Is it almost time to exchange vows with the love of your life? Have you found the perfect match, and are imagining all the beautiful visions of your lives together?
All this excitement can quickly turn the feeling of love into stress if there is not careful planning around the finances.
Planning finances around the wedding, festivities as well as the first years of marriage is an important step. In this blog we are going to look at three very important financial tips to make it perfect and ensure that there is less stress surrounding this beautiful time in your life.
Financial Tip #1 – Make the Wedding Registry Work for You
A wedding registry can be a list of specific items designed as a gift proposal, or a cash fund. The registry is then sent out to family and friends alike. There are many stores and websites available that allow couples to register for both such as Wrapistry, a South African online registry with thousands of gifts, experiences and cash funds in one place.
A registry can set you and your new family up for many years to come. Setting up a home can be expensive. If you can build a nest egg of savings and reduce the extra monthly expense of setting up a home without getting into debt, you will both have a fantastic financial start to your future together. Make sure everything on the list is something that the two of you can use and which will benefit you. Be honest and be real about what you need, and you will be happy with everything that you receive.
Financial Tip #2 – Make the Wedding and Festivities as Cost-Effective as Possible
Every little girl dream of her perfect wedding. While many of us wish cost was no issue, the expense of a wedding can easily spiral. Being cost conscious while planning a wedding can certainly be a juggling act.
In South Africa, the average wedding can range from R70,000 – R80,000 for 80 to 100 people. However, many increase the price per head and reduce the amount of people.
Setting a sound budget using savings and the help of family (if you’re lucky) is the best way to financially set yourself up for the cost of a wedding. In South Africa, the average couple covers about 60% of all wedding costs.
However, 57% of couples obtained the funds to finance their wedding by borrowing on credit cards and personal loans, while only 16% of couples borrowed the money from a friend or family member.
When you decide that you both wish to spend the rest of your lives together, you need to set up a detailed wedding budget.
So how do you plan an affordable wedding budget?
- 50% – venue and catering.
- 25% – wedding dress, outfits and accessories.
- 15% – photography, music, flowers, and décor.
- 10% – cake, invitations, and table gifts.
Shop around for everything, and make sure that you have at least five options on the table before making a decision. To save on venue and catering costs, have your wedding on a weekday and off-peak season. South Africa’s main wedding season is from September to April.
Instead of opting for an all inclusive package, find a venue that will allow you to bring your own vendors, caterers and entertainment. This will allow you to have more financial control over the cost of catering by getting quotes before commiting.
Financial Tip #3 – Do Not Enter into Debt for Your Wedding
There is nothing worse than starting your lives together as newlyweds and finding a mountain of debt waiting for the two of you. This is no way to begin any relationship. Your honeymoon should not be something that places you in debt either.
Decide together on your perfect wedding and determine the costs involved before putting a confirmed date in place. How much do you both need to save to have the perfect wedding? And how long will it take? Work this into your detailed wedding planner and use the time while saving to get organised. Using debt to fund your wedding will put unnecessary strain on your finances over the long run. Stick to a detailed budget and planner and get as many quotes as possible.
Love is enough and while this sounds ridiculous to many, getting married with debt is far more dangerous to a relationship than having a wedding that is a little more cost effective.
If you are getting married soon, we hope you enjoyed these tips, and we wish you a wonderful and prosperous day! If you would like to be sure of your credit score at this time, please feel free to download it here.