Money seems to always be top-of-mind this time of year This is because the “festive season” always brings the crushing expectation that we will spend, spend, spend – and outdo ourselves yet again this year. We spend extra money on gifts, as well as buying decorations and purchasing items used for entertaining. Creating for the family a holiday budget can help us keep our spending to a manageable level. No matter how you try, though, chances are that you will be spending money during the Christmas season. Because you are likely to spend money during the holidays anyway, you might as well arrange to get some of your money back.

Credit Card Rewards and Holiday Shopping

One of the best ways to maximize your holiday shopping is to make use of a rewards credit card as you flit from store to store to store. Rewards credit cards provide perks for making purchases you would make anyway. Rather than buying Christmas gifts with a debit card, you can build up points with a rewards credit card. These reward points can then be redeemed for travel, merchandise, or even cash.

Before you create your Christmas budget, stop and think about what you are using to pay for your purchases. If you have a rewards card, you could quickly milk your purchases for extra free stuff once the holidays are over if you put your expenses on the card. On top of that, if you order your gifts online using the special shopping network associated with your rewards credit card, you could earn points faster. During the holiday shopping season, many credit card rewards programs offer special promotions. You can earn double points – or more. Consider your Christmas budge, and think about how your credit card rewards program can fit with your plans.

Responsible Credit Card Spending

Just because you earn reward points doesn’t mean that you should go crazy and spend money you don’t have. You need to be careful about your holiday credit card spending. Put together a budget, and then keep with it. When you make purchases with your rewards credit card, be sure to track them, so that you don’t go beyond your holiday budget. Credit cards come with advantages, but you still need stick with a Christmas budget.

If you want to maximize your holiday shopping, you need to make sure that you don’t carry balances into the new year. Get rid of your credit card balance at the end of every billing cycle with the money that you had planned for holiday spending. If you carry a credit card balance on a rewards card, you will destroy the value of your rewards, since the interest charges you pay on your rewards card debt will be high.

It is always a good idea to put together a holiday spending plan. Rewards cards can offer a number of perks that can benefit you during the holiday season. There is no reason to be scared of credit cards if you use them responsibly. There is no reason why your credit card can’t provide you with benefits that will provide you a way to start out the new year profitably.

Author Bio: Your Christmas shopping can be made less stressful, too, with a rewards credit card. This article was penned by Drew Cassels, on behalf of this Canadian credit card website.

Category: Advice
Keywords: shopping, Christmas,credit cards,money,stress