5 Tips on Saving Money for the Holidays

Written by: Julie Leonor, Senior Finance/Benefit Specialist

The year is dwindling down and so are our pockets from all the holiday shopping. With everything that is purchased, from holiday gifts to holiday decorations, saving money becomes hard to do without proper preparation. Here are some quick tips on how you can keep your expenses down. 

1.  Creating a Budget: Creating a budget is the perfect way to start off the holidays and prevent overspending. Know how much money you have available, and spend within your means. With that magical budget amount, you will become more mindful when you begin making your purchases. 
2. Do Not Procrastinate: When you procrastinate on your holiday shopping, you are prone to spend more. Due to time constraints, you have less of an opportunity to do any price comparisons and/or search for available coupons, thus your purchase becomes more expensive. Giving yourself that extra time can save you some much needed cash.       
3. Shop for Sales: Retailers want to start off the holidays with a boost in their revenues, therefore they drastically slash prices to lure in customers like you. During these events, bundle deals are also available, so take full advantage of these low prices while you can.       
4. Online Shopping:  Shopping online saves on time, gas and money. Have you ever heard of opportunity cost? Time is money and especially with our busy schedules today, the possibility to make a purchase with a click of the mouse is invaluable. Along with lower pricing, websites such as Amazon.com and Zappos.com also offer free shipping and no sales tax on a majority of their merchandise! Initially, it may not appear to be much, but depending on your city’s sales tax rate, you can see an instant savings of 8 – 10%.
5. Stock-Up:  After the holidays, many stores have a surplus of holiday items that they need to get off their shelves. With this, you can see significant savings of up to 75%. Items such as gift wrap, gift boxes, and ornaments can become a nuisance to your wallet, yet they are all purchased with little evaluation. Stocking up these items for the next year will save you bundles!