MoneySavingExpert.com Christmas is Coming...
NEW feature by Martin Lewis, MoneySavingExpert
Stop, wait! I dislike Jingle Bells blasting out of shop speakers in early November as much as the next man. Yet this isn’t about celebrating early, it’s about pre-planning to slash festive costs, so you have a better Christmas at a lower price.
So as we’re now in the Thriftsmas spirit, here are some top tips for starters:
Think “opportunity cost” - whether you’d be better off spending the same cash on something else. For a young child this is perhaps “do you want to buy sweeties with your money every week, or save up to get the toy that you want?”
Xmas Travelodge rooms £17 - £25 Visiting relatives for Christmas and can’t quite stand the idea of spending all day and night there? Budget hotel chain Travelodge has launched a room sale at £17-£25 for December to February. Crucially, this includes Christmas (though not New Year’s Eve). They do this in tranches, so when the rooms are gone, they’re gone.
Don’t set up a Christmas lust list Too many people list every lusted-for item – huge trees, massive festivities. Sadly, this tends to lead to debt or disappointment.
Instead, the right thing – boring, sensible, but ultimately productive – is to do a budget to work how much you can afford to spend this Christmas. Then, work out the best Christmas you can have on that cash.
Try some DemoHoHotivation My
www.demoHOHOtivator.com tool shows how small sacrifices can save you large, eg, how much you can boost your Christmas cash by if you cut out a cappuccino or weekly mag.
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We’re not saying do it, just work out which use of cash gives you more joy.
Ban unnecessary Christmas presents? Christmas isn’t a retail festival. While presents for kids or spouses under the tree is a lovely tradition, we seem to be under constant pressure to buy for an ever widening circle of friends. This can be just tick-box giving, tat we know they don’t really want, and will just become landfill fodder.
While there’s a joy of giving, remember it can be selfish if it obliges someone to buy you something back – perhaps the real gift’s to release someone from the obligation of buying you a present. Read the full theory behind this at
www.mse.me/banchristmas
Don’t borrow for Christmas, but if you do, ensure it’s 0% Christmas borrowing’s a bad idea. Far better to go, er, cold turkey, and have a more austere time (Christmas is just one day, after all). Yet if you’ll borrow anyway, at least do it right. The cheapest way is on a 0% SPENDING card.
The longest is
www.tescobank.com 18 months 0%, yet even though it lasts more than a year (provided you make the min repayments), plan to clear it before next Xmas or you’ll compound your problems. If you don’t clear before the 0% ends, beware. It’ll jump to 16.9% representative APR.
FREE tea/coffee every day at Waitrose Sign up for special card at
waitrose.com/ mywaitrose to get a free regular tea or coffee every day. Simply walk in and show your card. You can choose from from Americano, cappuccino, latte, tea, mocha or espresso.
@MoneySavingExpert To advertise in thewire t. 07720 429 613 e.
the.wire@btinternet.com
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