Want to give great gifts without blowing your budget? The National Retail Federation found that the average American spent $672 on gifts during the 2003 holiday season alone. Here are ten ways you can keep your expenditures under control.
1. Create a budget. Write down all the occasions for which you will buy a gift over the course of a year. Determine how much you can and want to spend on each occasion (remember to factor in money for unexpected events). Set money aside on a regular basis, so that when you spot a deal on an item you know someone on your list will love, you can afford to buy it.
2. Consider sharing the cost of big-ticket items with others. If the perfect gift for a relative or friend who’s graduating or getting married is beyond your means, see if others who will attend the celebration would like to chip in for a group gift.
3. Shop year round, not just before holidays or birthdays. If you know your family members’ and friends’ clothing sizes, color preferences, hobbies and tastes in books, magazines and music, you can take advantage of markdowns and seasonal sales. Gardening tools and luggage can be great buys in March, for example, and fall clothing and blankets go on sale in November. Avoid last-minute shopping, and you’ll be more likely to get a gift that will please the recipient and leave you financially solvent.
4. Use the Internet. At holiday time some Web stores have free shipping, saving you time and the cost of gas.
5. Be creative. Well-thought-out gifts such as coupons for babysitting or a special outing you and the recipient will both enjoy, such as a trip to an art gallery or hike in a conservation area, are less expensive than purchased items and demonstrate caring. Homemade gifts can be winners, too, if you are good at cooking or crafts. Bake cookies for a teen and include the recipes; knit a sweater for your sister or build a bookcase for your brother.
6. Save on cards, tags and wrapping paper. Buy them when they are on sale, even if it means picking up Christmas cards for next year on Valentine’s Day.
7. Check out return policies and warranties. Find out whether the store offers refunds, credits or exchanges if you or the recipient needs to return the gift. Be wary of extended warranties. Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports, states that the majority of products never need repairs and that most problems will be found within 90 days.
8. Factor in the cost of maintenance. That remote-control truck your child wants may be on sale, but it isn’t much of a deal if it requires special batteries that are expensive and need to be replaced frequently.
9. Pare down your gift list. Instead of buying holiday presents for every adult in your family, consider picking names out of a hat and buying one gift apiece.
10. If you must use a credit card for gifts, use a low-interest card and pay it off as quickly as possible.
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