Unexpected Expenses This Holiday Season That Can Put You In Debt

Gifts and food are not the only things that you should prepare for this coming Christmas and New Year Celebration. The main reason why people are left in debt amounting to thousands of dollars is because of the unexpected expenses they incur. “Unexpected” it is, not because they are accidental purchases but because these items are not part of their budget. 

Don’t let the month of December ruin your financial goals. You can avoid being in debt by preparing for these holiday unexpected expenses.

Let’s not forget our pets this season. With the decors lying and hanging in our homes, it’s not impossible that our pets might ingest some of it. The most common pet emergencies are poisonings (from chocolates, raisins from trash, and leftover spoiled food) and decor ingestions. These could lead to diarrhea, vomiting, blockage, and worst is organ failure. Pet surgeries are expensive, with $1,755 average costs. Unexpected expenses like this are costly so better make your home safe for our fur babies. 

Make sure you have health insurance to save you from high medical emergency costs this Christmas. Unexpected expenses and high medical bills are the consequences of accidental cuts, burns, food poisoning, choking, insect bites, and cardiac issues. The most common injuries this Christmas are the following:

• alcohol-related injuries 

• bites from insects, spiders and snakes

• children ingesting hazardous materials from toys and decors 

• food poisoning

• heart attacks

Unexpected expenses this Christmas also include babysitting costs should you leave the home for a night for parties and drinks. Company parties and a sleepover with friends usually take longer than one night. Care.com reveals that a babysitter can cost as much as $20/hr this holiday season. There are top reasons why families hire someone to watch their kids: while they do holiday shopping, while they attend parties, and to take care of the kids during holiday entertainment. 

A spike in a household’s electric bills happens at this month every year, yet people forget to include this on their budget. Lighting up your Christmas lights and decorations for hours every day can undeniably cause a high electric bill by January. Energy Focus reveals that a lighted Christmas tree for 5 hours/day in a month will cost an average of $132 and an outdoor Christmas decor can cost up to $355. 

There’s always one person or two that you miss buying gifts for. Last-minute shopping can cost a lot due to surge costs, with increased shipping fees to deliver the gift as soon as possible.

Don’t let your Christmas and New Year celebrations be ruined by these financial stressors.  This is the month of fun and parties but this is also the month where most accidents happen. Aside from checking your gift list, check your home to lessen the chances of physical injuries from accidents and the loss of property in case of fire and natural calamities that might hit this Christmas. Though not all of these unexpected expenses can be prevented, it’s better to set aside some funds should these unfortunate circumstances happen.