Christmas<\/a>. It\u2019s about small, consistent changes. No one likes to feel deprived, so these are practical tweaks that really add up.\u201d<\/p>\nCarlton\u2019s ten tips cover everything from your weekly food shop to your weekend plans. And he says one of them could see you banking \u00a3500 by early November.<\/p>\n
Look down the supermarket shelves<\/p>\n
\u201cSupermarkets are clever,\u201d says Carlton. \u201cThey put the expensive stuff right at eye level. If you simply lower your gaze, you\u2019ll see the cheaper versions hiding further down.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said value ranges often taste just as good as the big brands. \u201cFor example, swap Heinz beans at \u00a31.40 for Tesco\u2019s Stockwell beans at 29p. Kellogg\u2019s cornflakes are \u00a33.20 but the value box is just 79p. Do that across a weekly shop and you\u2019re saving about \u00a325 a week, which comes to \u00a3300 by Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cash is king<\/p>\n
Contactless has made it effortless to spend. Carlton said: \u201cWhen you pay with cash, you feel the money leaving your hands. It makes you think twice. I recommend taking out a set budget in cash at the start of the month. Whatever\u2019s left at the end goes straight into a Christmas pot.\u201d<\/p>\n
He says an average family could save at least \u00a3200 this way before December.<\/p>\n
Clear out the cupboards<\/p>\n
\u201cWe all have cupboards full of unwanted gifts,\u201d Carlton said. \u201cOn average, households are sitting on about \u00a31,500 worth of unused items. I\u2019m talking unopened perfume, toys still in packaging, and clothes with the tags on. With second-hand shopping booming, there\u2019s a real market.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even if you only manage to sell ten items at \u00a310 each, that\u2019s \u00a3100 for the festive fund.<\/p>\n
Cut the coffee habit<\/p>\n
That daily \u00a35 latte quickly adds up. \u201cBring a flask or use the office machine,\u201d Carlton advises. \u201cIf you\u2019re saving \u00a325 a week, that\u2019s \u00a3225 in your pocket by December.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ditch the meal deal<\/p>\n
Office lunches are another sneaky drain. \u201cIf you\u2019re spending \u00a34\u2013\u00a35 a day on a meal deal, that\u2019s \u00a3100 a month. Cook extra dinner portions and bring leftovers. You\u2019ll save around \u00a3300 before Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fakeaway, don\u2019t takeaway<\/p>\n
Takeaways may be tempting on a Saturday night, but Carlton warns they\u2019re financial black holes. \u201cA family of four can easily spend \u00a350 on one meal. If you make your own pizza or curry at home instead, you\u2019ll save \u00a3500 by early December, and you might even enjoy cooking it together.\u201d<\/p>\n
Free fun at weekends<\/p>\n
The holidays may be over, but weekend costs mount up quickly. \u201cCinema tickets and theme parks can burn through \u00a350 a week,\u201d says Carlton. \u201cInstead, look at free activities like local library clubs, woodland walks or art projects at home. Over three months, that\u2019s another \u00a3600 saved.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cut back on Christmas cards<\/p>\n
A first-class stamp is now \u00a31.35. \u201cIf you\u2019re sending 30 cards, that\u2019s \u00a340 gone,\u201d Carlton said. \u201cWhy not send an e-card or festive WhatsApp message? People will still feel thought of.\u201d<\/p>\n
Join supermarket Christmas schemes<\/p>\n
Carlton said: \u201cMost major supermarkets offer saving clubs. You put money in each week and they reward you with vouchers. By December, that could mean an extra \u00a325 towards the big shop \u2013 and you won\u2019t notice the money going out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cancel the streaming services<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the run-up to Christmas there\u2019s plenty on Freeview,\u201d Carlton notes. \u201cIf you cancel Netflix, Disney+ and the rest for three months, that\u2019s around \u00a3168 back in your account. You can always resubscribe in January.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Carlton has explained simple changes that will make you a lot of money when they are added up…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":134026,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[84,3462,4176,4174,4175,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-134025","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-personal-finance","tag-business","tag-christmas","tag-finance","tag-personal-finance","tag-personalfinance","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134025","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=134025"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134025\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/134026"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=134025"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=134025"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=134025"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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Changing routine habits for the next three months could pay for Christmas<\/p>\n