Find $1,000 by the holidays
October 11, 2009 · Tagged with Banking and Budgeting, Family and Home
Ready or not, the holidays are coming.
With American pocketbooks and investment accounts under pressure, the approaching holidays — particularly how to pay for them — are quickly becoming yet another thing to worry about.
Don’t push this looming dilemma to the back of your minds. You still have plenty of time to start saving some cash to finance your giving this season. After all, now is hardly a good time to wrack up extra debt (not that going into debt for the holidays was ever a good idea). With the instability of today’s job, financial and consumer markets, you shouldn’t do anything that would throw your finances off kilter — and debt certainly increases your personal insecurity.
“Considering the rough economic times in which we’re living, it is critical that consumers control their spending,” says Gail Cunningham, spokesperson for the National Foundation for Credit Counseling. “Paying for purchases with cash is ideal.”
It’s not an unrealistic goal. I’ve collected six simple ideas to illustrate how easy it can be to find extra money in your budget to avoid debt this holiday season. (And you won’t have to eat Ramen noodles by candlelight for the next two months, either.) Employ these tricks for the months of October and November, and you could have $1,000 saved by December:
1. Adjust your tax withholding. The average tax refund last year was about $2,700. If you got a refund, that means you paid Uncle Sam too much money! Keep it for yourself to pad your holiday fund instead. You simply need to change your tax withholding by filing a new W-4 with your employer’s human resources department. The changes will go into effect on your next paycheck.
Two months of savings = $450 (based on the average refund)
2. Take fewer trips to the grocery store. Making bigger shopping trips less often will cut down on your impulse buys. Almost half of all shoppers go to the store three or four times per week. If you spend $10 each trip on impulse buys, that adds up to at least $120 extra each month. Set foot in the grocery store only once a week, however, and you’d keep impulse purchases to $40 per month. That cuts your spending by $80 per month, not to mention all the money you’ll save on gas. Shop with a list and think about what you’ll need for the week in advance.
Two months of savings = $160
3. Kick a habit. Little routines can add up to big bucks. Perhaps it’s those three Cokes a day, your lunches at the sandwich shop next to the office, or your daily runs to your neighborhood coffee shop or workplace vending machine. Instead, bring a bottle of water, snacks and lunch from home — and make your own darn latte! Plus, read your magazines and newspapers online and walk the extra block to your bank’s ATM to avoid paying the out-of-network fee. The trick is to look at your lifestyle and not let small conveniences trump your will to save.
Feeling particularly motivated? Look at bigger habits in your life that are costing you, such as gambling, smoking or even shopping as a hobby.