10 ways to pay cash for Christmas

5. Get a(nother) job

Plenty of businesses add bodies during the holidays: retail stores, package delivery services, craft stores, ski resorts and temp agencies (to fill in for all those vacationing workers). These temporary part-time jobs can boost your pay, and you may qualify for employee discounts. MSN Careers is one place to start looking.

If you need a more flexible gig, consider a home-based business that doesn't require a big upfront investment. Some possibilities: baby-sitting, tutoring, house-sitting, dog walking, errand running, housecleaning, home organization (garage clean-outs and closet tuneups might be particularly appreciated this time of year).

• Check out America's best home-based businesses

6. Sell your stuff

The weather's not ideal for yard sales in most of the country, but you can still cut your clutter and make some cash thanks to sites like eBay, Half.com, Amazon.com and Craigslist. Half.com and Amazon.com are good places to sell books, DVDs, CDs, video games; sell higher-value items on eBay; and list bulky stuff on Craigslist.

Read "Garage sales thrive in online world" for more ideas.

7. Sell someone else's stuff

If you've already turned all your clutter into cash on eBay, maybe you could help a friend who's new to online auctions help sell her stuff in exchange for a cut of whatever you manage to sell. Plenty of businesses have sprung up to do exactly that, and they often take up to one-third of the proceeds.

Make sure you work out in advance and in writing what your fee arrangement will be. Also, keep good records to head off any disputes.

8. Cancel some money suckers

Examine your bills and your credit card statements for recurring expenses that don't make sense anymore. Still paying for a land line when you're always on your cell? Coughing up for a gym you haven't visited in a year? Cancel those money suckers and start redirecting the cash to a savings account earmarked for holiday expenses. (Read "Ditch those money-sucking bills" for more candidates.)

If you run out of recurring bills to eliminate, pick some habitual expenses to curb: Trade in that bottled water for a refillable sports cup (savings: $1 per bottle, or $30 a month for a daily habit); make coffee at home instead of buying it (savings: $2 to $3 per cup, or $40 to $60 for a daily habit); have a beer with friends at home instead of at the bar (savings depends on your alcohol intake). Make a ritual of putting aside the money you save as you choose the cheaper option.

9. Submit your receipts

If you're owed reimbursement for money you've already spent -- from an employer for company travel, for example, or from a flexible spending plan at work that allows you to put aside pretax money for medical or child-care expenses -- submit your receipts now and put the resulting checks aside for the holidays.

Click here to learn more about health savings accounts.

10. Try a 'Buy Nothing (Else)' month

Commit to buying only essentials for a month and you could wind up with quite a stash of cash. Volunteers from the Your Money message board who tried it typically saved $300 to $400 this way. For more details, read "Could you stop spending for a month?"

Columns by Liz Pulliam Weston, the Web's most-read personal finance writer and winner of the 2007 Clarion Award for online journalism, appear every Monday and Thursday, exclusively on MSN Money. She also answers reader questions on the Your Money message board.

Published Nov. 15, 2007

READ MORE: CREDIT CARDS- EBAY - SAVING - CUT TAXES

< previous |  1 | 2 |