How to budget better in ’08 for next year’s holiday expenses

Here we are once more, the day before Christmas. Tonight, all the stockings will be hung with care – well, you know the rest.

Given the high costs of almost everything these days, particularly heating oil and gasoline, which drive up the pricing of most goods and services, families are struggling to make ends meet. The average American family will have spent $859 for the Christmas holiday, and this is the lowest amount since 1997.

Many Mainers have been digging for the plastic to pay for these expenses – never a good strategy, unless the balance is paid off every month. While it is a week early for New Year’s resolutions, perhaps new strategies for 2008 would be in order. This is not rocket science. But in a similar vein, the consumer may reach the holiday goal more easily, without blowing up the budget.

There is an old-timer in Hermon who for the past 80 years has had a very simple mantra: “Save your money.” The idea behind this column is: “Save your money – for a nonbudget-busting Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or other related holiday observance.” Here are a few suggestions to make the holidays in 2008 less financially painful.

. Look at your hands. Are they holding a cup of designer coffee? A bottle or can of soda? Bottled water? Alcoholic beverage? If you can cut back one unit of these products per day and put the savings in a safe place, by December 2008, the total could be anywhere from $365 to $600.

If you enjoy a drink of alcohol, try drinking at home instead of at the local watering hole. You will save money. Bottled water? Maine tap water is just as good, if not better. Tap water also is a more economically sound practice to whet one’s whistle. It is said that the best bottled water comes from Maine, but the plastic bottle comes from hell.

. Hold a spring or summer yard sale. Yep. There’s lots of money in those items that no longer interest you or are not needed, perhaps even some old Christmas presents received. Yard sales are the Maine way to re-gift.

. Take a small percentage from your income tax refund next spring. Ten or 15 percent won’t break the bank and could help build that Christmas account in a big way. It is also possible to change your withholding amount to put more money in your pocket every payday, but the saver must be very disciplined to put it away and not let it slip out of the pocketbook. Another advantage here is interest earned on that money, something the IRS has never heard of.

. Turn some of your frequent flier miles into gift items. Don’t have enough miles for a trip or are they about to expire unused? Many programs allow trading in miles for magazine subscriptions or small electronic items. Check with your program online and see if it can help Santa with his list.

. Raid the piggy bank. There can be real money in coin of the realm. Paying money to have it sorted by machine in the grocery store is not a wise financial practice. Sort it yourself or find a bank or credit union that will sort it for free. You’ve worked hard to get that change together. Don’t let vending machines take some of it away. If those aggressive copper thieves ever figure out that pennies are made of the stuff, no piggy bank in the 16 counties will be safe.

. Choose and implement a “buy nothing extra” month. Take April, August or some other month of your choosing and for 30 or 31 days (even little February has 29 days in 2008) and do not buy anything nonessential for that one month. The amount you save will astound you.

. Put your holiday savings into a holiday or Christmas account. In the old days, these savings plans did not pay any interest. Times have changed. Also, with the account so named for how the funds are to be used, it just might help slow down any impulsive urges to raid it.

We have mentioned only the commercial side of the holidays. The Northeast CONTACT for Better Business mission focuses on the marketplace and fairness in that venue. We also are sensitive to other, and often more meaningful, ways to celebrate this magical season. The gift of time – that is, giving your valuable time to a loved one, a handmade gift, a letter or poem of love – is often far more meaningful than that diamond or a new BMW in the driveway.

Budgeting for next year will save the heartburn of paying off the plastic, make holiday shoppers less cranky, and allow for more quality time to spend with loved ones. Happy holidays to you and yours from all of us at Northeast CONTACT.

Consumer Forum is a collaboration of the Bangor Daily News and Northeast CONTACT, Maine’s membership-funded nonprofit consumer organization. Individual and business memberships are available at modest rates. Interested and motivated prospective volunteers are always needed and welcome to apply to help with our mission. For assistance with consumer-related issues, including consumer fraud and identity theft, or for information, write: Consumer Forum, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402-1329.