You don’t have to rack up a huge credit card bill or go into debt to cover your holiday expenses. Enjoy a financially stress-free season with these six tips:
1. Create a Detailed List of all Your Expenses
Draw up a list of every holiday expense you anticipate. Include all gifts, décor, travel expenses and donations. Try to keep it as trim as possible by cutting out non-essentials and using stuff you may have in storage from previous years.
2. Determine How Much Money you can Spend
Work on finding a magic number that will cover everything on your list and that you can realistically afford. Ideally, this money should come from funds you’ve set aside just for this purpose.
3. Divide and Conquer
Next, assign specific amounts of money in your budget for each expense category and for every person on your gift list. Again, make sure your numbers will work from both a financial and practical perspective.
4. Track as You Shop
As you shop, keep careful account of exactly how much money you’ve spent for each person and in each expense category. Review your budget often to make sure you’re staying on track.
To make this job easier, try out
Azura's Money Management program within your Online Banking or Azura mobile app. It allows you to easily see your budget and spending - across ALL your accounts.
5. Shop Smartly
Keep your spending to a minimum with these hacks:
- Shop online on Tuesday morning. Research shows this time of week is when you’ll find the hottest online deals.
- Partner with a friend. Take advantage of BOGO sales by splitting the cost of a single item with a friend and each of you taking one item.
- Shop late. Prices actually fall in the weeks leading up to special shopping days as retailers get ready to clear out their holiday inventory.
6. Let Azura Credit Union Help
There are several ways Azura Credit Union can take the financial stress out of the holiday season:
- Skip-a-Payment. We get it. The holidays can be expensive. That’s why we allow qualifying members to skip one payment on certain loans all year round without hurting their credit or defaulting on their loan. Learn more now.
- Personal Loan. If you can’t come up with the funds you need for the holidays, consider taking out a Azura Credit Union Personal Loan. Our interest rates are typically better than a credit card - learn more now.