful, it can be all-consuming. We all have debt at some point in our life and although it can be a bad thing, sometimes it’s good to owe money to help with your credit score. A company like Colony Associates helps priortise their client’s needs with offering a single low monthly payment. When we have debt all over the place, it can be handy to take control and to get it all within eyesight so that you can work on paying it all off. When you’ve got debt as a household, it’s always good to talk about this with your partner and to discuss what things you can put in place in order to pay off the debt as soon as possible. It’s not fair to suffer in silence and you never know which family members or friends may be willing to help out in order to get you back into the black. Sometimes, it can take some guidance from others to help navigate through debt.
Cash In Your Loyalty Points Where Possible
Loyalty points are likely to be something you have with a number of companies. I myself have a few from places like Nandos, Boots and Virgin. Using these can help to literally save you money because you’re redeeming points that you’ve already saved up and can spend on purchasing vouchers or products in-store. Saving up throughout the year is worthwhile and then when Christmas comes around, you then have all of this credit available to spend. Cash in those loyalty points because there’s likely to be at least one family member who’ll appreciate it and if not, then maybe it can be a festive gift for yourself.
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Avoid Overdrafts With Interest
Overdrafts can be the worst thing to have when you are spending a lot of money and then having owe someone for that extra money you’ve spent. With an overdraft, there’s usually fees attached to that account and depending on how much of an interest-free overdraft you have, you could end up spending a lot of money. Aim to avoid overdrafts where you can and instead, opt for putting that extra money you don’t have on a credit card. That way, the majority of credit cards are interest-free and won’t charge you for not paying it back straight away.
Saving money and budgeting is essential over Christmas and even though it’s tempting to spend, spend, spend, you can help yourself to reduce the amount you spend. Use these tips to help with creating a budget that you can manage, help sort out existing debt with Colony Associates and avoid those overdrafts where you can.
Have you got any budgeting tips for Christmas? Let me know in the comments below.
*Disclaimer – This is a collaborative post with Colony Associates. All words are my own.
