Are you desperately looking for ways to pay off your Christmas debt? We all have to face it from time to time … that day in January where it sinks in that we’ve overspent over the holidays.
We didn’t mean to do it, we may have even started with a plan to avoid it, but then the craziness hit. And, now what can we do about it? We know that the credit card bills are going to come in, the mortgage and utilities are going to be due and there will be groceries to buy.
So, how do you quickly pay off debt? How can you get out of debt just as easily as you got into it?
I’m sharing here my own list of simple ways I’ve used to get out of debt and pay off bills quickly.
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Time to Face Your Christmas Debt
Your first inclination might be to bury your head in the sand so you can ignore the mistakes you’ve made. This isn’t the time to do that.
Let’s Get Started
- Gather any necessary receipts, bills, etc.
- List out all your credit cards
- List any other money you owe
- Tally how much you owe on each one
How much debt do you need to pay off?
Total your debts all in one place so you know what you’re faced with.
Cry if you want … it might just help you clear your system. But then take a breath, put on your ADULT pants and psyche yourself up with some positive self-talk. You Can Do This!
9 Simple Ways to Pay off Christmas Debt Quickly
1. Find Cash
Find cash anywhere you can. Check your drawers, change jar or car. And, don’t forget to cash out your Ibotta and use that money towards bills.
Related: Tricky Ways to Stash Cash When You Think You’re Broke
2. Sell Some Stuff
Odds are, you have lots of stuff around your home that you’re not actually using. I made over $3,000 last Summer selling things I already owned. Start by walking room to room and making a list of things you could make some money off of.
Rob makes thousands of money selling used things each month. Go get his free beginner’s guide so you can get out of debt fast.
Here are some ideas of things you already own that you can start selling today.
- Exercise Equipment
- Clothing
- Kitchen Appliances
- Extra Furniture
- Artwork
- Decor
- Toys
- Camping Gear
See 53 Things to Sell to Make Money Fast – I made $3500
3. Have a Spending Freeze
The fastest way to recover from overspending is to do a spending freeze. A spending freeze is a period of time where you literally freeze all spending.
Yes, you need to keep paying your actual bills, but you don’t spend any other money. This will take some commitment but you can easily save $1,000 over the next 30 days and then use that to pay off those bills.
You’ll want to read my post, Spending Freeze Rules – How to Get Started Successfully, to get the nitty-gritty details and a download to help you. And read Spending Freeze Tips – How to Avoid Sabotage, too.
4. Cut Something Out
In order to pay that monthly credit card bill, it might be time to cancel one of your ongoing expenses. You don’t have to cancel them forever, just go without for a while.
Here are some ideas:
- Gym membership
- magazines
- Cable TV, Netflix, Hulu, etc.
- Sirius Radio
5. Pantry/Freezer Challenge
To have a pantry/freezer challenge, take a period of time and plan not to buy any groceries. If you run out of milk, have oatmeal or muffins for breakfast instead of cereal. No more bread for lunch? Make some or eat those canned soups, mac n’ cheese, or leftovers for lunch instead.
The whole idea is to stop buying groceries for a bit of time. See how long you can make it.
Use up what you already have and stay out of the grocery store.
See How to Have a Pantry Challenge
Follow me on Pinterest and look through my Frugal Recipes Pinterest Board to get inspired.
6. Beans and Rice Dinners
We all know that beans and rice are pretty cheap to eat. The nice thing is, they’re also healthy and easy to dress-up in different ways. You could literally eat only bean and rice dinners for a week and spend less than $10 for your family.
- Use different types of beans
- Spice them up
- Top them with salsa
- Mix in Asian Flavors
- Make an Italian soup
I know that beans and rice can get boring after a while, but think about what you’re saving by not going to the grocery store.
7. Eat Other Cheap Meals
If you just can’t stomach beans and rice anymore there are lots of other Cheap Meals to Make When You’re Broke. Try to stay under $5 for your family meals. Check out the cheap ideas below:
- Spaghetti
- French Bread Pizza
- Baked Potato Bar
- Sandwiches
- Scrambled Eggs and Toast
- Fried Rice
- Soup
- Hot Dogs
Related: 15 Frugal Pantry Staples
8. Use Your Tax Return and Bonuses
Make sure that every bit of extra cash you have coming in goes towards paying off the debt. No fancy dinners, new clothes shopping sprees for you Honey. You’ve got bigger things in mind for your funds.
9. Start Today
Don’t wait one more day. Odds are there is something coming up that you know will cost more money. Maybe a vacation, birthday, Valentine’s Day, a date, etc.
If you want to really get on top of this whole, “I overspent on the holidays” thing, you gotta start now.
There are ways to approach all those other future spending opportunities that won’t cost you money and if you just put off your cut-backs for a future date — well, it just won’t happen.
Let’s do this together. It seems like every single year I end up spending more than I plan to. I’m going to work through this list myself and see if I can pay off my Christmas debt quickly and then work hard to stay out of debt next Christmas.
