He popped the question! And it’s the first of many that need to be answered as you approach your Big Day and plan for the wedding funds needed to make it all happen.
Who’s paying for it?
The thought of paying for a wedding can be daunting, especially with wedding costs reaching record highs. In fact, according to The Knot, who polled 13,000 brides and grooms, the average cost of a wedding in 2016 was $35,329.
We know it can be a race to get your preferred venue and vendors, but before you start locking them down, you need to figure out the wedding funds that you’re working with. Sounds obvious, right? However, figuring this out is often trickier than it seems.
Let’s face it, it is almost 2018, and the traditional ways of the past are not as mainstream as they used to be. With college tuition (and nearly every other cost) rising, it’s becoming more common for all parties to foot part of the bill.
- Her family
- His family
- And if you want the wedding you always dreamed of . . . potentially you two as well
Our Wedding Planning
After we got engaged, we did some preliminary research on the cost of weddings in our area, but we weren’t sure what, if any, amounts our parents would contribute. We couldn’t take the next step in planning until we had it all sorted out, so we sat down with each of our parents and made our timeline, expected cost, and wedding planning as transparent as possible.
We were fortunate to have both sets of parents contribute. However, after getting quotes for the venues and vendors that we had our sights set on, we decided it was worth pitching in our own funds as well.
To ensure we had enough money prior to booking each vendor, we created an easy-to-use template. It tracked the source of wedding funds as well as each bucket of budgeted and actual wedding expenses (attire, reception, ceremony, etc.).
Wedding planning can be stressful enough, so coming up with an easy way to track the wedding funds and costs was well worth it!
Discussion Tips
Money is a sensitive topic. Are you still nervous about how to discuss wedding funds with parents or your significant other? Here are our tips:
- Assume you and your significant other will have to pay for all or part of the bill. This way, you’ll be prepared to save in advance, and you’ll be thrilled if you get extra help from parents.
- Have separate, private conversations with each group that may contribute. And do so early! Everyone may need a chance to save before contributing.
- Tell them the main reason you’d like to know sooner, rather than later, is so that you can book vendors that will be within your price range. Vendors and venues get booked fast!
- Be appreciative and thankful for any amount of help (monetary or not!) you receive. Weddings are a group effort, and your loved ones are doing what they can to contribute.
Download our wedding financial plan freebie that we used to plan our wedding!
Questions
How did you have the money talk with your family and significant other? Do you have any other tips or tricks that worked for you?