Save Money on Holiday Gift Giving

Holidays are supposed to be a time to celebrate, enjoy friends and family, and give thanks and be grateful for the things we are blessed with in our life. That’s the idea anyhow. Does that sound right to you? Probably not. While, there are certainly aspects of many holidays that we all enjoy, more often those holidays are fraught with a great deal of stress and some amount of desire for that holiday to be over. One part of the stress factor arises because people who don’t spend much time together, who don’t necessarily know each other well, and possibly even don’t like each other, are forced to hold back their true feelings and endure getting together until the social aspects of a particular holiday are over.

Expenses are another stressor during many holiday seasons. There is often an implied reciprocity in gift giving during certain holidays. If you have many friends and family members that give you gifts, giving gifts back to them can add up quickly and you may benefit from the help of a payday loan. Just ensure you check the rates first! You can certainly choose not to give gifts back to certain people. Many people do just that. However, if that does not suit your personality, you can still use the following methods to save money on the gifts that you do give.

Buy Right after the Holiday

Buy gifts right after the holiday. This is the time of year that you are most likely to get the best deal on many gift items. Stores have raked in as much as they can from the holiday and now they are ready to clear out their holiday stock and make room for items for the next big holiday event. You will need to have discipline as you carry out this method. Remember, you will be waiting a while before you will be giving the gifts that you purchase in this manner. If you’ve found a great gift for somebody using this method, it can be tempting to give it to them right away, which means that you will likely end up buying them another gift for the holidays. In other words, by trying to save money, you end up spending more!

Give Your Time

If you know a person well, you might be able to give your time in a way that is more of a gift to them than anything you could purchase for them could possibly be. Adults with young children at home often need a night out, but can’t afford the expense of a babysitter. Offering to watch the kids while they take the night off can be the best gift you can give to certain individuals. If you and the potential gift recipient have mutual friends, consider giving a joint gift. One person could give the gift recipient a gift card for a nice restaurant. Another person could offer to babysit the kids while the parents take advantage of the restaurant gift card.

You might also consider giving hand-made coupon books of things you are willing to do each month of the year. Those can be something as common as doing their laundry, or something more social such as cooking a meal for their family. Coupon books often bring a smile to the recipients face. They are also a great way to stay connected to people you want to be with throughout the year. This can also be a great gift for a kid to give to an adult as kids typically have more time than money.

Take Advantage of Deals throughout the Year

Many savvy shoppers take advantage of deals throughout the year as a way of minimizing their holiday shopping costs. Ideally, you should have a list of items that you want to give as gifts to specific people and try to keep buying whimsy to a minimum.