Back-to-school on a budget: How to save big on supplies

CHICAGO - The school year will be here before we know it which also means our wallets will soon be a little lighter because of it.

In a Fox 32 money saver special report, Dawn Hasbrouck gets some expert tips on saving on school supplies this year.

Retailers may have a hard time getting parents to spend more money on school supplies this year.

A recent survey by Deloitte finds back to school spending is expected to flatten with some parents may be spending a little less than last year.

The average cost for K-12 students is expected to be $586. That’s down about $11 compared to the last few years but still up $57 more than in 2020.

Consumers are looking to save," said consumer savings expert Andrea Woroch. "They’re not going to spend as much on back to school as they have in years past and, as a result, stores are going to be rolling out bigger sales."

"Stores need to roll out bigger deals this year to get people into their stores and spend," she added.

Woroch said that means consumers should be on the lookout for so-called loss-leaders. These are items with a deeply discounted price to draw shoppers into the store, but there's a catch.

"As long as you only buy those items, that can really help stretch your budget. Their intention, once they get you into the store, they hope that you'll buy some more items that may be aren’t that deeply discounted," Woroch said.

That’s why it’s important to give yourself some time to find out what’s on sale and where.

"The earlier you start, the more you have the ability to comparison shop and try and get the best price," said Sara Rathner, a personal finance expert with NerdWallet.

Rathner said spreading out your shopping list can also help spread out the expenses.

"Back to school time is expensive and you have a long list of supplies that you need to get," Rathner said.

"And it’s really stressful to have to buy 20 items in one day. Why not spread that out and buy four items a week over the next five weeks," she added.

Another tip - start your back-to-school shopping at home.

"Instead of having to buy everything, use stuff that you already have from last year," Woroch said.

"Maybe it’s a hand me down from their older sibling. Or just something - we have an unopened package of pencils from last year. They’re still good," Rathner said.

"It all adds up. And the best one - backpacks. If you’ve got a good quality backpack last year, throw it in the washing machine if you want to clean it up," Woroch suggested.

That can also apply to clothes for the school year.

"If you’ve got friends in your life who have older kids, they probably are just sitting on closets full of clothes, some of which have never been worn. Because kids outgrow clothing so quickly," Rathner said.

You can also ask your child’s school if there are some items on their list that aren’t needed at the very beginning of the year and buy those later during other sales.

"The winter holidays like Black Friday will offer an additional time to get big discounts. Especially on maybe gadgets or electronics," Woroch said.