We're heading into the last big shopping weekend before Christmas and toward the time when emotional spending can really get out of hand.
Here's a quick quiz from Consumer Credit Counseling Services of the Delaware Valley to help you figure out if you should be shopping at all this holiday.
Answer True or False to the following statements:
- There are arguments in my home about money.
- I sometimes hide my purchases.
- I have thought about filing ofr bankruptcy.
- I struggle to make my mortgage payment.
- I sometimes pay my bills late.
- I have used more than 30-percent of my available credit lines.
- My debt interferes with my sleep, job or home life.
- I have little or no savings.
- I am receiving collection calls or notices.
- If I lost my job, it would mean an immediate financial crisis in my life.
If you answered "true" to two or more of the above statements, "you are not a candidate for a holiday shopping spree," says Patty Hasson, president and executive director of CCCS.
"If you are not in a position to be spending, doing so could lead to unmanageable debt, resulting in a lower credit score and possibly limiting your access to future credit."
Foregoing the holiday shopping might take more discipline than you've ever mustered up, but think of it this way -- it could be the best gift you give yourself this season.
