I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! The winter holidays will be here in a matter of weeks – are you ready? If you still have a lot of holiday shopping to do, here are some great tips for making your life a little easier and more affordable this season.
Use Money-Saving Technology
There are many apps and websites that make holiday shopping more affordable. One is RetailMeNot, which has both an app and a website. It lists deals and promo codes at top retailers, both online and in-store, and can save you big bucks on holiday gifts. It also has cash-back offers for certain retailers. Another great site to try is Ebates, which has cash-back offers at thousands of retailers, giving you savings in the form of rebates. Sometimes they also offer exclusive discounts.
Find Your Local Markets
If you want to skip the crowded malls and support local small businesses instead, look for the local winter holiday markets in your city. While these may be harder to find in smaller towns, most big cities have holiday markets where numerous artisans sell handmade gifts. You’ll be supporting small local businesses while purchasing unique gifts for your loved ones.
Consider Donations Instead of Gifts
Is your house already packed to the brim with stuff? Or is money really tight this year? One way to reduce clutter and expenses — and make a positive impact in the world — is to get your family to skip traditional holiday shopping and instead each make a donation to a cause you care about. When your family gathers, go around in a circle and share what cause you chose to donate to and why it’s meaningful to you. If you can’t bear to part with gift-giving, you could make a rule that each person can give one gift for each family member, but the rest of the gift money goes toward a good cause.
If you’re thinking about shopping for a home sometime soon, please reach out any time — We would love to help you.
Doug, Susan and Kristen
Team@calgaryexperts.com
RE/MAX
