Christmas, sales, the beginning of January… saving during these holidays marked by consumerism seems impossible, but at 11Onze we give you a few tips to make the impossible possible. Start the year with good economic planning!

Between the gifts we give to those closest to us, those we give out of commitment, meals out and everything we buy to make them at home, all add up to a figure that is often higher than we would like. Has it ever happened to you that you start the month with a very clear amount to save and, at the end, you see that the expenses have eaten up all the savings? It has happened to all of us at some time or another, and even though we know that the evil of many is no consolation, what we will do is remedy the situation and give you tips so that you can control your expenses during the festive season.

A precariously balanced scales

Balance the scales between what you want to spend and what you can spend. It sounds so basic, but when it comes down to it, how many of us budget our personal finances? As you know, the number one rule of saving is to define income and expenses. In the income section we will write down the money that comes into the account, and in the expenses section we will write down everything that, whether we have to pay every month or not, the fixed costs, such as rent, insurance or school. 

The remaining amount is what you can spend and save. We recommend you to define first of all the amount to save, and leave the rest for expenses. If you know that, due to holidays, summer holidays or birthday celebrations, your budget is inevitably going out of control, a tip could be to set aside a certain amount each month to cover these extraordinary expenses. Like a piggy bank, designed so that you can use it when you need it.

What do we spend the most money on?

For the holidays, there are two cracks through which our savings slip: meals and gifts. In the first case, this year’s Covid restrictions prevent us from having face-to-face meetings, so financially it can benefit us. In the case of going out, it is advisable to compare several restaurants and prices, as on special days the price tends to shoot up. A trick to control spending is to previously define the maximum amount we want to spend. This way, we won’t blow the budget.

As for meals at home, one solution for not taking on the whole cost can be to share it out. We all like to be the hosts and to be able to invite our colleagues, but we must bear in mind that, depending on the meal, the cost may be higher than expected. Splitting the menu or costs at the end of the meal can be a way to enjoy our family and friends without affecting our finances. On the other hand, we know that gifts are the main expense during the Christmas and Epiphany festivities, and that is why we have compiled a list of ten tips for organising your shopping. 

The bargain trap

How many times have we bought products that we hadn’t even planned to buy simply because the offer was unrepeatable? An offer alerts us that the product is within our reach: it’s now or never. And, obviously, we end up buying it thinking about the money we save compared to the original price.

But the main question to ask ourselves is whether we were willing to buy it for the original price. Do we really need it? Will we use it? Letting ourselves be carried away by this false sense of savings only generates an additional expense that we were not counting on. When faced with offers, let’s not let our guard down and let’s reflect both on the use we will make of the product and on the price we are paying. And everything that is secondary and does not fall within the monthly budget, can wait until next month, so get ahead of your expenses and take control of your economy!

11Onze is becoming a phenomenon as the first Fintech community in Catalonia. Now, it releases the first version of El Canut, the super app of 11Onze, for Android and Apple. El Canut, the first universal account can be opened in Catalan territory.