The holidays are in the rearview, but if you’ve gone over budget with your spending, it’s time to deal with the aftermath, and we can help. It’s best to take this challenge head-on and get back on track for the new year.

Here’s an easy post-holiday budget recovery plan:

Review your holiday spending

1. Review your holiday spending. Time to crunch the numbers and see how much debt the holiday season set you back. This will help you understand what recovery steps you need to take.
2. Choose your recovery process. Do you have multiple credit card balances to pay off? Consider consolidating your debt by taking out a personal/unsecured loan and then using the funds to pay off your credit card debt. This method usually gives you a single, low-interest payment each month.

   A second option would be to pay off one credit card bill at a time using the snowball or avalanche repayment strategy. Both strategies are designed to repay debt as quickly as possible. You maximize your payments until each debt is completely paid off and you are debt free.

3. Snowball Method. With the Snowball Method, you pay the highest amount towards paying the debt with the lowest balance first while still paying the minimum payments on the rest of your debt. Once you pay off the lowest balance debt, combine that payment with the minimum payment on the next lowest balance, and so on.
4. Avalanche Method. With the Avalanche Method, you pay the highest amount to a debt with the highest interest rate while making only the minimum payments on the rest of your debt. Once you pay off the highest interest rate debt, combine that payment amount with the minimum payment of the second highest debt, and apply it to the debt with the next highest interest rate. Continue that process until you repay all that debt.
5. Trim your budget. It’s the best time to cut your budget. Use that positive new year energy to analyze your spending. Consider underused subscriptions you can drop, where you can cut your grocery bills, and investigate swapping out your auto insurance policy for a more affordable plan. Use the money you saved by trimming your budget toward paying down your holiday debt.
6. Take a break. Create a shopping detox plan. Avoid the mall and Amazon this month and resolve to only purchase essentials. Use all the money you save to help your budget recover.
7. Make a plan for next year’s holiday season. Take some time to reflect on what went wrong with your holiday budget this year and make a plan for next year. That plan might include automatically saving a certain amount each month throughout the year for your holiday savings, cutting back on your gift-giving list, or saving any bonuses, tax refunds, or extra funds for your next holiday budget.

One Nevada is here to help  
Whether you need cash quickly to pay down your holiday debt or need a little help rebuilding your credit, One Nevada has Personal Loan options to meet every need. Explore the perfect loan for you and apply today: https://onenevada.org/loans/personal-loans/