Saving money at Christmas

MikeL93

Does anybody else find it difficult to save money at Christmas time? Every year I seem to be panicking wondering if I've got enough money even though I know I probably do have enough to last. I save money all through the year for Christmas so that I can dip into it when needed and I try and spread out my Christmas shopping, I even bought my first present in June this year. I actually only need to spend about an extra £150 and then all my Christmas shopping is done. But when I have looked at what my potential outgoings are for the rest of this month it means I may only be able to save about £100 this month into my savings account.

I think maybe psychologically I just feel guilty about taking money out of my savings account or not being able to save as much certain months as I am saving up for my first mortgage on my own and dipping into my savings even if it's just for a little bit of money makes me feel guilty and as though it is stopping me buying a house.

ndf9876

No, because a while ago I worked out that the best thing for my finances was a budget. So I stick to my budget. I have various savings 'pots', one of those being the Christmas pot. I fund the pots from my salary, although I don't contribute any more to my "break glass in case of emergency" fund because it already contains 4 months' net pay, which for me is plenty.

So I assume you've got a target figure for your property deposit, in which case, do you also have a set date when you want to achieve that figure? If so, and the £100 will not change that, then why feel any guilt!

It's sometimes easy to go overboard at Christmas, but even something as simple as Excel (my budget is in Excel) can help you keep track of your spending and plan ahead for the future. 

TLDR - Make yourself a budget, stick to your budget, you'll find that Christmas, birthdays and any other time of potentially increased expenditure will be a breeze - because you'll have anticipated them, and budgeted for them.

lozzy1965

Psychology is a big thing for getting into the mindset to save.  It will come as you get used to the idea.  Feeling guilty is a good thing (in my view) when spending money, as it does help you to save.  You do need to let go from time to time though, to treat yourself and others and to reflect on what you have achieved.  Things always seem to move very slowly day to day and week to week, but looking back over months or years sometimes, hopefully you can see progress - even if there are set backs from time to time.

Nurse2047

First time this year I set up a Moneybox account and several pots for things, one being Christmas money. It’s a 120 day account access so can’t dip in it and it requested withdrawal so will be in my account next month. Maybe something like this may help having some sinking funds? 

El_Torro

It's no surprise that the OP feels this way, there's certainly a lot of pressure to spend big at Christmas. 

How many people do you buy Christmas presents for? In my family we spend big on young kids but adults tend to get token gifts. I also have no friends which buy me presents, which is good since I don't need to spend money on buying them things they don't want in exchange for giving me things I don't want.

Jami74

MikeL93 said:

 I save money all through the year for Christmas so that I can dip into it when needed and I try and spread out my Christmas shopping, I even bought my first present in June this year. I actually only need to spend about an extra £150 and then all my Christmas shopping is done. But when I have looked at what my potential outgoings are for the rest of this month it means I may only be able to save about £100 this month into my savings account.

Have you got a separate pot or account for Christmas? It was the first thing I started budgeting for (after a disastrous payroll error one year). I use a separate regular saver and put away a set amount each month. I think of it like a bill that has to be paid, it's not savings and it's not optional. Maybe you'd rather have an easy access savings account so you can shop throughout the year. Lots of banks let you rename accounts, if it's called 'Xmas' then you'll be less likely to use that for something else. 

Psychologically, there is no guilt in using money from the Christmas account for Christmas, or using the money from the Car account for the MOT, it's a much more positive feeling than 'dipping into savings'.

Nurse2047

With Moneybox I have several ‘pots’ different saving rates dependent on access so I have a simple saver can access anytime that my spending gets rounded up to the nearest £1 and goes in there, I have a 45, 90 and 120 day access pots. These are my sinking funds as such separate to my S&S isa etc for long term investing. 

jozbo

One simple solution is just to spend less at Christmas. This year all gifts for adults in our family are from charity / 2nd hand or homemade. I feel sick at the amount t I’ve spent in the past. So much pressure to spend. 

Jami74

jozbo said:

One simple solution is just to spend less at Christmas. 

Not everyone spends loads at Christmas. Spending less at Christmas does not negate the need to save/budget for it.

Plus, the OP wasn't asking because they didn't have enough money for Christmas, they were asking because they have less money to put into savings over the Christmas period.

castle96

Years ago we all agreed.. "I buy you nothing (that you don't need anyway), and you buy me nothing (that I don't need anyway" Easy. No more standing around in shops wondering what to buy. Bah. Humbug

Bravepants

castle96 said:

Years ago we all agreed.. "I buy you nothing (that you don't need anyway), and you buy me nothing (that I don't need anyway" Easy. No more standing around in shops wondering what to buy. Bah. Humbug

Amen to that! We have the same agreement. We don't buy presents for adults anymore and I think when we suggested it there was relief all round! We give cash to nieces and nephews now they are all Kevins and Perrys.

I agree with the posts above. Twenty years ago my wife (at the time) and I had a separate pot for Christmas. We'd bung £50 a month in there starting in January and end up with £600 for Christmas.