Are You Worried About Christmas Debt?

It is not unusual for consumers to put part or all of Christmas on credit cards  And unfortunately, with layoffs, cutbacks at work and lack of Christmas bonuses many consumers will be accumulating Christmas debt this year.  And while it is always in your best interest to only spend cash at Christmas, there are still things that you can do keep credit card debt under control so that you aren’t in a panic come January.

One difference between shopping with credit cards and cash is accountability.  For example, if you go Christmas shopping with cash you know that you have a set amount to spend so you are going to try to stretch that as far as you can.  You will also be less likely to impulse shop.  With credit cards it is too easy to go over your budget and fall into the Christmas debt trap since you wont be paying until later.

If you have no other alternative but to shop with credit cards this Christmas  then  be sure to treat them just like you would cash and shop smart by sticking to your shopping list and looking for the best deals.  You also want to make sure that you save every receipt so that you can track your spending.  Then, after the holidays you need to come up with a plan to get those holiday charges paid off as soon as possible by paying extra each month until they are paid off.  In fact, you can look for creative ways to pay off your excess Christmas debt  such as selling on eBay; especially since you will need to get rid of some old things to make room for all the new gifts you got for Christmas!

If you don’t want to be in the same situation next year, consider opening a savings account in January and start saving for next Christmas.  Online sites such as Ing Direct offers competitive interest rates and are a good place to save with ease by setting up direct deposit..  If you can only afford $5.00 a week that’s a start.  Then when you have a litttle extra money such as part of a tax refund or overtime from work.  you can add that to your savings account.  By the end of the year yourr savings can really add up.  Not only can you plan on a debt free Christmas next year but you may even have a little something left to treat yourself!