Expert Advice When You Need It Most

7 Ways To Avoid Holiday Debt

Written by: Timothy George McFarlin

Contributor Level 12

Bankruptcy Credit Card Debt

Posted about 2 years ago. 3 helpful votes, 0 comments

Save

Share with:

Save up

Spending cash instead of using credit for your holiday purchases allows you to avoid holiday debt all together. Of course this is pretty obvious, but planning for the holiday season early means setting money aside for holiday purchases. Start as early in the year as possible.

Set a budget before you shop

Setting a spending limit and sticking to it will keep you from overspending. Be disciplined and don’t go over your budget, no matter what.

Make a list with a dollar figure

Santa makes a list, so should you. It may seem like it takes the fun out of holiday shopping to boil down each person on your list to a dollar amount, but unfortunately it has to be done. People appreciate simple and meaningful over expensive and useless.

Don't Shop for Yourself

Avoid the “one for you, one for me” shopping mindset. You’ll end up spending double. Save yourself for the post-holiday sales.

Ignore Sales

More often than not, they’re not really sales at all. Retailers use sales to sell more product and make more money, it’s a way to get you to buy more, not spend less. Stick with the list.

Shop Online

The internet makes it easy to shop around. It also makes it harder to buy on impulse. Since most retailers have everything in the store on their website these days, it just makes sense to compare prices and shop online.

Leave your credit cards at home

If you do go to the mall do so without your credit cards. If you must use credit for your purchases, pick one credit card and stick to your spending budget.