Twelve days of Christmas finances
Wednesday, 05 December 2007 12:00
This Christmas with high interest rates, the credit crunch, rising food prices and slow wage growth, money will be tighter than ever.
With this in mind Myfinances.co.uk presents our very own 12 Days of Christmas guide to help you through the Yuletide minefield and not suffer a debt hangover.
- On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me... a budget.
The key to not overrunning on spending is to budget. Set yourself a budget and keep to it.
For both food and present shopping set limits on how much you can spend. While it is easy to overspend and get that little extra present, the financial hangover in the new year will hit hard if you can't control your outgoings.
List all the people you need to buy presents for and how much you want to spend on them and stick to it. Set the menu for Christmas dinner and don't be tempted to get one more thing.
- On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me... insurance.
Over Christmas, with all the presents under the tree, the value of your homes contents will rise. Often insurance companies increase your cover for the festive period - but it is important to make sure.
In the new year with expensive gadgets heading most lists, make sure your insurance covers the value of your contents. If you have bought a particularly expensive gift - be it an HD widescreen TV, jewellery or a work of art - it may be necessary to have it insured separately.
If you are heading abroad - with gifts packed away in luggage - it is important to make sure your travel insurance covers the extra cost of the gifts.
- On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... a credit card.
If you paying for you Christmas shopping by credit card, make sure you pay off the balance in full as soon as possible to avoid being stung by the higher interest rates.
It is also worth searching round for a new deal. Some cards will offer interest-free or lower rate periods for balance transfers - although a transfer fee is usually charged. Other cards offer 0% deals for initial spending.
By making sure you pay off the balance by the time the introductory rate expires, you could find a cheap way of spreading the Christmas costs.
- On the four day of Christmas my true love gave to me... the internet.
Shop around, shop around, shop around. Comparison sites such as pricerunner.co.uk or kelko.com allow you to find the best prices for presents - so you can buy online or head down to the high street knowing how to spot a bargain.
You can also use the internet to find the best deals for insurance, loans or credit cards and sort out your finances on the free days off you have over Yuletide.
- On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... savings.
Start saving for Christmas 2008 now. The best way to avoid debt is saving and there are a number of special Christmas savings accounts on the market to help you prepare for the big day.
Saving early - and even buying presents throughout the year - can help bring down the financial sting Christmas can cause.
- On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... a council tax bill.
Even though the pressure is high to pull off a perfect Christmas, don't forget your existing financial commitments.
Skipping paying council tax, rent, mortgage repayments or utility bills could free up some cash in the short-term but come 2008 they will come back with a vengeance.
- On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... booking travel early.
If you are planning to head abroad for Christmas - to escape the dreary weather, see family, or both - then book tickets early as the later you leave it the more you will have to pay.
Also it is worth looking at the prices of two single tickets over a return, as they can be cheaper, or travelling on New Year's Eve to cut down travel costs.
- On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love to me... security.
Long dark nights and empty homes over the Christmas period mean more burglaries happen at this time of the year than any other.
As well as making your home as secure as possible, try not to advertise to thieves, despite the temptation to show off the world your fantastic tree.
Also try to make your home as unfriendly to burglars as possible with security lights, a visible alarm and thorny bushes around vulnerable areas.
After Christmas, don't advertise your gifts by leaving boxes outside your home.
- On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... DIY.
To save cash on Christmas, try to make presents and cards yourself. It need not be all Blue Peter, but a well made cake can be a far more memorable a gift than a DVD. Cards meanwhile are easy to rattle off on a PC at home.
- On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...recycling.
Try to save the planet, as well as a few bob. Recycle as much as possible, and try to save wrapping paper to use next year, as well as awful presents.
- On the eleventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... collectivisation.
Working together with friends and family can really cut the cost of Christmas and mean people find the gifts they really want in their stockings.
Clubbing together with others for a present means you can afford the digital camera, MP3 player or gadget someone really wants - rather than half a dozen gifts that will be forgotten by Twelfth Night.
Also work together with friends and family over food. Make sure everyone brings a course or dish to the dinner, and not just a £4 bottle of wine.
- On the twelve day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... fun.
After all the stress, make sure you have fun. Christmas only comes once a year so make the most of it.
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