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Saving for christmas

Aug 29, 2014

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Economy & Finance

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Transcript
Page 1: Saving for christmas
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ContentsIntroduction..................................................................2

Plan a Budget ...............................................................3

Cutting Back.................................................................7

Ways to Make Extra Money.............................................9

Do Not Touch Your Christmas Fund................................11

Throughout the Year....................................................12

When all Else Fails.......................................................14

Copyright ©2013 by 99cash.comAll rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission.

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Introduction

We all know how hard it is save money, especially when the majority of American live from paycheck to paycheck. However, saving for Christmas is not impossible. You only have to learn how to create a budget, use resources available to help you stick to your budget, and have will power to change a few habits.

This guide should help you throughout the entire year save money for the upcoming Christmas and can be used to help you save money for any event you desire.

The guide will help you: create a budget show you ways you can cut back on spending without

starving give you a few ideas on how to make some extra money show you how to keep your Christmas fund intake provide ways to save throughout the entire year ahead as

well as a few tips and tricks to help with that Christmas fund

what to do when all else fails

If you truly want to save for Christmas without being strapped for other things you need, you will be able to do just that once you use the tips and tricks found in this guide.

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Plan A Budget

You more than likely have heard it before but planning a budget is the best way to save for Christmas. The problem with most that tell you to plan a budget, never explain the best way to go about the plan or give you any ideas where the money will come from when you just don’t have any money left over after the bills. With our budget ideas, you will be able to go farther as after we help you plan the budget we give you alternative ideas of cutting back and even how to make extra money in the next chapter. So, do not run away with the thought of making a budget. You can create a budget that will not leave your family in distress or starving.

The very first thing you must do is take control of your finances. The only way in which to do this is by first learning how much money is coming into your household and how much is going out as well.

The first question many people ask is why they need to write down a budget. The answer is simple. You may know how much money you receive every week on your paycheck and how much the bills are costing you each month. The problem is there are more than likely many other expenses that you never consider and this could be the reason you are short of money and can never save money for Christmas.

Since we are talking about saving for Christmas, the budget you prepare needs to be for the entire year. Of course, there may need to be adjustments along with way due to missed days at work which would lower your income for a given month or an emergency that made you spend more money one week, however, when you have an idea of the basics you will be ready to save for Christmas without the worry of these small setbacks.

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The first step is to get a pen and paper; you need to see the budget. If you only do it in your head, you will forget things that really need to be added to the budget.

Add up all the money that comes into your household. This can be from your employer, your spouse’s employer, pensions, government benefits, investments, child support payments, or any other money that you receive regularly.

On a separate piece of paper at the top, place this figure and call it incoming.

Next, now you must add up your bills for the year. Start with weekly or monthly bills such as your rent or mortgage, utility bills, gas for your vehicle, credit card bills, groceries, cable, internet, school lunches for the kids and any other bills that you pay on weekly or monthly. Other bills may only come around every few months or yearly such as homeowner’s dues, car insurance, renter’s insurance, medical insurance, or home insurance. Do not forget to add these other bills into the total amount.

On the piece of paper, where you placed the amount of incoming money, now place the figure from the second step and subtract it from the incoming money. This is how much money you have left over after you pay the necessities every year. Since we are trying to save for Christmas, how much did you spend last Christmas? Use this figure or one you would like to spend on Christmas and place that figure under the number you have after taking away the bills. Now, comes the hard part, how do you save that money so it does not have to come out in one lump sum at Christmas.

You can see how much money you have left over every year and more than likely you are wondering, where does money go?

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This is where the tricky part comes in. Did you remember to put in the kid’s allowance, trips to the corner convenient store, eating out, entertainment, or other times you stop for a soda or a snack? If not, then you can easily see just how fast your money you can go.

Now, that you know how much money you have to work with and how much you would like to save for Christmas it is time to budget that money. Break down the amount you have left over in a year into the months you have left before Christmas. Now, divide the amount you want for Christmas by the number of months that are left. This is how much you must save each month in order to reach your goal. That this amount from the money you have to spend each month and you will know exactly what you left for things that you want but do not necessarily need.

This may be a very small amount of money and you may be wondering how you can make it when you must eat out from time to time while on the road for work. In addition, you want to take the family out to eat once in awhile or even to a movie, but now you are trying to figure out how you can make it all work.

Remember, no one said it was going to a breeze, but that you can actually save for Christmas without giving up everything you do as a family.

The next chapter should help you with this by showing you ways you can cut back without giving up all those fun things your family want to do and without cutting out your meals while at work.

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Cutting Back

You may think it is hard to cut back or that you or your family will suffer in the process. This is far from the truth, as a matter of fact, you may even have more money to spend once you learn these little tricks.

Saving on Groceries

We all know that prices at the grocery store are going up and up, but there are a few ways you can still save a few bucks.

Save on Groceries

Write a list before heading out to the store and only buy the items on your list. Keep the money to buy groceries in an envelope and only take the amount you have to spend for the week to the store. This will help you not spend more than you have. Do not use your debit card or credit card - always take cash. Buy for at least a week a time. Buying larger packages will save you in the long run as you can divide up the meat and freeze it until you are ready to use. Use coupons. Many stores today will double the coupons and you will amazed at just how much you can save.

Save on Utility Bills

Every household can save a few bucks on their electricity bills just by changing a few habits.

The ideas below can help you save on your utility bills:

Turn off lights in a room when not in use Close the drapes at night to ensure the heat stays indoors Be sure you have good insulation around doors or

windows or use a towel at the bottom of the door.

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Turn your heat down and wear a sweatshirt in winter When you are not using appliances, unplug them. This

includes can openers, curling irons, toasters, etc... Turn off the computer when not in use Turn off the television when no one is watching it Change to energy efficient light bulbs Take shorter showers Use cold water for washing clothing

Other ways to cut back

A few of these changes may be hard for a few of us, but they can save you money so you can have extra for other things and to put in the Christmas fund.

Instead of eating out for lunch, take your lunchStop buying all those Red Bulls or other energy drinksQuit or cut back on smoking. With the price of cigarettes today, just cutting back can save hundreds of dollars per year.Instead of going to Starbucks for coffee, make your own at homeInstead of taking friends out for lunch or dinner, have them over for a barbeque and ask everyone to bring a dish.Do not use your credit cards, only pay for things with cashSet a limit on gifts you purchase throughout the year such as birthday, anniversary, etc... Lower your internet speed; this will save you a few extra dollarsLower the amount of movie channels you subscribe to on your cable bill. No one can watch all those channels, anyway. Instead of taking the family to the movies, rent the movie and watch it at home. You can even pop popcorn at home, the kids will love making their own popcorn and you will not have to spend the money for movie tickets or the high prices for popcorn at the theater.

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Ways to make extra money

There are several different ways you can make extra money if you just think about what you have and what you know.

Ask your employer if you can work overtime.

Take a part time job such as delivering pizza, as a waiter or waitress, or even get a paper route.

Go through all those things in the attic, garage, and in your closet. I bet you can find several items you no longer use. Have a garage sale and sell all of these items.

If you do not want to spend the time having a garage sale, you can sell your unwanted items at a pawn shop; only remember they will not give you what the items are worth.

Have a virtual garage sale. This is pretty easy especially if you are on Facebook. You can easily put up photos of the items you wish to sale and your friends can purchase the items you no longer use.

Want to make it more interesting. Place your items up for auction on eBay. Just remember to put in the starting bid, so you actually make money instead of losing money. If you have several items such as collectibles that you just have stored away and are not interested in keeping, you can put up an online store at Amazon or eBay and sell these items without any hassles at all, expect for shipping.

Do you have a skill? This can be anything from writing a resume to learning history. You can easily find others that need help with just about anything in the world and are

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willing to pay someone to teach them. Parents often look for tutors for their children. If you are great a subject, offer your services as a tutor in your spare time. If you know how to crochet or knit, put up an ad offering lessons. The same goes for the guitar, piano, or even helping someone learn English.

Other services you can offer in your spare include driving people to the airport, to the grocery store, or even the mall. You may not make a large profit, but a few extra bucks will help your goals.

Do you have a lawn mower? Put up ads to mow lawns, weed flower beds, and trim bushes or trees. In the autumn, you can rake leaves and in the winter shovel snow. A great way to make some extra money and even get some exercise.

Do you know anyone in your neighborhood that owns a dog or even more than one dog? Put up a flyer to walk dogs in the neighborhood. This will give you some extra money and also once again give you some exercise.

If you love pets, then you enjoy pet sitting. This is a huge business for families that own pets and cannot or do not want to take their pets along on vacation. In most cases, all you will need to do is visit their home to ensure their pets have food, water, take them on walks, or clean out a litter box.

Do you know how to rid computers of viruses? This could be a great way to make some extra money. Many individuals that have computers do not know how to get rid of a virus once it attacks their computer, think of how much you could make just ridding computers of viruses.

There are so many different ways you can make a bit of extra money that may not take as much effort as you might

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think and may be even be beneficial, such as walking dogs, which will give you, exercise.

Do not touch your Christmas fund

This may be one of the most important chapters in this guide and also the most controversial. When I say, do not touch your Christmas fund that is exactly what I mean.

Once you start putting money away for Christmas, hopefully in a savings account, you must forget the money is there altogether. No matter what the circumstances, do not touch the money.

If you must have extra money for an emergency, it would be best to find another way to get the money you need instead of touching your Christmas fund. Why? You may ask. The answer is simple, once you start taking money from the fund, you will keep taking money until you will not be able to meet your goal of the amount of money you wish to save for Christmas.

If an emergency arises, you can easily use one of the above ways to make extra money. On the other hand, if it is an emergency, the best thing to do is obtain a payday loan. Yes, you will have to pay the loan back, but you will be able to pay the loan by your next paycheck. This may mean that you will not be able to put as much in the Christmas fund as you would like, but you will still have your money put away for Christmas and the emergency situation will be resolved. Along with that, you will be building good credit, as payday lenders report your transactions to the credit bureau, so it is a win-win situation. The best place to visit for a cash advance or payday loan is 99cash.com. You can find top lenders here that will provide you with the money you need until payday so you can keep your Christmas fund safe and sound.

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Throughout the year

Now, that you know you cannot touch your Christmas fund, you are probably wondering what you do throughout the year when things come up that need the extra money. The answer once again is simple. We will go through a few scenarios to show you just how easy it is never to touch that money and still be able to put money away to save for Christmas.

Let’s say, you see a toy that you desperately want to buy for your grandson for Christmas and it is on sale. Christmas is another 5 months away and you know the rule of not touching the Christmas money. What should you do? The answer is apply for a payday loan. At 99cash.com, you can apply for a small loan that will cover the toy and pay it back with your next paycheck.

It is the first of the month, you have paid all the bills and put away your Christmas money for the month. You and your spouse are looking over the sale bill from Sears and you notice that jeans are on sale. You both need new jeans, but now you do not have any extra money as it is the first of the month and that is when all your bills come due. Figure out how much need to purchase the jeans and then obtain a cash advance from 99cash.com. The money can be paid back on your paycheck when your money is not as tight and you will get the jeans you need.

The same goes for anything you need throughout the year. Most sales often happen at the first of the month when money is tight. If you use a cash advance or payday loan,

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you will not have to touch your Christmas fund and will be able to pay the loan back with your next paycheck since there are no other bills to pay.

Payday loans can help you in so many ways throughout the year so you can actually save money and still meet all the obligations you have from dinner parties to birthdays to car repair.

A small loan from 99cash.com, will certainly give you peace of mind and will not break the bank. You will still be able to stay on your budget, just figure in the payday loan for the week or the month, excluding the week when all the bills come due. If you take your Christmas money out of the budget at the first of the month with the rest of the bills, then you have nothing to worry about, paying back the payday loan will be easy and simple.

Any time there is a sale and you really need the items, use a payday loan. This is the best way to build your credit, rebuild your credit, and still save for Christmas at the same time. Payday loans and cash advance loans are not what most people believe. As long as watch your budget, add in the loan, and pay the loan back in a timely manner, you will not get in trouble.

Remember, you can always use other options along with a payday loan such as ways to save money and ways to make extra money. When you use all these methods together, it is very easy to save for Christmas or for any big purchase, you may have in mind.

When you apply at 99cash.com, be sure to read all the agreements and learn which lender will give you the repayment you can live with that is in your budget. Some will want the money repaid with your next paycheck while others will work with installments so you do not have to pay

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the entire amount back in one lump sum. Reap the benefits of payday loans and you can still save for Christmas.

When All Else Fails

Here it is the middle of November and no matter what you did the last few months, you could save any money to put into your Christmas. You may have forgotten all the other holidays that demand money throughout the year. Even though you may have added in your budget a miscellaneous amount for birthdays and other things, you may have forgotten such things as how much it costs to throw a birthday for an 8 year old when you take them to the pizza joint. You may have not factored in Halloween costumes, Thanksgiving dinner, or your in-laws coming to town for a week. All of these small things when not added to your budget can really destroy all your hard efforts in saving for Christmas.

Other things that may have come up that destroyed all your efforts may have been catching the flu and missing work for two weeks, an automobile accident that landed you in the hospital, or even one of the kids coming down with the measles and one of you had to stay at home with your child and were unable to work.

There are so many reasons that you can be thrown off course especially when money is tight already and you only a few dollars you could spare to put back for your Christmas fund.

You may have done very well saving for Christmas but realize that the amount you decided to put back is not quite enough for the gifts on everyone’s list. You may have just put a figure out there without considering just how far the money would go such as deciding to spend only $20 per

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person. This could be very disastrous situation, especially if you have children that are into electronics.

Twenty dollars per person will not stretch as far as it once did when you consider that a video game today can cost up to $100 according to the game your child has his or heart set on. Then there are iPods, cell phones, iPads, digital cameras, computers, laptops, Xboxes, and so many other things that certainly cannot be purchased for $20.

The good news is that when all else fails, you can turn to 99cash.com. You still have time. Sit down and write down the items you need to purchase on everyone’s list. Now, take away the money you saved in your Christmas fund. This is what you need, of course.

Now, go online to 99cash.com and apply for a payday loan. The form is simple, only takes around ten minutes and when approved the money will be electronically sent to your bank account. You do not need good credit, as a matter of fact, you do not need any credit. All you need is a job, a bank account, and be at least 18 years of age. As soon as you are approved for a payday loan in the amount of $50 to $1500, the money will be sent to your bank within 24 hours.

Now you can enjoy going Christmas shopping and know you did a great job of saving for Christmas. Once you get use to using the tips and tricks in this guide and rely on 99cash.com for all your emergencies you will be able to easily have a wonderful Christmas every year.

No matter the reason you need extra cash, by using our Saving for Christmas guide, you should be able to relax and have the money you need at hand when you really need whether for an emergency or to provide the rest of the money you need for Christmas.

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