Spooky season is here, and it’s time to start planning what Halloween activities and events you want to participate in. You may want to host a Halloween party. If you’re working hard to meet your personal finance goals, you likely want to keep your Halloween bash affordable, though. Planning a fun fall gathering is possible without draining your checking account. I’ll outline a few tips below to help you throw a fun and memorable Halloween bash while staying on budget.
1. Ask your guests to bring a dish
Hosting a party can be fun, but after spending so much money on food and drinks, it can quickly become less enjoyable for the host. Since food and drinks typically make up the majority of a party budget, you may want to plan a fall potluck event. Asking your friends and family to bring a dish can make the event more affordable and lessen your cooking and cleaning responsibilities. Plus, it allows everyone to contribute in some way — and most guests want to show up with something.
2. Use the holiday decor you have
If you hope to decorate your home for the occasion, don’t feel tempted to run up a costly credit card bill at the local party store. You can reuse the decorations you already have. Look around your home and figure out if you can move some of your existing fall decorations around so it feels more festive for the event.
3. Pick an event date that’s closer to Halloween
Another way to save money while throwing a fun Halloween bash is selecting a later event date. If you can host your party closer to Halloween (or even the weekend after the holiday), you can save money. Many stores mark down fresh pumpkins later in the season before they go bad and after-Halloween sales are a great time to stock up on cheap decorations and candy!
4. Choose free activities
You’ll probably want to have some activities planned to keep your party guests entertained. There’s likely no need to spend money on activities. Instead, think of free ways to celebrate and have fun together. You don’t want to risk racking up credit card debt from overspending.
