How to Give Gifts for the Holiday and Stay on Budget
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This episode is brought to you by Charles Schwab. Decisions made in Washington can affect your portfolio every day. Washington Wise from Charles Schwab is an original podcast that unpacks the stories making news in Washington. Listen at schwab.com slash Washington Wise.
Here's your money briefing for Wednesday, December 11th. I'm J.R. Whelan for The Wall Street Journal. It's the season of giving, but making a list and checking it twice can get pretty expensive. What if you can't afford to buy something for family members and all your friends? The WSJ's Jessica Chow is wrestling with that very issue.
I have a friend who I call the Martha Stewart of my life because she's so chic. And she said something that really resonated with me, and that was, look for something that says, I see you, but with my price point and sensibility.
Jessica will join us to talk gift giving without breaking the bank after the break.
Listen at schwab.com slash washingtonwise.
Your life is full of friends and family you love dearly. But what happens when you can't afford gifts for them all this year?
How should I start planning a holiday gift budget to avoid debt?
Jessica Chow is a senior supervising producer with The Wall Street Journal. She wrote about this topic and she joins me. Jess, how did this story come about? Are you going through this?
So my older sister is the fanciest person in my life.
What does 'buy champagne gifts on a Prosecco budget' really mean?
And I always try to impress her, I think, to prove that I'm a real adult. This year for Christmas, I was thinking about what to get her.
How can loud budgeting conversations with family ease holiday costs?
And I was really stuck because I was trying to limit my budget a little bit and be a little bit more frugal. I feel like it's harder to be frugal when you're buying things for other people because you just want to spoil them a little bit.
She's going to hear this.
She doesn't listen to podcasts.
Is it OK to pool money with relatives for a bigger gift?
It's fine. Okay. Sorry. No offense.
How do I talk to friends about financial limits around gift giving?
Since she's not listening, what are you buying her?
I got her a few things. I like to collect small things and I put them in a box and I package them nicely. But her big, like the centerpiece of her gift is a vintage Gucci shoehorn.
What creative low-cost gift ideas did experts recommend?
And it's like really heavy and it looks substantial and it looks vintage.
You spoke to financial professionals about this, that it can be a challenge when shopping for other people. What's the first step they talked about?
They said start early and it was starting early, not just in thinking about what you're getting them, but also in planning for the budget. It was kind of a twofold thing as I come up with your list early and start seeing what's out there, which allows you to a take advantage of free shipping deals, be not have to rush shipping and then see if there are any sales going on. You can take advantage of that, too.
Why choose vintage, secondhand, or personalized gifts to show you care?
And then in terms of coming up with the budget, it was like start your gift budget earlier and think of it as a sinking fund. So in the same way that you would save up for a vacation, do the same thing with gifts. So you have a sinking fund that you can just be pulling from throughout the year and not going into debt when it comes to December.
You mentioned something in the story that I love. It's the idea of trying to buy champagne gifts on a Prosecco budget. What kinds of conversations can you have with loved ones ahead of time to help ease the financial burden of gift giving?
So I talked to Giovanna Gigi Gonzalez. She's an author and financial educator. She recommended that we do something called loud budgeting, which is something that was all over TikTok online.
We talked about it on the show a few months ago.
Oh, yeah. Go listen to that episode. But it's essentially being forthright about your finances. And one thing that she was saying is it's OK to say, hey, like, I'm really thinking about my budget this year. I'm like really saving for something. And that kind of helps set subtle expectations of like how you're spending your money. It's not just for gifts. It's also for everyday life. Oh, I don't want to spend this money on a concert ticket because I really want to spend this money on a vacation.
Is it okay to pool money together? Maybe some family members get together and buy a gift for someone so that any one person doesn't take a financial hit?
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–1:50
2
How should I start planning a holiday gift budget to avoid debt?
1:50–2:03
3
What does 'buy champagne gifts on a Prosecco budget' really mean?
2:03–2:11
4
How can loud budgeting conversations with family ease holiday costs?
2:11–2:26
5
Is it OK to pool money with relatives for a bigger gift?
2:26–2:29
6
How do I talk to friends about financial limits around gift giving?
2:29–2:42
7
What creative low-cost gift ideas did experts recommend?
2:42–3:12
8
Why choose vintage, secondhand, or personalized gifts to show you care?
3:12–8:12
Speakers
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