Martin Lewis' Christmas saving tips - NOW
With fewer than 100 days now left till Christmas, our Money Saving Expert, Martin Lewis, is here with his eight things you should do now that’ll save you when the big day comes.
The inching of Christmas ever earlier upsets me as much as the next Scrooge, but many festive saves only work if you do them early, so here are my key tips.
1. Earn 5% cashback on your Christmas shopping.
If you’re going to be spending for Christmas then you might as well do it on a card that pays you every time you spend on it. The no annual fee Amex Everyday credit card pays you 5% cashback on your first three months' spending (maximum £100) followed by up to 1.25% after. Get it now and this falls during the high Christmas period spend. Though the cashback won’t be paid until a year later, but then again that’s a bonus for next Christmas. Make sure you set up a direct debit to repay IN FULL each month to avoid the 22.9% rep APR.
2. Agree to not give unnecessary presents.
Yes, it’s the season of goodwill but that doesn’t mean you need to turn Christmas into a retail festival, by buying unnecessary gifts for friends and family because they bought you a gift. So make a pre-No Unnecessary Present Pact (pre-NUPP) with them, so you both don’t end up with gifts that only languish unused in the back of your cupboards. Or, agree to give gifts after Christmas, when you can buy the same gift at half the price when the Boxing Day sales hit.
Remember even if you think you’re being generous by giving, it can obligate the recipient to buy you back – and in some cases that puts them under undue financial pressure.
3. Book your train tickets 12 weeks in advance.
Wherever you’re planning on spending the festive season, if you need to travel by train, book your tickets 12 weeks in advance. That's when most cheap advance tickets launch, gaining maximum availability. As we’re closing in on the perfect moment – Christmas and new year tickets are likely to start selling from the first week in October – keep a look out now.
4. Not saved for it – do it now – then you can split the cost by four.
A typical family Christmas costs around £820 - a huge amount from one month's salary alone. But if you haven’t started saving yet, there is still time. For example, if you put £200 aside from your September, October and November’s income, it’ll spread the cost. Save what you can, but if you really can’t then I’m afraid you’ll need to go cold turkey.
5. Not used it since last Christmas – flog it.
Walk around the house and examine everything, it’s time for your annual personal stock clearance. Many old items can be worth serious cash and if you’ve not used things for a year, whether kids toys, prams, old coffee makers, mobile phones, gadgets, or even clothes, why not sell them?
Have a look on eBay to see if any of your bits are suitable for sale. There are also lots of recycling sites that will pay you for old mobiles and gadgets – just make sure you do your research first to find the one that’ll give you the most.
6. Set up a Christmas cupboard.
Become a tactical shopper – work out now what you want to buy and then you can pounce on it when there’s a code, voucher or discount that’s cheaper (ensure you get the alerts from discounts sites to be on top of it). Even better, as is part of many MoneySavers' Christmas arsenal, once you by a present, bag it, wrap it, and pop it in a Christmas cupboard – gradually getting the chores done.
7. Don't borrow for Christmas - but if you'll do it anyway, ensure it's at 0%.
Don’t be tempted to take out an expensive loan to fund your perfect Christmas – it’s far better to budget. That said, if you really need to borrow then do it at no interest. The longest 0% spending credit card is Clydesdale at 26 months or Post Office at 25 months. Although these cards are over two years interest free, before they jump to 18.9% rep APR, aim to clear the card before next Christmas or you just perpetuate the misery.
8. Can you demoHOHOtivate extra cash?
Small cutbacks now can save large when there are 95 days, 69 working days and 14 weeks left until Christmas. So, if you give up a £2 coffee every day at work you’ll save £138, or cut back on a pack of cigarettes every week and it’s £140. I’m not saying you should give up everything completely, but make an active choice: would you prefer the cash at Christmas or the daily treat?