SARAH WELLS: Seven money rules to avoid a jolly festive hangover and spend wisely this Christmas

Is it just me or every November are we shocked and surprised by how fast the year has flown by?

This year has been full of many finance and money highs and lows, and if you had good intentions for the year but haven’t quite stuck to them, there’s never a better time than before Christmas to re-calibrate your spending.

December often comes with heady financial expectations for the festive season, but most of those can be side-stepped if you’re spending savvy.

Do you need a new outfit for the office Christmas party — or can you shop your wardrobe? Will that designer handbag really change your life — or is it a dopamine hit you’ll regret in January?

Does every single person in your family need a present from you — or can you start a Secret Santa? Can you swap fancy cocktails at that swanky new hotel with friends for a balcony soiree at home where everyone brings a bottle?

Let’s rebrand it to “No”vember and use these next few weeks to shift focus and work out ways we can manage our financial stress over the next couple of months by not saying ‘yes’ to things we don’t want or need in December.

A lot of festive season spending is about other people’s expectations, so if you can navigate that successfully you’ll create a much better festive season lead-up.

My biggest tip is always “don’t spend money you don’t have”. I realise that sounds painstakingly simple, but it’s an absolute money rule to live by.

While it’s great to give extravagant gifts to loved ones and friends, the hangover from spending too much can last well into the new year. And that’s a hangover you just don’t need.

My basic rule is that if you don’t have the cash for it, then don’t buy it. Credit cards, while great for emergencies, are recipes for disaster unless they’re managed responsibly. You will never feel worse than when you have a credit card debt you have to pay off via a personal loan.

And while it’s lovely to have nice things, your financial wellbeing is worth so much more than any shopping dopamine hit.

To my mind trying to keep up with the Joneses is always a bad idea. Enjoy what you can afford and you’ll start 2026 happy, healthy and with a strong financial outlook.

Here’s my simple rules for the financial festive season:

Be present about presents: Set a strict present budget and stick to it, or start a Secret Santa in your family so you only have one person/family to buy for.

Donate your unused items: There’s nothing like seeing all the money you’ve wasted in your closet to make you rethink your spending this Christmas.

Write a beautiful card instead: It can be simple and heartfelt, and people keep cards much longer than they keep presents.

Don’t commit to expensive holidays: If you can afford it, enjoy it. If it’s going on credit, rethink it and stay closer to home.

Leave credit cards at home: Don’t be tempted by festive season advertising. It’s not worth the financial hangover. And you probably don’t need it anyway.

Give quality time: It costs nothing to spend time with people you love, and with family time is often the greatest gift you can give them. Cherish them.

Pay with cash: You’ll be surprised how sticking to this can help you reign in your festive spending.

Follow these seven tips for festive season financial success and I promise that come January you’ll feel much better about your money and finance outlook for 2026.

Sarah Wells is a Perth-based money and finance commentator