The festive season is upon us and that means the pressure to spend is on. While we don’t want to turn you into Scrooge, it’s important not to overspend, especially if you are currently saving up for something more important like buying a new home or for something you really want, like a dream holiday. In this article we will be sharing some tips on how to manage your spending this Christmas and avoid dipping into those savings that you’ve worked so hard to build.
Create a gift list and budget
The first step to avoiding financial stress at Christmas time is to create a budget and a gift list. Be honest with yourself about how much you are comfortable spending. Then work out how many people you want to buy gifts for. This will help you understand approximately how much you want to spend on each gift. This will then encourage you to be creative in your gifting to ensure you stay within budget while still buying gifts that your loved ones will enjoy and appreciate. Keep the budget and the list with you as you do your shopping to help make sure you are not distracted.
Put your savings out of reach
If you are worried that you will find yourself dipping into your savings, you can always find ways to make that money ‘unreachable’. A straightforward way to do this is to put money into a Fixed Term Deposit, even if just for a short period of say three months. That way, you’ll know that over the festive season you won’t be able to spend that money and you’ll even earn a little bit of interest in the meantime.
Out with the old, in with the new
This Christmas, rather than spend money, maybe you could make some. Perhaps you can sell some of the presents you received last year and haven’t even used yet? Or maybe there are items in your house that you no longer use that would make a great gift for someone else? Let’s be honest, we’ve all got stuff lying around that’s in good condition but just don’t use. Why not sell it to someone who needs it and use the money to fund your festive gift buying and celebrations?
Give the gift of saving
If you’ve got children or grandchildren, Christmas could be a good time to introduce them to the benefits of saving. Maybe you can give them a money box and set up a challenge for them to save their pocket money during the year so you can all do something special together later in the year, or even next Christmas.
No matter how you choose to celebrate this upcoming festive season, MeDirect wishes you and your loved ones all the best. If you need any support, you can contact us here.
MeDirect Bank (Malta) plc, company registration number C34125, is licensed by the Malta Financial Services Authority to undertake the business of banking in terms of the Banking Act (Cap. 371). The Bank is a participant in the Depositor Compensation Scheme established under the laws of Malta.
