“Consumer Credit Counseling Service offers consumers tips for wise money and credit management”

The first day of school is right around the corner. Consumer Credit Counseling Service® of North Central Texas reminds consumers to shop wisely and use some of the helpful hints as you navigate through this shopping season.

Today, our students have so many more back-to-school items to tempt them. Not only are they concerned with the newest fashion so they can be the coolest kid in the school, they also need school supplies, the coolest backpack, calculators, computers, etc. The costs can add up quickly for a household and your monthly budget can take a serious hit if you do not prepare and plan for these spending needs.

Some tips to help you keep control during this back-to-school shopping season are:

• Take an inventory of school necessities. Have your students bring out their clothing, shoes and supplies so that you can take inventory of what is still useable. Can the clothes they have be mended, cleaned and possibly updated to use for this next year? Do the shoes they wore last year still fit? Separate the items into 3 separate piles – one for the items that they will keep to use, one for items that can be donated for someone else to use and one to throw away. Once you have decided what you have that is still useable, you can now determine what needs to be purchased. Most schools provide a list of supplies that will be needed for the elementary and junior high grades. Use these lists to help you develop your shopping list.

• Develop a back-to-school budget. Take time to review your household budget and determine how much money you will have for back-to-school expenses. Compare what finances you have available to the estimated monies needed to purchase the items on your shopping list. This is a good time to involve your student. They can be a part of the decision making and you can use this as a teachable moment to help him or her understand money management. Prioritize the items on your shopping list and determine what items can be postponed to purchase at a later time. Create a new list of the high priority items for which you will be shopping. Carry your shopping list with you to keep you on track. - more -

• Remember to Recycle. Don’t forget to donate those items that you sorted out for that purpose. Be sure to get a receipt for tax credit purposes during the next income tax filing season. However, if you have younger students in your household, you may want to save some of these clothes for the younger students. While you are making your donations, why not shop at the same recycling center for your own bargains?

• Shop wisely. Check the papers and listen to TV and radio commercials for back-to-school clearance sales. Also, clip coupons that can be used for your needed items. Keep your shopping outings short. Everything will look like a deal at the end of the day when you are tired. In the long run, shorter shopping trips make for smarter shopping.

• Limit expensive brands. This applies to clothes as well as the school supplies. Generic goods differ little from brand names in quality, but vary significantly in price. Branding is very important to today’s students. However, this is a good time to teach your student the importance of choosing between wants and needs. If they insist on having their wants, they will end up with less of their needs. Would they rather have 1 pair of brand name jeans or 2-3 pair of non-brand name jeans?

• Spend wisely. To maintain your back-to-school shopping budget, set a spending amount and stick with it! Take the budgeted amount with you in cash. If you leave your checkbook and credit cards home, you will avoid the temptations to make unplanned and unnecessary purchases. If you have misjudged your budget and you run short on cash for a necessary item, some stores still offer layaway plans so you can save up for these purchases.

• Use credit wisely. If you have to use credit, limit purchases to items you can pay off in 90 days or less. If you have more than one credit card, use the one with the lowest interest rate to minimize the amount you will have to pay back. If you’re not careful to minimize charges and make monthly payments on time, this short term loan from your credit card company could become a long-term financial and credit disaster.

• Take advantage of the tax free holiday. Although, the tax free holiday may not affect every item on your list, it is an immediate savings for your back-to-school budget. - more -

• Prepare for next year. Set aside money in an account in advance that is designated for back-to-school shopping for next year. This way, you won’t be overwhelmed by unexpected costs that could lead to a financial crisis.

Call CCCS if back-to-school expenses are driving your budget into a deficit. CCCS’s trained, certified counselors help consumers overcome debt crisis through advice and money management skills training. Call CCCS at 1-800-856-0257 or visit our Website at www.cccsnct.org.