I know sometimes the parents may help out but what if both sets are unable to? Do they both just save up, because thats alot of money. I know someone thats getting married and its costing them about 18k dollars! How would a couple with no help pay for that?
2007-03-19 20:39:48 · 21 answers · asked by ILuvAmanda 1 in Family & Relationships ➔ Weddings
1. Save. Some couples simply scrimp and save until they can afford a wedding. It could take a long time, and, thus, it could mean a long engagement. But it does mean that the two of you can start off with a clean slate- no debt!
2. Loan. Some couples apply for a personal loan from a bank and use that to pay for the wedding. There's an interest rate, of course, and sometimes it's higher, depending on your credit score. Couples should shop around.
3. Plastic. Other couples are finding out that credit cards are now offering accounts specifically for weddings, with points and rewards for each dollar spent towards the wedding. The drawback is, though, that these credit cards have a high interest rate- higher than personal loans.
4. Cut Corners. The main way to pay for a wedding, reasonably, is to cut corners. Couples should sit down and figure out what's most important about their wedding. If it's food, then go all-out on catering, and keep it simple with the flowers. Or vice versa. Cutting corners cuts costs and helps couples pay for their wedding- sooner.
5. Sponsors. Some couples are resorting to sponsorship to pay for weddings. This means that, perhaps, in the wedding program it might say 'dress by so and so' or at the wedding the DJ may announce 'catering done by so and so.' It's often not a very big discount, and it's often very hard to find.
6. Barter. It still happens nowadays. Negotiate with your vendors. Personally, I'm having my fiance build five wedding arches and a wedding gazebo for our ceremony. My ceremony/reception site is giving me a huge discount in trade of the arches and gazebo after the wedding. They can use those again and again and make major bucks off them (rental rate is like 50+, buying rate is like 250+). I'm not going to need them, but I do need that money!
7. Steal. I heard of one couple who robbed a bank to pay for a wedding, but they weren't caught until after the wedding. Only choose this option if you'd like to wear an orange jumpsuit instead of a bikini on your honeymoon.
I hope that covers all the bases!
2007-03-19 21:09:35 · answer #1 · answered by lilmissmiss 3 · 3⤊ 0⤋
I'm not sure how a couple would pay for an $18,000 wedding on their own, but I am sure that it doesn't necessarily cost that to have a nice wedding. I'm currently planning my wedding for September of this year, and depending on where you live, a wedding can be as inexpensive or expensive as you would like. I know I've heard of several brides from New York spending well over $100,000 - I would never be able to afford that. My fiance and I are planning a little as we go, paying for a deposit here and there to try to widdle down the cost throughout the year. We are gradually just setting aside a little money out of each check until the wedding arrives and the remaining balance of everything is due. The good thing is most places, such as bridal shops, offer financing with a promotional zero percent interest for certain periods of time. One of the best things to do is sit down and do a budget. It's takes a little while, and of course there will be modifications as time goes by, but at least at gives you an overall view of what you need to save. Some people use credit cards if they are unable to save the amount of money they are wanting to spend, but if you are wanting to do this without debt, just try a long engagement and save a little as you go. Best of luck!!
2007-03-20 06:12:49 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
This is where a long engagement helps a lot. Try to figure how many guests you would like to invite and also what your budget is. Then go around to possible reception sites and get quotes for what you are looking for. If you can figure that part out, the rest will come into place(with a bit of work). I had put down a deposit on the place I used, then paid them in a couple more installments. Then order the flowers, cake, etc and pay them off one at a time as your money comes in, It seems overwhelming but if you make a chart with what needs to be done, believe me, you will make accomplishments each week. Just be careful with your money and devote all you can to your wedding and when the day comes around, you will have an enormous feeling of accomplishment and then it will be time to relax and have the fun you deserve.
2007-03-20 03:55:30 · answer #3 · answered by abbacat 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Seriously. I am getting married. We decided to have a 2 year engagement to be able to pay for the wedding ourselves. My parents have helped with only $250. We are not using credit cards, we are not taking out a loan. We get what we can when we can. We take a minimum of $50 out of every paycheck and put it aside, plus we did our homework to get the best deals on things. Our wedding is only costing us in the $7000 to $8000 range and that is only because my dress was about $2K. You can do it, you just have to want to. We decided it was better to be broke these 2 years, have a great wedding then it would be to live normally and spending like crazy these 2 years racking up credit card debt close to the amount of our mortgage and then spending the next 15 years paying it off. It's just not worth it to us, we would rather start out with a long engagement, a paid for wedding and honeymoon then be debt free of it at the end.
2007-03-20 08:22:11 · answer #4 · answered by kauai_lvr 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My man and I are about to become engaged (he's trying to surprise me which might be hard since we own a house and live together...lol).
We have talked a lot already about what type of wedding we'd like (size and style, etc) and have started to budget. Since we are paying for everything ourselves, we've planned a Fall 2008 wedding and are putting money away monthly. That way, by the time the wedding comes around, we won't have to put things on credit cards. What we can't afford to pay cash for, we won't have. Starting a marriage off with debt is not a good thing.
2007-03-20 07:42:57 · answer #5 · answered by Jessica D 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Couples these days pay for their own wedding. Well, you just save money over the year or so that you are planning for the wedding - takes a lot of sacrifices, but if that's what you have to do, you just do it. Then, you plan the kind of wedding you can with the budget you have.
2007-03-20 07:21:43 · answer #6 · answered by Lydia 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Every wedding doesn't have to cost 18k dollars. You can have a nice and simple wedding for under $2000. My fiance and I are both saving up and keeping our budget under $2500. Believe me, it's possible.
2007-03-20 08:44:44 · answer #7 · answered by Jeremiah's Mommy 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My wedding is in 6 months and we're paying for it all ourselves - we put by £400 every month to pay for it.
We've cut quite a lot of corners for our wedding -
* we're only having 20 people to the ceremony and the sit down meal - then inviting EVERYONE for the evening party (good way to cut costs)
* get married out of the wedding season (runs from June - September) preferably on a week day as you are more likely to get discounts. I wanted my wedding to be in September, but by moving it back 6 days to the 5th October (which is a friday) we saved nearly £1,000 in room hire, flowers, cerermony fees and photographer
* buy bridesmaids dresses from every day high street stores - mine were £50 each from Marks & Spencer.
* buy a normal fruit cake and decorate it yourself rather than paying hundreds of pounds to get someone else to make it. Or, ask a friend to make it as a wedding gift.
Our wedding is totalling £4,250
2007-03-20 07:01:42 · answer #8 · answered by ladyjinx 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
We are paying for everything ourselves.. but getting married abroad in Jamaica..
We are just paying bit by bit off...
The wedding/holiday is being booked in May, and we will have to pay £120/$60 a month to the travel agent, and includes our wedding package, and upgrade.
The dress, i will be using an American website House of Brides, or Best Bridal Prices, as the cost of the wedding dress i love is double the price in the UK (if anyone has used it, please email me what you thought of them please!!!)
The wedding gifts/favours are just going to be brought as and when we can afford it...
We have 18months to pay everything off, so hopefully we don't require to use the credit card!!!
A couple of my friends, are having longer engagements (3-5years) and save up £200/$100 a month for it...
It all depends on the couple... but i guess most people have the benefit of having parents to pay for it... lucky them!! lol
2007-03-20 04:32:36 · answer #9 · answered by ஐ♥PinkBoo - TTC #1♥ஐ 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
To be perfectly honest with you, my fiance and I have two kids together and hardly any money at all. I was completely convinced we would never get married, and surprise surprise - our date is set for 10-14-08. We are using our tax returns to pay for the wedding and calling in all the favors we can: His parents will print namecards/announcements, his sister owns an invitation shop and will give us things at the wholesale price rather than retail, my friend is making the cake, photographer - friend, DeeJay - friend, alterations - maid of honor's grandma, ring bearer/flower girl - our son and daughter, Wal-Mart deli platters will do just fine for catering and we are looking for a cheap reception site to hold both ceremony/reception. We might have one keg of beer and the rest of the drinks will be a cash bar. We will as another friend to bartend for us as well. We figure that when we are all said and done, we will have a hard time to break $2,000. I had a friend get married approximately a year ago and she barely spent $1000 on hers. It just depends on how fancy you want to get. Don't get discouraged because you can make it work. My parents flat told me I'd have to pay for my own wedding, so it never occured to me to ask them for money they don't have. You can still have a nice wedding for relatively cheap. Congrats and happy planning!!!!
2007-03-20 03:57:39 · answer #10 · answered by Hunny 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋