The festive season is almost here, which means plenty of generous gift-giving and indulging. It is easy to succumb to spending too much and overindulging during Christmas, but this can lead to substantial financial setbacks and debt in the New Year. Enjoy Christmas as an opportunity to spend time with loved ones but be sure not to incur financial stress.
To avoid the stress of a financial hangover during Christmas, start your financial planning as early as possible with these critical tips to avoid excessive spending and ensure you start the New Year with sufficient savings and a reinvigorated mindset.
Set a realistic budget and adhere to it!
It is easy to go overboard when buying gifts and not keeping track of your spending, especially when leaving it to the last minute. An essential tip is to note any imminent non-Christmas-related expenses such as food, bills, rent, or significant social events and apportion the money needed for these items. Subsequently, create a list of the people you will be buying gifts for and any potential spending on drinks, food, etc., required for Christmas. Using the remaining money in your budget, allocate the amount that you ideally want to spend on each individual or item and adhere to that plan.
Having a budget facilitates the simplicity of tracking your spending habits and making a more financially beneficial decision to save you money in the long run. You must continue to track your expenses throughout the holiday period and adhere to the limits of your budget to the best ability, to avoid overspending.
Pay with cash, not credit
Try to pay for all your expenses with YOUR money. Whether via cash or a debit card linked to your savings account. In doing this, you won’t fall into a debt trap which will assist in avoiding the financial aftermath in the New Year.
If you are prone to thoughtlessly tapping your card, leave the card at home and instead, bring cash.
If you must pay with a credit card, be sure to settle the balance in full as fast as possible in the New Year so that it does not build up and consequently create a problem.
Reduce your spending in other areas
If you need more money for gifts and social events throughout the festive season, review your budget and find the areas where you could reduce spending throughout December.
It is also beneficial to start setting aside money, to use in the Christmas period, in your monthly budget as early in the year as you can. By doing this, you may not have to sacrifice other expenses in December.
Buy now, do not pay later
Avoid ‘buy now, pay later‘ payment options, as there will always be an eventual financial cost. Such services make it easy to accrue debt, which is the initial step to a terrible financial aftereffect in the New Year.
Extend your spending
Do not leave your Christmas shopping until the last minute. Instead, stagger your expenditures in the weeks and months proceeding Christmas to decrease the financial strain.
Planning and commencing your Christmas shopping in advance can also save money when you shop for specials and deals in the weeks leading up to Christmas. Such as the Black Friday or Cyber Monday sales.
*The content of this article provides a general guide to the subject matter. You should seek specialist advice about your specific circumstances.
Vogue Advisory Group – how we can help with your spending
If you have questions, don’t hesitate to contact us and discuss them with our team here at Vogue Advisory Group.
Vogue Advisory Group can help. Our multi-disciplinary financial professional team provides a comprehensive suite of services, supported by our alliance partners, to provide trusted advice and deliver the transformation our clients seek.
Contact us if you require our assistance, and one of our financial advisors can help you.
