Texas Among States Most Likely to Overspend on Black Friday
Black Friday deals are supposed to make Christmas shopping less expensive, but numbers indicate many Texans' eyes are bigger than their wallets.
Pamela Rodriguez with Opploans.com reports that Texas ranks among the top 10 states most likely to overspend on Black Friday.
The rankings are based on two sets of information 4th quarter 2017 credit card data collected by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which was broken down into state-level data on the percentage of credit card debt that's over 90 days delinquent
Texas ranked #6 with 8.41% delinquency, behind Nevada (10.76%), Arizona (9.54%), Florida (9.41%), New Mexico (9.02%), and Arkansas (8.66%). Rounding out the rest of the top 10 were California (8.37%), New York (8.32%), Delaware (8.31%), and West Virginia (8.11%).
A survey of 600 expected Black Friday shoppers conducted by Pollfish on October 23, 2018 found that 41% of Black Friday shoppers have suffered financial consequences as a result of overspending, and 44% said reported using a credit card to make Black Friday purchases they couldn't afford.
63% said using a credit card somehow encouraged them to spend more than they should, and 39% reported feeling regret over spending too much.
30% even reported losing sleep worrying about the money they spent. Yikes.
So, what is everybody buying? Here's what the Pollfish survey indicated:
- 62 percent of respondents said they plan to buy essential items on Black Friday.
- 37 percent said they will buy non-essential items like unnecessary clothing and entertainment devices.
- 42 percent said they will buy gifts.
"And even though Black Friday deals might tempt shoppers to buy more than they need," Rodriguez writes, "the vast majority of respondents in our survey said shopping on Black Friday helps them save money overall."
- 81 percent said Black Friday shopping allows them to save money overall by getting deals on necessary purchases.
- 19 percent said Black Friday shopping doesn’t allow them to save money overall because they’re encouraged to make purchases they don’t need.
The research didn't focus on why people overspend, and while I have a few ideas, I won't editorialize here. All I'll say is that you should make and stick to a budget when you do any shopping, but especially holiday shopping. Make a list of specific things you'd like to get for people or that you may need around the house and don't stray from the list. A lot of stores will strategically place things around check-out lines during this season to lure you into tossing some extras into the cart. Don't get suckered!
The graphics below break down the Opploans findings. Shop smart this holiday season and let's see if we can't get Texas out of the top 10!