5 Holiday Budgeting Tips for Festive Spending

December 14, 2022

It’s everyone’s favorite time of the year: holiday budgeting season! Let our in-house Financial Coach take you through 5 holiday budgeting tips to keep your festive spending out of the red. Check out the video or keep reading below.

Holiday Budgeting Tips to Follow this Season

Keep your spending budget clear and concise.
- Make a tally of what you want to spend per person.
- List grocery expenses if you’re hosting.
- Don’t overcomplicate things. The point is easy visualization.
Find a budget buddy.
- A budget buddy will keep you accountable.
- Feeling your heartstrings pulling you toward a pricey or extravagant purchase? Turn to your budget buddy for a financial reality check.
Assess last year’s holiday spending.
- Still carrying the financial or emotional debt of last year’s holiday buying frenzy? What lessons can be learned?
- Think back on gifts given last year and what you spent on them.
- Did kids of a certain age like the boxes more than what was inside?
Understand the buy now, pay later terms.
- It’s easier than ever to purchase an item — and finance it — without having to think about the bill for some time.
- This can be helpful, but be sure to have a plan in place to pay it back in full and on time.
And finally, track your spending.
- Use the free money management tool within Online Banking to help create budgets, monitor your balances, categorize transactions, chart your spending, and set up alerts.