Back to School Savings

Back to school shopping, much like holiday shopping, may be an inevitable annual expense, but it doesn’t have to be expensive. With a little advanced planning, you can stay frugal in any area of your life. Whether you’re heading to the store for Elmer’s glue and pencil cases or laptops and shower caddies, here are some back-to-school dos and don’ts that may help:

Do your homework

Before hitting the stores, check out online stores and search the newspapers for special sales. Every store has a competitor and all of them want your business. The deals may look great once you walk through the door, but how do they compare to the competition down the street? If you are choosing between two office supply, computer or discount clothing stores, find their deals online or in the paper before you head out so you can compare. This type of planning can also help you combine trips and save you time and a lot of money on gas.

Don’t forget to budget

Take a good look at your kids’ school supply lists and estimate the price of each item (this will be easy once you do your homework). Add up the prices and budget for how much you plan to spend. Make sure you can afford to spend this much before heading to the stores. Planning and budgeting will help eliminate surprises at the register and help you resist picking up unnecessary items that will put you over your budget.

Do buy in bulk

Buying bulk for the sake of bulk isn’t always the best way to save, but it may help if you have several kids or if there are items you know they will need again next year. Trends come and go but pencils, erasers, rulers and notebook paper have been pretty standard for years. Buy bulk items you know will be needed again and pack them away in a safe, out-of-sight place to avoid over consumption. These supplies will come in handy if the kids run out halfway through the school year. You’ll thank yourself then or next August when half of your shopping is already done.

Don’t assume a sale is a deal

Just because something is on sale does not mean it is a great deal. Understand the price and make time to comparison shop. The same thinking applies to bulk items. If you see a pack of 50 CDs next to a pack of 100 CDs do not assume the larger pack is the better deal. This is often the case, but not always. You may think you are saving when you are actually paying more per CD for more CDs than you need.

Do leave the kids at home

Your children feel the pressure when it comes to back-to-school shopping, but they are more concerned about getting the right backpack or the hippest sneakers. They are probably not as worried about how much everything will cost. If you can, consider leaving them at home. You will be more likely to stick to the list, and to your budget, when there’s no one around begging for personalized calculator covers or sneaking erasable markers into your cart. You could also split the list into supplies you get when the kids are not around and other items, like clothing, that may require their presence.

Do bring a calculator to the store

Bringing your calculator along to the store can help you reduce spending in multiple ways. You can do the math yourself to calculate if supplies advertised as “big savings” are indeed a good deal. You can also determine whether or not buying bulk items is worth the savings. Moreover, if you do bring the kids along, they can add up the cost of everything that goes in the cart. They can assume some responsibility for back-to-school shopping (aside from scanning the shelves for more “must-haves”) and they can see for themselves how quickly everything adds up.

Do look for deals on textbooks

Many colleges allow students to purchase used textbooks, while some require students to purchase customized textbooks from the school. For schools that are more flexible with their textbook requirements, try looking elsewhere to save some money. Textbooks may be the most expensive item on a student’s list, so shop around like you would for any major purchase. Get a list of exactly which books are required and check out a resource like eBay’s Half.com. Search here for what you need, or search online for other textbook deals. Having the ISBN will help you make sure you are getting the correct book.

Don’t forget about tax-free shopping

If you live in Connecticut, Tennessee or Texas you haven’t missed your state’s tax-free shopping days! The dates are Aug. 19-25 in Connecticut, Aug. 27-29 in Tennessee and Aug. 17-19 in Texas. Take care of your back-to-school needs during these days to save even more money.

Don’t avoid asking for help

If the school requires something you can’t afford, ask what they can do to help. Find out if the $90 calculator is actually required, or if it has features students will need for only one or two lessons. Ask if students use the entire $75 calculus textbook or if someone can get by borrowing the library’s copy or sharing a copy with another student. While no parent wants their children to be less prepared than their classmates, it never hurts to see if there are ways around the outrageous price tags of “required” supplies.

Do check out these additional resources

• Shopping for electronics? Check out MySimon.com or BuyDig.com.
• Need back-to-school clothes? See OnceWornNotForLong.com, KidsConsignmentSales.com or WornButNotForgotten.com.
• And for just about everything else, look at eBay.com, Swapthing.com, Craigslist.org or Overstock.com.