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Beware the December pay trap!
Comments
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Funnily enough, I was talking about this with my 16yo today.
She said she knew Nov & Dec were expensive months with two birthdays and Christmas so I launched into my budgeting spiel and that I saved for these and that I get paid early in December so I move it out of the account so it doesn't leave me with 5/6 weeks to week the salary out.2 -
Helen it is definitely NOT too early - well remembered you!HelenNoreen said:Is it too early to bump this thread.....
Loving that 30 pages on it is still going strong, AND that each and every year we seem to get a few new converts to it as well! If it makes January better for even one family each year, it's doing its job!🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her3 -
Thanks @e@EssexHebridean. I agree - often our debt free journeys can start as a result of overspending at Christmas; anything that highlights the importance of reducing the hole is invaluable!EssexHebridean said:
Helen it is definitely NOT too early - well remembered you!HelenNoreen said:Is it too early to bump this thread.....
Loving that 30 pages on it is still going strong, AND that each and every year we seem to get a few new converts to it as well! If it makes January better for even one family each year, it's doing its job!
Thankfully, I am on the other side now; and very much in the black with zero debt- but only as a result of discovering good habits such as this one!3 -
It is not a trap. It is an annual event that should be planned for if you choose to make it an expensive occasion.0
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Hurrah! Every single year without fail we get someone coming along who completely misses the point of the thread - and this year, you win the prize! What is the prize? you ask....well, it's to be able to let any further posts here completely pass you by! I'm sure we'll all offer you our congratulations!MEM62 said:It is not a trap. It is an annual event that should be planned for if you choose to make it an expensive occasion.
(Just for avoidance of doubt if anyone else is considering "thread spoiling" here - please don't - there are no further prizes on offer, and really, do you want to poo all over a long running thread which - it can be seen from the posts therein - has helped an awful lot of people?)🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her2 -
And here, for anyone else coming into the thread afresh without starting at the beginning, is the wording from the first post:
Yep - here we are again, time for the annual warning thread,,,
I'm talking about the "December pay trap" - you know the one, rather than being paid on the last day of the month, or the 28th, "because it's Christmas" your company set up the pay run early - anything from 10 days early. The money lands in your bank account, and you start spending....regardless of the fact that usually, you'd manage for another week on the previous month's pay. And then, come mid January, the money has run out. Sound familiar?
Rather than thinking "Oh good, I've got paid early" let this be the year that you pick up that pay, and ditch it into a savings account. One that you don't have a debit card for. And then ignore it, until 31st December (or whatever your usual pay date would be), when you can transfer it back to your current account to meet your commitments for the month. Remember, nobody will be taking Direct Debits early - if anything they go out slightly late, and come January you will still NEED that money just as you do every other month, so put it out of temptation's way.
To put things into perspective - if you get paid on the 22nd, rather than the 30th, and you start dipping into it immediately - that "month's" pay then has to stretch nearly 6 weeks. And we all know that's not going to happen, which is when the credit cards come out again.
Over the last few years on this forum we have seen SO many people in a panic in January for this very reason. Don't let yourself be one of them.
As ever Merry Christmas DFW'ers - have a wonderful christmas, remember that happiness comes from love and caring, not from spending money!🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her3 -
No, I got the point. But the situation is compounded by being an expensive time of the year and you have not only the early salary payment but also the additional expenses. So, financially planning for Christmas is the prudent thing to do.EssexHebridean said:
Hurrah! Every single year without fail we get someone coming along who completely misses the point of the thread - and this year, you win the prize! What is the prize? you ask....well, it's to be able to let any further posts here completely pass you by! I'm sure we'll all offer you our congratulations!MEM62 said:It is not a trap. It is an annual event that should be planned for if you choose to make it an expensive occasion.
(Just for avoidance of doubt if anyone else is considering "thread spoiling" here - please don't - there are no further prizes on offer, and really, do you want to poo all over a long running thread which - it can be seen from the posts therein - has helped an awful lot of people?)0 -
We know, and we know YOU know - well done you! This thread isn't for the people like you though - honestly. Think of it like posting on a thread all about skiing holidays when you never take, nor have any interest in skiing. To continue to state the (to you) obvious fact that budgeting is the right way to proceed is thread-spoiling in the same way that posting about the safari trips you prefer and why those are better on that skiing thread would be...🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her2 -
Anyone heard anything from employers about early December pay yet then? I'm betting a few will have notified people about it with the November pay slips!🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her0 -
Yep - 23rd December (would usually be last working day of the month, so 31st December this year), and 27th January (as they bring forward our January one also, would otherwise have been 30th January in 2026).EssexHebridean said:Anyone heard anything from employers about early December pay yet then? I'm betting a few will have notified people about it with the November pay slips!
Plans in place to move to my easy access 3% savings account for a week :-)1
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