Christmas Spending: What Will You Do?
There seem to be some conflicting reports over what is going to happen this year with Christmas/Holiday spending. The standard line is that spending is going to be down (perhaps way down) due to consumer fears over a sagging economy.
But other reports hint at online spending being equal to last year.
Personally I have wondered about the degree to which some people seem to be cutting back this year. I’m quite glad to see people no longer spending themselves into debt but the pendulum seems to have swung too far the other way this time.
While certainly times are tight, for most of us our income and expenses this year are about the same as last year. Given that I personally plan to spend about the same as I did last year (though I did cut back a few years ago when I shifted from giving gifts to making donations to charity).
So what say you ?
Will you spend the same this year or will you cut back ? If you plan to cut back is it based on actual circumstances (IE less income/more expenses) or is it based on concerns about the future ?
I would love to hear what you all have to say
6 Responses to “Christmas Spending: What Will You Do?”
I'm doing what I do every year, a lot of baking and making gifts. I also buy some things online, I hate going to the stores at Christmastime, really gets me out of the Christmas spirit. We also have made a few charitable donations. We are not too worried about the economy. My husband is a school teacher so his job is pretty secure. We also paid off the mortgage on our house about 3 years ago and are not planning on going anywhere. I work part time as a marketing researcher in real estate, and so far the market where I live is doing OK (San Antonio Texas). But I'm planning on looking into teaching at a local community college in the fall. We have always lived pretty frugally, so this is no big deal for us.
As a family, we'll spend about 20% less than last year. Christmas has never been extravagant with us.
No spending plans here. Money is tight for me and for everyone else in the family, and the kids in our lives are all grown, anyway, and have come to view Christmas as we adults already do, that the Christmas gift tradition is meant for young (small) kids as well as abused and commercialized. I also face other, more important expenses that preclude Christmas gift spending. I'm also among the many who not only prefer cash-basis, low-footprint living, but who worry about the US economy.
Ho, ho, ho.
About a 50% reduction here, but not all related to the economy. We also bought a couple of high-ticket items earlier this year we told our kids would affect the Christmas budget.
Thank goodness for Amazon. Good book prices, free-shipping on orders above $25, and I don't have to drive to a mall. Other than that, the local bookstore or market in the town square to support those mom-and-pops who survive despite high rent and thankless regulations! Theirs is a labor of love, and they deserve some Christmas cheer despite the economy.
I agree with DLS, cash-basis low-footprint living is a worthy endeavor.
Merry Christmas all!
One year my mom sent me a card with a check in it. I chuckled and sent her one for the same amount. We laughed so hard, then agreed that the card is enough.
By mutual agreement with family and friends, we abandoned the commercial aspect of Christmas years ago.