Diaries Magazine

A Busy Family's Guide to the Biggest Fall Expenses

Posted on the 21 August 2019 by Sparklesandstretchmarks @raine_fairy
With fall just around the corner, you can expect to see the leaves turning colours, pumpkin spice flavours back on the menu, and a long list of expenses in your near future. These expenses may be a lot to handle after your family’s summer vacation, but they don’t have to throw your finances off track. Check in with this simple guide to the season’s two biggest expenses to find out how you can save money.
A Busy Family's Guide to the Biggest Fall Expenses

1. Back-to-School Supplies

The end of summer means just one thing when you have kids. It’s back to school time. Your kids are probably thinking about the first day of school with some anxiety, knowing they’ll be back in their seats and working out math problems in no time. Fractions, integers, and trigonometry await them, but they aren’t the only ones to expect to do a little math in the near future. Although your school days are in the past, you’ll need a calculator to balance your back-to-school shopping budget. Expect to balance large numbers. Deloitte reports the forecasted spending for the year, and the numbers aren’t good.

How to save money on supplies

Thanks to budget cuts across the country, you’ll be expected to supply your child with more materials and equipment than ever before. But is there a way to tick off all you need from your list and not totally blow your budget? Yes! Here are some tips to help you save money:    Download shopping apps: With the right app, you can find the cheapest prices, knock off a few dollars with a coupon, and then earn money back on your purchase with a rebate.
   Buy used when possible: If you’re shopping for graphing calculators, tablets, or computers, search out certified refurbished options before you buy new. They tend to be a lot cheaper, but they work just as well
   Use a list: Don’t walk into a store without knowing what you want. Otherwise, you could end up buying things that your kids don’t need. If you put these impulse items on a personal line of credit, this could do damage to your credit score. But this isn’t the only way parents unintentionally hurt their score. To make sure you aren’t committing any mistakes with your personal line of credit, check this out for more information. It shares helpful tips on how to use your personal line of credit wisely, and how to manage your credit history as a parent.

2. Household Maintenance

A Busy Family's Guide to the Biggest Fall Expenses As the season preceding winter’s deep freeze, the fall is a busy time for homeowners preparing their property for Old Man Winter’s arrival. There’s a lot to be done in and around the house — like cleaning out gutters and shutting down your air conditioner to caulking windows and scheduling a furnace tune-up. Some of these are free, but some may be an investment of your hard-earned money.

How to afford essential repairs

After back-to-school shopping and filling your closets, taking on repairs may be stretching your budget too far. But that doesn’t mean you have to put off repairs or other essential tasks.    DIY: Most of your fall tasks are simple chores that you can do on your own with minimal tools or experience. Doing these jobs on your own can save you a lot of money.
   Financing: If you have to get a professional involved, talk to them about setting up a financing plan. They may let you pay your invoice over several weeks. And if they don’t, this may be the time to use your personal line of credit. A personal line of credit acts as a better safety net than an excuse to go shopping.
A seasonal changeover is never cheap, but it shouldn’t threaten your family’s finances. Use these tips to help you face the fall’s biggest expenses, and you’ll cover back-to-school and winterization bills with greater confidence 
If you enjoy my blog, please consider following me on Bloglovin'   

Back to Featured Articles on Logo Paperblog