With prices of everyday items and interest rates on the rise, people are pulling back on spending during the ‘Season of Giving.’
East Village resident Talysia Theodioe told KPBS holiday shopping has changed for her. "Price increases made me cut back a lot,” Theodioe said. “Having to prioritize needs over wants has been a big thing for me this year.”
Justin and Angie Asher were out shopping with their two year old daughter Claire. They said they have also made adjustments to their holiday celebrations.
“Staying at home, doing get-togethers, that sort of thing. Rather than lots of presents and making sure there’s a bunch of stuff under the tree,” Justin Asher said.
That's the sort of thing Thomas Nitzsche of Money Management International advises. "It could be the time to have some conversations like, ‘Let’s focus on the kids this year and just get stuff for them. Do a token gift among the adults,’" he said. "Maybe it’s just resetting expectations with family members.”
Nitzsche's national nonprofit organization provides debt management plan services and housing and credit counseling, and he said they see people rack up big bills over the holidays. “They’re traveling. They’re going out to eat more. They’re buying gifts. They’re spending time with family and a lot of times money is not at the top of people’s minds when they’re doing that,” Nitzsche said.
He recommends making a budget as a way to avoid holiday debt.
“We’re human and we want to enjoy the holidays, but we have to remember that that reckoning is going to come next month when those bills arrive in the mail,” Nitzsche noted.
Marlon Ibarra was a client of MMI who used to be in debt. He said he hid that during the holiday season.
“This time of the year, money goes out a lot quicker than it comes in,” Ibarra said. “You just have to be very disciplined and make sure that you save for your wants, but if you don’t have it, you don’t have it.”
Now that he has paid off his debt, Ibarra tells people, “It’s the season of giving, not the season of giving the most expensive.”
