Good riddance December, the money gobbler

Officially, December should be declared the most expensive month in the world. And it is good it is coming to an end in a matter of days. It has indeed left many pockets torn given the heavy expenditure associated with the festivities that are the month’s hallmark.

You cannot attend a wedding, for example, and expect not to spend. There are gifts to buy and, of course, making the journey to the venue is not cheap.

And the weddings are not two or three. In December, on average, people attend up to five weddings. There are days when some people have to attend two weddings – the church service for one and the reception for the other.

Christmas, just one day in a year, is the heaviest taker of all December expenditures. If you are from the city and decided to spend Christmas in the village, you had to satisfy many relatives.

An aunt wanted you to ‘sambaza’ credit for Christmas. Nephews and nieces had a host of needs such as clothes and some gadgets. Uncles will demand new shirts, shoes or suits, claiming that the one you bought last time is now faded or in tatters.

Some ladies take loans to take care of these expenses. Financial experts firmly advise against this. If you promise such gifts for the following Christmas, it is prudent that you start saving as soon as the New Year clocks in. List the items to be bought and buy them in the course of the year. Tick off each item bought.

Never rush to buy all the gifts in December. You will end up spending much more than you would if you spread the buying throughout the year.

However, the greatest shark that consumes most of the money is transport, especially for urban dwellers.

When schools closed for the December holidays, many people sighed with relief; that the days of unending jams were over. But lo, it was the genesis of traffic gridlocks.

Vehicles have been snaking through roads without signs of abating. A journey that normally takes 15 minutes can take one up to three hours to cover!

Yes, one day I spent two hours from Donholm to Taj Mall in Embakasi because matatus had decided to overlap and block everyone else along the way. No one was willing to give way. Motorists checked their fuel gauges as they swung to zero level with deep sadness.

Besides wasting time on the road to move from one point to another, the money lost in the process is staggering. On a personal level, this wastage affects the family budget as it eats into money set aside for other uses.

Pressure to spend is at its peak in December. Friends call to tell you about a deal in some corner of town and push you to also get a deal. You find yourself criss-crossing the city to also acquire the item of desire or one on offer.

But if you paused to calculate how much you spent as you headed to the destination, you might change your mind about buying the item or get it nearer to where you are at a slightly higher price.

But then it is December when the craze of acquiring things you really do not need overcome you. A neighbour gets new cutlery for Christmas every year. It might be stylish or making a statement but honestly this is a way of just being extravagant.

The interesting thing is that people keep making the same purchases every end year; sometimes repeating the same mistakes that drained them financially the previous year.

It is good December – and 2014 – is on its sunset days. The reality of January is checking in. Indeed this week, there is a big shift in shopping baskets. Parents are flocking to bookstores and uniform outlets to prepare their children for school. Already December and its ease is fading away.

Let 2015 usher in great tidings for you and your financial plans for the year. Happy New Year!

photo:financialjuneteenth.com