How are we so close to the start of school? Some days it feels like it is still the start of summer. I blame the recent “cool” front we have had that has made some of the evenings feel more like Fall or Spring. Some days it feels like school should have already started! The kids have been home since March so they have had quite a long break. My daughter still had her online learning to complete the end of the 2019-2020 school year, but it still FELT different. It was different.
I don’t know how your school is starting the 2020-2021 school year, but ours will start online. That doesn’t change that the kids still have a school supply list and will need bigger clothes. My daughter is going to cause me to go broke! That child is growing way too fast! Her foot is already almost as big as mine! This is why I love hand me downs and thrift stores. I can usually find great deals for my quickly growing girl! I have some good news if you are finding yourself in the same boat, if you live in Texas.
Tax free weekend is coming up! It starts Friday, August 7, 2020 and runs through Sunday the 9th. If you don’t want to physically go to the store, you can take advantage online as well. I’m not a fan of huge crowds so I prefer to do my shopping online.
I did end up getting the majority of school supplies yesterday. I had some coupons that were expiring before Friday and some Target Circle offers that would expire before Friday. With the coupons and offers I was able to save more money than I would just saving on the tax alone. This is something to keep in mind when deciding if you should shop tax free or just do it whenever. Check the sales tax in your area to figure out if a percentage off saves you more than the sales tax off if your percentage off is expiring.
If you are trying to budget (those supplies add up quickly especially when you have more than 1 kiddo with a school supply list), remember to price compare. Take into account those discounts you have available to you at different stores. If you have Rewards Bucks from CVS consider if that can save you money. I did find a few resources online that provide a coupon preview for the week. There weren’t any coupons for things on my kiddos’ lists it doesn’t appear there will be any coupons this week for school supplies.
There were some supplies I couldn’t find online in stores so I did order some from Amazon. It will take a bit for those items to be shipped from Amazon so I didn’t want to put that off until this weekend. Again, just my preference. I could have put it off since the kids will be starting school online, but I just want it done! Baby could be here any time and I don’t want to be trying to get supplies with a newborn (even if that shopping is online).
Sometimes it can be confusing as to what qualifies as tax exempt and what doesn’t. I know in the past I have always just bought and hoped for the best if I did any shopping during tax free weekend (online only and very rare). I admit that before having kids I didn’t pay attention to tax free weekend (I also wasn’t much of a budgeter during those times) and would find myself at a store wondering WHY there were so many people at the store. I’d complain to my Mom and she’d inform me it was tax free weekend. I would then take myself home without anything because I. DON’T. LIKE. CROWDS. (have I mentioned that yet?). Now I pay attention to it but pay attention to prices leading up to Tax Free Weekend and I pay attention to the discounts I have.
Anyway, if you find yourself wondering what items are taxable and what ones aren’t, you can visit the Texas Comptroller’s website for lists. Don’t worry, I won’t make you look for their website! I have it here for you (https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/publications/98-490/)! On this page you can find a few different lists that breakdown what is and what isn’t tax exempt. It also provided guidance on what to do if you are charged sales tax on something that should have been tax exempt.
Diapers are on the exempt list! This make this Mama happy since I will have 2 in diapers! Any savings on diapers is perfect! I also still have a coupon for diapers that doesn’t expire until August 15th. That means I can get them tax free and use a coupon! I saw on the school supply list that there is a disclaimer that only items less than $100 qualify for tax exempt. I’m guessing that could exclude some bookbags and some calculators. There is also a limit of 10 backpacks in 1 purchase to receive the tax exemption. Remember, those must be under $100 as well. There are other qualifications that would exclude a bag from being tax exempt (no gym bags, computer bags, purses, etc.) so pay attention.
Remember this Tax Free Weekend is in Texas from August 7-9, 2020. If you want to save money, see how/where you can combine offers (coupons, % off with special store offers, combined with tax free). Ensure your items are on the qualifying list for tax free. Have fun shopping (online or in store whichever you prefer). Tax free weekend in stores is usually pretty packed so keep that in mind. If you live in a state other than Texas, your state may offer something similar. I found this website that provides other states and their dates: https://www.retailmenot.com/blog/tax-free-weekend.html. Unfortunately it appears some have already passed. If you have multiple kids that have a list, I would go ahead and split those supplies up once I have purchased and received said items. I started 2 separate bags for my kiddos and labeled them so I know what bag goes with who and I can easily double check that I have everything each kiddo needs!
***Affiliate links. If you click on the links I may earn a small commission from the purchase at no additional cost to you. Please see affiliate page for more information.***
