Advice on avoiding Christmas Debt

Posted on Wednesday, 7 December 2011 in Trust Deed Scotland NewsAt this time of year most people in Scotland share a common financial burden. Christmas.

For many Scottish households this inevitably means accruing debt and a post-Christmas debt misery and in order to help residents of Scotland avoid this happening, Trust Deed Scotland have released advice on how to avoid this.

Plan a budget

In order to get through Christmas successfully you could draw up a list before heading outside. Establish what you have to spend and adjust your plan accordingly. It may seem a little Scrooge-like and un-festive but if you can write a list of the people you wish to give a gift to and then assign a monetary budget; you can achieve a practical objective and not miss anyone out.

Take note as most companies tend to pay their staff earlier in December to allow for Christmas and this means that the gap between your December and January wages is probably going to be the longest of the year.

Avoid further borrowing

As tempting as it may sound - using payday loans, dipping into your overdraft or buying gifts with a credit card is not the answer!

Buying our loved ones the latest MP3 player or our children the must-have Christmas toy, is a thoughtful gift which we hope would be received well, however consider that the combined APR rates for multiple items over the course of a year could soon mount up in unnecessary interest charges.

Watch the bank balance

Check that no unaccounted for direct debits have gone out of your account, check you are still within your budget and if not then adjust your planned budget accordingly.

Unauthorised overdraft charges are a major contributor to the beginning of a debt epidemic.

Plan now for the following Christmas

New Year, New Future!

Many people will draw up a list of New Year's resolutions and one of those will be to watch their finances in the upcoming year.

If you have a budget planned and you can break this up into say 11 months, you can open a savings account and make 11 payments from January to November so that the money is there when you venture out to do your Christmas shopping.

Your Employment Status --SELECT-- Employed Unemployed Self-Employed Retired Student Your Total Unsecured Debts --SELECT-- £1,000 £2,000 £3,000 £4,000 £5,000 £6,000 £7,000 £8,000 £9,000 £10,000 £11,000 £12,000 £13,000 £14,000 £15,000 £16,000 £17,000 £18,000 £19,000 £20,000 £21,000 £22,000 £23,000 £24,000 £25,000 £26,000 £27,000 £28,000 £29,000 £30,000 £31,000 £32,000 £33,000 £34,000 £35,000 £36,000 £37,000 £38,000 £39,000 £40,000 £41,000 £42,000 £43,000 £44,000 £45,000 £46,000 £47,000 £48,000 £49,000 £50,000 £51,000 £52,000 £53,000 £54,000 £55,000 Over £55,000 This includes unsecured loans, credit cards, council tax arrears, bank overdrafts etc.

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