~ Your Money Le Do The Math: When School Expenses Add Up, A Little Budgeting Goes A Long Way (NAPSA)—Thisfall, as millions of children return to school, parents everywhere are grappling with the same thing: how to prepare their kids for school and seasonal activities without breaking the bank. The fall back-to-school season can be expensive. From buying textbooks to athletic gear, the costs can add up. However, the good newsis that having to manage school year expenses provides parents with useful lessons in smart budgeting. Taking a few minutes to compose a comprehensive expense plan can help organize priorities and explore potential savings. Whether your child is off to kindergarten or college, a finan- cial plan can help rule out surprises and unexpected costs throughoutthe year. Here are a few tips to help keep school expenses manageable: Think ahead. When making a budget, remember to include the extras like rental fees for instruments, athletic shoes and school trips. * Before buying new supplies, take inventory and see what’s left over from last year. * Don’t buy all your school clothes before the year starts as some items will go on sale soon after. Consider alternative shopping options, such as thrift stores. And always ask about return policies. When using a credit card, make sure it has features to help you manage your finances. For agementfeatures lets you select the number of payments that work for you, saving oninterest. example, families can use products like Chase Slate with Blueprint to decide which purchases they want to pay in full every month, ensuring that they avoid paying interest on necessary itemslike school supplies, department store purchases and gas. The cardalso offers a better way to manage larger pur- chases by allowing you to select the number of payments or monthly payment amount that worksfor your budget, helping you save on interest and paying down balancesfaster. If you purchase a $500 laptop for your child, you can use the Split feature from Blueprint to set up a plan to pay it off in four months. Chase does the math for you and makes it clear on every statement so you can stay on track to meet yourgoals.
