It’s time for your kids to go back to school, and with that comes a lot of added expenses. With all of the back to school sales it is easy to get overwhelmed, and end up spending much more than planned. Here are a few tips to stay in budget when going back to school shopping this year:

• Create a plan before you go shopping. Have a list of what you think your kids will need for the year, or at least what they will need to get the year started. For some levels of schooling, the teacher/school provides a list of what supplies the students will need for the year. If that is the case wait until the teacher gives you the required supplies list to go shopping.
• Take advantage of back to school sales, store reward programs, coupons, bulk sales, and other types of sales the stores may be offering. It is smart to shop around, this can be done easily by looking online to see what the current prices of the items you need are, and what store is selling them at the best price.
• If the items/clothes are not needed right away, it costs less to buy clothes after the initial back to school period is over. Fall apparel is usually listed at its highest price at back to school time. By waiting a few months you can see lower prices on fall clothing. This also applies to supplies; a lot of stores will put their remaining supplies on sale (or even clearance if they ordered too much inventory) after the back to school rush.

Many people forget to factor in sales tax when creating a budget. These amounts can definitely add up so it is important to include this in your budget. Some states even offer a few days in the late summer where school related items can be purchased tax-free. If you live in one of these states, try to take advantage of this because it will make a difference.

By staying on budget it will make back to school shopping more enjoyable for both you and your children.