Stretch Your Holiday Budget

member benefits

5 Smart Ideas to Stretch Your Holiday Budget

Courtsey of NEA Member Benefits

The holidays can be tough on an educator’s wallet, but with these 10 tips, you can give more and spend less. If you’re tempted to apply for a loan to finance the winter holidays, you’re not alone. Individual shoppers spent an average of over $805 during the 2015 season, according to the National Retail Federation. Where did it all go? An estimated $480 was spent on gifts for family members and $110 on gifts for friends; nearly $119 on food; just under $80 on decorations; about $45 on flowers and about $38 on greeting cards, among other goodies. All of that can add up to a major burden on an educator’s salary. Consider these budget-friendly tips to take the sting out of your holiday spending:

1. Be an informed shopper. 3. Stock your wallet with big bills.

The only way to know if you’re getting a good price on a good product is to do your research. These days, people shop in several stages. Sometimes we research online, then go to a store to make a purchase. Other times, we browse in stores, then search online for better prices.

There are some great tools to help you hunt down the best price either way: Comparison-shop on sites such as PriceGrabber.com and Shopzilla.com, or use apps such as ShopAdvisor in-store. Those kinds of apps let you scan barcodes, see online and local prices, and read reviews—all while you’re in the store. You can even sign up to have an email alert sent to you when your desired price is met. Before hitting the “buy” button on your online purchase, search the retailer name and “promotional code” to find limited-time discounts posted by websites like CouponCabin. com. Many warehouse stores sell them for well under their redemption value, says shopping expert Andrea Woroch, who appears on network shows such as Today, Dr. Oz and Good Morning America. “There’s also an entire secondary marketplace online. GiftCardGranny.com, for example, markets cards from [major] holiday retailers, with savings that average 10 percent,” she says. Restaurant.com certificates are one of the most popular deals at NEA Click & Save. Keep an eye out for when the prices drop to $4 for a $25 certificate! This sounds counterintuitive, but having large denominations in your wallet has been proven to limit spending habits. “People are more reluctant to break up large bills than small ones,” says consumer finance expert Kevin Gallegos, vice president of Phoenix operations for Freedom Financial Network, “so pack $50s in your wallet rather than $20s and $10s.”

4. Shop based on value, not a predetermined

2. Buy gift cards for less than face value.

amount.

It’s good to designate spending limits for each immediate family member and others on your “nice” list. But keep in mind that this is a ceiling, not a quota. You still can give that much value in a present while staying well under your limit.

“Let’s say you find an amazing sweater that you know would normally go for $49.99, but it’s on sale during the holidays for under $30,” says Mary Hunt, author of “Debt-Proof Your Christmas” and founder of DebtProofLiving.com. “Don’t assume you have to spend another $20 on your sister to meet a preconceived requirement that you must spend the full $50 you allotted. Your mission is complete.”

Create and manage your shopping list, including maximum budget amounts, in present-tracking apps such as GiftPlanner and mGifts.

5. Let the sales come to you.

Sign up for emails and texts from your favorite retailers and comparison-shopping websites to be alerted to steep holiday discounts.

Through NEA Member Benefits, you can sign up for receive “Season’s Savings” emails, stuffed with great special discounts for MEA/NEA members, from mid-November through mid-December.