The Frugal File—Halloween Horror: Old Candy Alert!

Thrifty times call for drastic measures. I myself have been known to pinch pennies with the best of them so that our family could splurge on other things. But there is being frugal and being down right cheap. Trick-or Treaters beware…

Last March, my job as a REALTOR had me showing several homes to buying clients throughout Blaine, East Bethel, Andover, Ham Lake and even a few in as far south as Fridley and north to St. Francis. I can no longer pinpoint where this home was located but I will never forget what we saw stored in the closet under the stairs. A clear 38 gallon tote full of 10-20 bags of snack sized chocolate bars. All the favorites were there…Reese’s, Snickers, Hershey’s, you get the picture. It was clearly labeled “Halloween candy for 2008”. Keep in mind this is March now. After my client pointed it out it and I took a minute to process it...Yuck! Some poor kids are going to get a not so tasty surprise on Halloween because that is going to be very old chocolate!
If you want to be thrifty and pre-buy something for next year’s trick-or-treaters at the half price sales on November 1st, stick to the non-edible treats. Pencils, Play-doh and small toys are usually available. Now if you like to give small gifts at Thanksgiving, by all means get the candy that is 50% off and wrapped in fall colors. I like to buy these and put an assortment into small gift bags for teachers and other service professionals as a Thanksgiving thank you. The chocolate is fresh and will taste good for several more weeks. I will even stock up on Hershey Kisses Kisses for making peanut blossom cookies that we have at Christmas. But saving chocolate under the stairs for a year and distributing to the neighborhood kids is not recommended as a way to save money. In fact it’s kind of gross.

Have a Very Safe and Happy Halloween!

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