Holiday Spending and Debt
Are you ready for the holiday rush and buying spree? Traditionally, the holidays bring us a time of sharing and giving. But the cost of giving has increased over the years and you need to be aware of the burden it could put on your financial situation. With the change in most individual’s financial situation over the past year, this is a good time to reevaluate your holiday gift giving.
Most families spend around $500 on holiday gifts. If you put all those gifts on your credit card, the end result may surprise you. Do you have any idea how long you will be paying off those holiday gifts if you can only make the minimum payment each month? Let’s do some math: $500 of holiday gifts: Let’s say you charge $500 on your credit card and only make the minimum monthly payment of $20. Some credit cards now are around the 19.99% interest rate for long period payoffs, you will be paying on those holiday gifts for 3 years! And to top it off, you will be paying the credit card company an additional $153 in interest. Check for yourself using the Federal Reserve credit card calculator.
What if your gifts top the $1000 mark: Now you have an after-the-holidays credit card bill starting at $1000, with the same $20 of minimum monthly payment and 19.99% interest rate. Are you sitting down? It will take you 9 years to pay off those gifts you purchased! The credit card company will be happy because you will pay them $1,167 in interest. Yes, that is correct you will be giving $1,000 worth of holiday gifts to your friends and family, plus over time more than a $1,000 gift to your credit card company.
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