How to Minimize or Avoid Holiday Debt

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We just mentioned how some people are still paying off last year’s holiday splurges. LowCards.com has a story on avoiding spending mistakes this year. Here’s a few of their tips…

1) Make a budget and a shopping list. Start with what you spent last year and then keep a record of all gift purchases and holiday expenses–from postage stamps to the food for the office party. It is hard for shoppers to make a budget and easy to underestimate their spending. The average holiday shopper will spend $749 on gifts, according to a survey by the National Retail Federation. The survey shows that people will spend $421 on children, parents, and other relatives, $75 on friends, $23 on co-workers, $28 on others, $100 on food and candy, $28 on greeting cards and $19 on flowers.

2) Change your shopping habits now before you get into the spirit of the season. If you can’t afford to pay off your credit card in November, then you can’t afford to add a lot more to it in December. Generosity to friends or the perfect gift for the family are not good reasons to put yourself deeper into debt. If you must use a credit card to pay for Christmas, make sure you can pay it off by Easter.

3) The best way to stick to your budget and avoid impulse spending is to pay in cash. Pulling cash out of your wallet or purse and handing it to someone else is painful, and a reminder that the less you spend, the more you can keep.

Find several more pieces of advice at the link above, plus our recent stories on holiday shopping below.

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