Hottest Christmas Gifts 2012

One of the benefits of starting your Christmas shopping early is that you can usually save a few bucks by catching some good sales. Here are a few tips to help you get some good deals on gifts.

1. Make your list early - make up a list of all the people you need to buy a gift for and start listing a few gift ideas. The earlier you get this done the better. Write down current retail prices of the gifts.

2. Watch for sales - check the Sunday circulars form local retailers and see if anything on your list is for sale. Don't forget to check with online retailers also.

3. Big Sales - be ready for the big Christmas sales days - Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Check online deal sites and circulars a few days before.

4. Keep your receipts - if you bought something but find it at a better price later, buy the item at the lower price and return your first purchase. Or, if you purchased recently, some stores will give you a partial refund based on a competitors price.