This time of year, I try to provide advice to keep people from plunging into debt as the season of shopping madness begins.
But maybe I won’t need to fuss too much this holiday. There’s enough troubling economic news to help some consumers avoid overspending, right? Let’s see, foreclosures are up. Gas prices are rising. Bankruptcies too.
Stock prices have taken a dive so many times in the past few weeks, and investors are skittish.
Home values are down, preventing many homeowners from refinancing as they did in past years.
Taken together, all this bad economic news is likely to cause consumers to pull back on their holiday spending. Thirty-five percent of consumers said they plan to spend less than last year, according to the results of the eighth annual holiday spending survey commissioned by the Consumer Federation of America and the Credit Union National Association.
At least that’s what they say.
The problem is that even though evidence points to a need to stockpile some savings to weather a coming economic crisis, consumers don’t always follow through with their less-is-better plans.
The Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies has come up with an interesting way to help consumers curtail their spending. The association suggests you identify your shopping style.
And here are the shopping styles it describes and the steps to make sure you don’t overspend:
Plan-ahead shoppers may have already finished holiday shopping. Because you are shopping all year long, you may not be keeping an account of what you’re spending. If you like to buy throughout the year, keep a little book listing the stashed gifts you’ve bought. Also tuck your holiday budget inside the spending dairy so you can keep track of what you’ve spent.
Impulse shoppers don’t make a list. They buy on a whim. Inspirational shoppers also don’t have a plan. They let the spirit and a good sale guide them to the right gift. If you fit either of these categories, put away the credit cards and just use cash. When the money is gone, stop shopping.
Nonshoppers loathe shopping and may just pick one store to do all their gift-buying. They often get so frustrated with the whole shopping experience they just buy whatever they see first regardless of price.
One word: Internet. Shopping online is so easy. No lines. No crowds.
Last-minute shoppers may be in the most danger of spending too much because the holidays sneak up on them and they find themselves in the stores in a panic. Your procrastination can make you desperate. In your desperation, you end up busting your holiday budget because you don’t have the time or patience to comparison shop. Two words: gift cards.
Michelle Singletary: singletarym@washpost.com
