If you're like thousands of other metro Atlantans, there's a good chance some of your post-holiday time will be spent returning and buying.

But some things have changed. It used to be that Dec. 26 marked the beginning of some serious sales. That isn't the case anymore. In fact, the after-Christmas clearance has been pushed back to the first of January. This trend started about five years ago and has picked up popularity ever since. The reason? Gift cards.

People who receive gift cards on Christmas morning turn around and shop like maniacs before New Year's. To them, it's free money. The irony is that a week that used to be devoted to deep discounts now sees more expensive items on the store shelves — some even pricier than they were the days before Christmas!

Mixed in with the gift-card shoppers are those people trying to return items. People who make returns usually buy something else, so there's no incentive to start the sales on Dec. 26. (In fact, making returns next week will take forever. It would be better to hold off and head back to the store on Jan. 2.)

From the day after New Year's through Jan. 8, clothing and electronic items will be dirt cheap. All those gifts that went unpurchased will be priced to move. And there won't be a customer for miles, so returns will be a breeze and the stuff you're going to buy will be on clearance.

After Jan. 1 is when I buy gifts for birthdays, next Christmas and Hanukkah. The stuff is really cheap, even if the selection is not as good. But I'm most interested in getting the best deal. (By the way, all of those pre-bought goodies are kept in our "prize" closet, where they're stored until needed.)

Now — about those gift cards. Although they're still popular, they're not as big a deal as many analysts have projected. I think people have gotten gift-card fatigue. But there is one area where they make a lot of sense. Consider buying a restaurant gift card. Many of the area's best restaurants offer their own gift cards that routinely give you more money than what you pay for them. For instance, many will increase the value 20 percent, so if you pay $100 for a card, you may get $120 worth of food. Of course, there's always the chance that the restaurant won't be around when you're ready to use it. But there are several longtime establishments around that are a pretty safe bet.

Before you get back to wrapping those last-minute gifts, I'd like to offer a holiday warning. If you are giving gifts of electronics, please make sure that you also provide some sort of gift receipt, or some other information about the store where the item was purchased. Stores are very difficult to deal with when it comes to electronics returns, and anything you can do to make it easier will be as welcome as the gift itself.

If you receive an electronics item as a gift and you're unsure about whether or not you want to keep it, do not rip it open on Christmas morning. If you do decide to take it back, most retailers will charge you a re-stocking fee if the package is open, even if it's unused. That cost can run about 15 percent. Save the extra money and put it toward something you really want.

CLARK'S CHEAP AND FREE LIST

This week: Coupons

• www.dealcatcher.com: Up-to-the-minute list of the best available sales and offers.

• www.couponmom.com: Grocery coupons and more.

• www.couponchief.com: Online coupons and coupon codes.

• www.about.com: Huge list of links for coupons and bargains.

• www.cellfire.com: Coupons delivered to your cell phone.

• www.catalogchoice.org: Remove your name from catalog mailing lists for free.

H.M. Cauley contributed to this article.

Clark Howard, whose motto is "save more, spend less and avoid ripoffs," is host of "The Clark Howard Show" 1-4 p.m. weekdays on WSB-AM (750). He answers question of general interest in this column and on his Web site, www.clarkhoward.com. Write him at Clark Howard, Buyer's Edge, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 72 Marietta St. N.W., Atlanta, GA 30303 or e-mail buyersedge@ajc.com and put "comment for Clark" in the subject line.