Holiday Shopping

Make a holiday spending plan
Use the envelope method to divide planned spending for each person on your gift list
Use cash if possible.
If you use credit, pick the card with the best terms (ie. lowest interest rate). Keep track of expenditures in order to stay within spending plan.
Make a list of gifts you plan on buying and plan the most economical route to save gas.
Think outside the gift box (ie. buy a single gift for your brother's entire family -- perhaps an "entertainment" basket filled with DVDs, microwave popcorn and gift certificates to the movies)
Spend no more than you can afford

Get easy gifts out of the way
Compare prices and sellers (online and paper advertisements)
Get and use reliable, current information about products you’re buying
Consider time and travel costs
Look for price matching opportunities
Watch out for bargain offers requiring additional spending
Prior to purchase, inquire about store return policy
Ask about sale adjustments in case what you are purchasing goes on sale within a few days
Use credit only when necessary
Evaluate the opportunity costs of purchases made

Rules for Shopping Online:

Become familiar with the online merchant
Inquire about shipping costs and return policies
Use a secure web browser. Look for the security lock and the ‘s’ in https://
Use a safe and hard-to-guess password when setting up accounts
Look for “opt out” option to prevent advertisements from being sent to email
Use credit card online as opposed to bank card. Credit cards are safer because of the Fair Credit Act. If your number was stolen, the most you could lose is $50 per occurrence. With a bank card, you could incur total loss.
Keep a record of order for your records
Do not send financial or personal information via email.
Research product and seller prior to making a purchase