Phoenix/Scottsdale Real Estate

Silent Night, Holy Night...Cards Maxed Out...No Relief in Sight!

Well, here we are just 15 days before Christmas and as usually happens this time of year, many folks are saying there are just too many presents for their bank account and already their credit cards are totally maxed out..what's a shopper to do???

If you've read our other posts, we continually stress trying to live within our means. If we are good at budgeting in all the right areas, it allows to have the things we may really want - like owning our dream home.

But what about Christmas...surely it's ok to splurge here. Surely it cannot affect us that much. Well...that depends on how much you want to work to pay it all off. We were doing some research just to see how those presents really do affect our wallets over the long-term. Here's a list showing how many days you will have to work to pay off a particular $ amount in Christmas spending:

Well...as life would have it, the more you make the less time you'll have to work to make it all up. But sadly, lots of people spend way more than $1,200 on gifts. So...if you want to see how long it will take to pay it all off, just divide your hourly wage by the amount you spent and there you have it.

And what if you charged it all?  Mercy...that's an entirely different ballgame.  A $2,000 debt on your credit card will take over 15 years to pay off, if you only pay the minimum payments. Needless to say, always go with cash and if you can't afford it...then don't buy it...it's that simple (unless you can pay those credit cards off at the end of each month)! Yes that's hard to hear...but it's more painful when that first credit card bill comes due next year.

So what are some other options for those that are not so "monetarily endowed?" Well...a couple of year's ago I made all of my gifts and it was the best Christmas I've had. They were appreciated far more than anything I ever bought them. Sure...it takes time, but it's something they cherish and will never forget.  And for some more ideas...we're going with one of our favorite groups "Sound Mind Investing" for some of their gift giving thoughts:

A gift of service. Give coupons for running errands, shopping, yard and house work, car washes, and the like. You may have other skills like financial knowledge or handyman experience. You could offer to help someone with their taxes or analyze the costs of various colleges they're considering sending their kids to. For the spreadsheet challenged, this is a real gift. Or perhaps someone needs help with a home remodeling project that involves a little electrical work or plumbing. You get the idea. Look at your skill set and see how you could "give it away." Remember, gifts of service require some careful planning, presentation, and follow-through. It's one thing to give the gift, but it's more important to fulfill the gift and do it with a pleasant attitude.

You could make a gift. As someone who's gotten into photography, I can see the sentimental value of a well-composed photograph of family, children, or a special occasion. Such a gift can keep on giving for years to come when they see the framed photos on display. Or, perhaps you can cook. Use your skills to make some bread or cookies or some other kind of treat that you're famous for within the family. Anyone can make cookies, but only you can still make chocolate chip cookies the way great grandma did. And the fortunate ones who've eaten them in the past will be thankful for them. What woman doesn't like chocolate? And what man turns down cookies?

The gift of time together. Like the gift of service, it's easy on the wallet, but this gift is possibly a little more demanding. (It's not always easy spending quality time with Crazy Uncle Lou!) Similar to coupons for gifts of service, you can give a coupon for a movie followed by dinner (so you can discuss the flick) or maybe bowling, golfing, or shopping outing together. The activity may be nice, but it's the time you spend together—the bonding part—that's really the gift. And it's something you'll remember.

And one of our other favorites is Mary Hunt from Debt Proof Living and her monthly newsletter entitled, "The Cheapskate Monthly". Her testimony is quite incredible (they had over $100,000 in unsecured debt back in the '80s and paid every bit of it off and have been living debt free since - and though that's still a large sum of money - in the '80s that was huge!) Her site is just full of wonderful ideas on how to stay on budget and get those debts paid off. Well...Mary also provided some wonderful ideas on "Gifts under $10", so we thought we would share a few here:

Family Cookbook
Gather up your family's best-loved recipes and create a family cookbook. Then make copies of it for family members on your list. There are many software programs available for entering your recipes that even calculate nutritional information based on the ingredients.

Add illustrations; scan old family photos of the person who is known for making the recipe to include on a particular page. Add a section for birthdays and addresses, too.

For more detailed instructions including Internet resources, see "Holiday Head Start," Family Cookbook, Debt Proof Living, July '04, page 4.

Stepping Stone
Garden stepping stones are easy to make with a small amount of ready-mix concrete from the home improvement center. No need to buy expensive kits at craft stores, just look for a decorative mold to use. To make a round stone use an old ice cream bucket. Coat with Vaseline before pouring in the ready-mix. When it has set the stone will slip out easily.

Follow the instructions on the ready-mix bag. Pour in about 1.5 inches of cement. When the consistency is right, have your child put in his footprints and or handprints. Add the date if you wish, and decorate with various seashells, marbles, mosaic tiles, and so on.

Coffee Lover's Basket
Have a coffee lover on your list? Here are a few ideas to include in a gift basket for any java junkie:

Chocolate-dipped plastic spoons with sprinkles and a bow for decoration. Add a box of chocolate-dipped cookies or home-made biscotti. Make your own home-made dessert coffee mixes.

Christmas Whisk
Buy a new wire whisk from a kitchen or restaurant supply store. Separate the tines and pop in candy kisses or other holiday wrapped candies. The whisk will hold them securely. Tie with a festive ribbon and you have a quick and easy gift that any cook will appreciate.

These are actually just a few, as she has tons, but at least there's something here to get you started - so hopefully you will not "shop 'til you drop" and "max those cards out until there is no relief in sight."

Thanks for "hanging out" with us.

Chat with you tomorrow!