Smart School Spending
Almost every year, we hear reports of increasing tuition fees and groans from disgruntled parents scrambling to find ways to augment their already insufficient incomes. More and more kids are being removed from private schools because their families cannot afford the payments anymore.
How then do you deal with enrollment planning? Here’s what Josie Martinez, Elementary Home Economics teacher at Ashton Faith Academy in Rizal, Laguna, has to say:
Assess your options. A lot of schools now have schemes wherein parents can opt to pay for everything outright or breakdown fees into semi-annual, quarterly, or monthly payments. “Of course you have to consider the fact that paying in installments means paying more due to the interests,” prompts Martinez. “If you already have the money to pay the complete amount during enrollment, I suggest you pay for the whole school- year upfront. You will be saving more.”
Save early. It is never too soon to set aside money for our children’s education. Consciously save for next year’s tuition as much as possible during the course of the current school year. That way, it would be easier to top off the savings when the time comes to use the money. Why not open a separate bank account just for that and restrain yourself from taking anything out until it’s the proper time to do so?
Take out a loan. I have an uncle who managed to send his four kids to school by getting a loan from his company every summer and used the money to pay for tuition fees. He then proceeds to pay everything off during the school year. By the summer, he is again ready for another round of loans and payments. Now, my cousin is applying her father’s technique and says it’s a great weight off her shoulders when she’s able to pay her child’s school fees easily. Remember though that you have to be diligent in paying back what you owe if you want this scheme to work. Include the payments in your monthly budget.
Cut down on luxuries. If you can’t com-pletely eliminate something from your budget like a family eat-out every weekend, think about lessening the frequency, say, make it once or twice a month instead. When buying food or things for the house, look for good bargains such as items that are cheaper but are still of good quality than the more expensive ones you’re used to.
Set priorities. Distinguish wants from needs. At the same time, teach your children early on to appreciate the simple things in life. Don’t let them get used to signature items that can practically be replaced with something else having the same use and quality but that is more affordable. Be careful of setting the wrong examples. You might be curtailing the kids’ spending and yet you keep on shopping for personal clothes and accessories without pause, what message are you sending then?
Talk to the kids. Children have a wonder-ful way of taking to heart something that is conveyed seriously but gently. Explain to them why the family has to decrease spending. When a child wants you to buy him something, “Avoid saying ‘Wala akong pera, anak,’” cautions Martinez, “because that is difficult to believe when you go to buy something else in a while. Tell your child instead, ‘May pera si Mommy, pero pambili natin ito ng baon mo for school, wala tayong pambili ng toy na gusto mo ngayon eh.’” You can also agree to compromises such as, “Okay, we’ll buy you a new lunch box, but you should choose one that would not go over P200.”
Make things last. Be resourceful. Recycle! Some schools require students to buy all school items from them because of personalized prints. Excess pad papers from last year for example, which are printed with the school logo, can still be used this year. Have patience too in reminding the kids every now and then why they need to take good care of their things. After all, an expensive school-issued bag should at least last for one whole year.
Look for sidelines. Extra income always comes in handy. Find out where your interests lie and see if that could lead to a small business you can do at home or during your free time at the office.
Aside from these, we also share with you some helpful advice when it comes to spending on your child's school supplies.
Read on for some suggestions on smart school-supplies shopping. Click here to move on to the next page.
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Here are some smart tips on choosing and buying school supplies.
Smart school-supplies shopping
Consider these suggestions:
Choose a store/location convenient for you. Sure Divisoria is the well-known haven for shopping bargains, but is it accessible from where you’ll be coming from? Compute how much you’ll be spending on fares and how much you will be saving from what you plan to buy. In addition, how much time can you afford to spend traveling and shopping? Julianne Reyes, who lives in Mandaluyong and is mom to an incoming second grader, admits that she normally buys from National Bookstore. For bulk purchases however, she opts to go to Juan Luna St. in Binondo or directly to Divisoria.
Canvass prices between stores. Rachel Lota-Pascual, mom to a seven-year-old, says she checks out prices first before buying. “I buy my child’s textbooks either from National or Goodwill Bookstore instead of purchasing directly from the school because the prices there are definitely higher.” She adds that Goodwill has lower-priced textbooks although the store has limited stocks.
Compare brands. Not all notebooks, or pencil cases for that matter, are created equal. Still, you can choose items that are made of good materials but are not very expensive. Personally, I avoid buying things for my kids that are priced way too high just because they tout prints of well-known cartoon characters or superheroes. Imagine the difference between P10.00-15.00 notebooks and P20.00-40.00 ones then multiply by eight or ten pieces per child!
Do some math. Which to buy? Individual pad papers priced at P11.00 or packs of three that costs P30.00 each? Sometimes we have to compute for per piece costs to know which one is cheaper.
Invest in good quality bags and shoes. Rina Zuasola, mom of two, really sets aside money for these. She reveals that her eldest daughter was able to use a pair of branded rubber shoes for as long as two years! Unquestionably, it is more economical to buy a higher-priced but longwearing pair of shoes or a costly but sturdy school bag that would last for the whole school year or more than to resort to buying two to three bags or pairs of shoes during the same time frame.
Use those store reward cards! Joan R. Perreras, mom to a preschooler, prefers buying from National because of their loyalty rewards program “where points are credited every time I make a purchase and then convered to e-purse, which can be used as a discount on the next purchase.” In my case, I often buy at SM so I can use the Advantage Card, while I find National’s Best Buy items good value for money.
Stock up on extras. It’s better to buy in bulk (i.e., a manageable amount, not panic buying). It is time-consuming, not to mention more expensive, to make several trips to the bookstore during the whole schoolyear just to buy one ballpen here or a notebook there. Moreover, “You’ll never know when you’re kid will need extra bond or art paper for a school project and you just came home from work at 10 p.m. when all the stores have closed,” reminds Joan. Leftover school supplies at the end of the school year can still be used the following year or utilized by your child for summer activities.
Save those freebies! Mitch Martinez, who has a preschooler, says advises, “Have your child use corporate giveaways or birthday party favors such as pencil cases, ball pens, erasers, crayons, etc. It’s one way to save.”
Avoid shopping during school opening. Ask your child’s school in advance for a list of things he/she will need in the coming schoolyear. Steer clear of the rush; buy school supplies during mid-summer or as early as possible. Hurried shopping can sometimes force a mom to forego buying a suddenly out-of-stock item or give up on the long lines at the cashier, thinking she will just have to come back another day or spend extra time looking for another store.
True, it is harder to budget nowadays than the previous years, but we can still cope with the times if we are diligent enough to strictly monitor our finances. The thought that we are doing these things to provide our children the best education they can possibly have is enough reason to make it a worthwhile goal.
Photo from sxc.hu
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