Hello warm weather and sunshine – What better time to start saving for the holidays than now? Granted, the holidays are still some time away, but have you considered beginning to save for holiday expenses earlier to help ease the financial burden at the end of the year? The following tips can help you stay ahead this holiday season!
Look at last years expenses. Look back at your holiday spending from last year and try to come up with a holiday budget for the current year. Be sure to include everything you can, including the cost of food for holiday meals and travel. This will help you identify how much you’ll need to start setting aside now to help prepare you for upcoming holiday expenses.
Set a savings goal. Once you’ve looked back at your previous holiday expenses, you’ll need to set a savings goal for the next several months. By setting this goal, you’ll know what exactly you’re saving for and how much you’ll need to save to stay on top of your finances this holiday season.
Automate your holiday savings. Saving automatically is one of the best ways to reach your longer term savings goals! By reviewing your budget, you’ll be able to determine how much you can set aside to save each month for your holiday savings goal. Once you determine the amount, have it set up to automatically transfer into your savings account with each paycheck, or once a month – whatever works best for your financial situation.
When you decide to save automatically, you do not have to make the decision each month to put money into your savings, which can be difficult. Instead, the money is set up to automatically transfer and without any extra effort on your part! By choosing to save automatically, you are setting yourself up for successfully reaching your holiday savings goal.
Additionally, after the holidays you can leave your savings plan in place to continue saving! Taking the pledge to save with Ohio Saves will help you maintain your saving habits, and provide you with tips and motivation all year long!
