Southland News

The holidays aren't here yet, and that's exactly why now is a good time to think about them. Before gifts, travel and holiday plans start competing for your money, October gives you something valuable: time.

You don't need a detailed spreadsheet or a complete shopping list. Start by answering one question: What could the holidays actually cost me this year?

Find your real holiday number

A gift budget is a good start, but gifts aren't the whole holiday. Think about everything November and December could bring, including travel, extra groceries, shipping, activities, hosting, dining out and those last-minute purchases that always seem to pop up.

Give each category a rough estimate and add it to what you plan to spend on gifts. A $500 gift budget could easily become a $900 holiday budget once everything else is included.

The number doesn't have to be exact. The goal is to get a more realistic picture before the spending starts.

Break it down by paycheck

Once you have your estimate, divide it by the number of paychecks you'll receive before you expect most of that spending to happen.

For example, if you estimate spending $900 and have four paychecks to prepare:

$900 ÷ 4 paychecks = $225 per paycheck

Now ask yourself whether that amount feels realistic alongside your regular bills, savings and other expenses. If it doesn't, you still have time to adjust your plans, prioritize what's important or look for places to spend less.

Don't forget your everyday spending

Some holiday expenses don't feel like holiday spending at all. More gas for family visits, a bigger grocery bill when you're hosting or dinner out after a busy shopping day can quietly increase your total.

If you’re spending on those everyday purchases anyway, Enjoy! Rewards Checking lets you earn points on eligible gas, grocery and dining purchases that can be redeemed for cash back, gift cards and more.

Don’t expect your holiday estimate to be perfect, either. Leaving a little extra room for an unexpected gift, event or last-minute store run can help keep one surprise from throwing off the rest of your plan.

Give yourself the October advantage

You don't need to have December figured out today. A rough estimate is enough to tell you what your plans could cost, what that means per paycheck and whether you want to make any changes.

The earlier you know your number, the more options you have for what to do with it.