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Prepare Early for Holiday Spending

Goal Setting: Prepare Early for Holiday Spending

It may seem a bit excessive to prepare for holiday spending in advance. However, budgeting for this particularly expensive time can be a necessity. Here are some key areas to focus on regarding your budget for the holidays:

  • Budgeting for Travel - Traveling around the holidays can be a major expense that may be hard to budget for, as flight prices tend to fluctuate. It can be helpful to budget for a specific amount and then set a plan for when you will buy your ticket to stay within that price range.

  • Accounting for Gifts - When budgeting for gifts, start with what you actually spent last year. Remember to account for all the groups of people for whom you typically buy presents. It’s also good to account for expenses like a $5 or $10 gift card to a local coffee shop or retailer you like, in case someone buys you a present you weren’t expecting.

  • Planning for Celebrations - One of the biggest and maybe most surprising expenses for the holidays are the outfits you may be purchasing for holiday parties. To get a better idea of how much you tend to spend on special holiday clothing, take a look at what you have purchased in previous years.

  • Opening a Savings Account - To avoid overspending during the holiday season, put funds aside in a separate account.

Reassess your spending in all of the above categories to see where you can start cutting back. If you find that the amount required for the holiday is more than you’re planning for, this is a sign to reassess your list. After all, the goal is to have a happy holiday season that doesn’t need to involve stressful credit card debt or overspending.

For more information on preparing for holiday spending, access the full article here: https://illinoistreasurer.enrich.org/articles/preparing-early-for-holiday-shopping-and-travel-spending 

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Useful Links:

  1. https://www.realsimple.com/work-life/money/money-planning/how-to-budget-for-the-holidays
  2. https://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/08/speding-holiday.asp
  3. https://www.thebalance.com/how-to-stick-to-your-holiday-budget-2385688
  4. https://connect.bcbsil.com/health-and-wellness/b/weblog/posts/beat-holiday-stress