As the International Migrants Day and holiday season approaches, the delicious food and joyous celebrations become a marker of well-deserved rewards for many migrants after another year of working hard. However, this season can also foster stress amongst many—both financially and emotionally—as we try to balance giving the best we can provide without breaking the bank. Through careful planning and mindfulness, the holiday season can be made easier and lighter in your pocket. We share a series of holiday hacks for migrants to make it easier to share their hard-earned money.
Holiday Hack: Set a Budget
Many of us want to provide the best for the people we value and oftentimes the quality of the gifts we share are associated with its price tag. It is important to set limits on how much you are intending to spend overall and then allocate an amount for each person on your list. This amount should be realistic and achievable with respect to your income and living expenses.
A good way to determine what disposable income you can set for gifts is to use the SaverAmericas Budget Calculator tool. This tool enables you to get an overview of what you can afford to spend on gifts. For example: If your income is $300 and expenses $200, you have a remainder of 100 that you can budget for gifts which can be distributed in a hierarchy to each of the following – Parents (25 each), 2 Siblings (10 each), Friends and others (5 each).
Holiday Hack: Create a shopping list
Having a list of possible gift ideas that each of your recipients might like allows you to look at the different options available that could fit your budget. Furthermore, this reduces the tendency to overspend and purchase an excessive amount of things that the recipient might not like.