Rising Tide Blog

Xmas Budget Tips – Save without being a Scrooge

Posted by Matt Hale

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The Australian Retailer’s Association suggests most Aussies start Christmas shopping on December 1 – meaning NOW is the time to start planning how you’re going to financially survive the silly season… or panic.  Rising Tide Founder Chris Browne suggests the following tips to make your money go further.

  • Wait for the Boxing Day sales to buy mum and dad’s presents. Santa can bring something for the kids on Christmas Day – but the oldies can wait a day or two for their new digs!
  • Shop at places that provide gift wrapping to save time and money.
  • Buying left-over Christmas hampers in the post-Xmas sales and use them for the following year’s corporate and personal gifts.
  • Take your Christmas bonus as a combination of cash and salary sacrifice the rest. This creates a serious tax saving in most cases.
  • Purchasing travel vouchers for young professionals who love holidaying is a great move that’ll win you serious brownie points. They can redeemed anytime airlines have discount fares throughout the year.
  • Buy that hard-to-buy for friend a magazine or TV subscription that you can pay month by month rather than as a lump sum.
  • Make sure your big expenses like car insurance or registration don’t fall in Nov/Dec/Jan.
  • Planning your Christmas vacay? Look into house or pet-sitting over the holidays as a way to have fun somewhere other than your own home.
  • Sign up to a group-buying site and buy presents when there are great discounts.

And remember – on average, men spend more than double on online shopping than women (source: Telstra – How you can join the Omni Channel Shopper Report, Aug 2012) – so ladies, make sure you set the man in your life a strict budget!

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