I Do…the Budget: How to Save for a Wedding

Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials. It’s an exciting time for you and your fiancé as a wedding date is set, the list of guests is determined and and venues for the ceremony and the reception are visited. Unfortunately, through all of this planning, you may be missing a very basic step — how much it will all cost. According to costofwedding.com, the final bill for an average wedding these days hovers around 26 thousand dollars. With upgrades this can skyrocket to 30 thousand dollars or higher. In other words, you can purchase a fairly decent car with all of the extras for the amount paid for a simple wedding. Needless to say, you’ll need a wedding budget to help you out.

Regardless if you maintain a household budget, setting one up for a weeding is important. Marriages can quickly go south if the amount spent on the ceremony puts a new couple in deep debt before they even go on their honeymoon. Here are a few items to consider on a nuptial budget.

The ceremony and reception

Where are you going to get married? Are you sticking to tradition and doing it at a house of worship? Have you both decided to do something a little more interesting, like getting married at a park or roller skating rink? In any case you will most likely have to pay a fee to use the space. These costs vary depending on the time of day and the season.

What about the reception? Do you want to have it in a catering hall or a super-stretch Range Rover limo that cruises Las Vegas Boulevard? Again, these things are going to cost money, especially the catering hall. Sure, you can probably negotiate a lower fee per person that attends but you’re looking at some very basic meals options. The more you upgrade the higher the cost per head will be. Think of this as you prepare the invitation list. In addition, speak with representatives from the location you pick to see if there is a discount for holding both the ceremony and reception in the same place.

Flowers and photos

Flowers picked from your garden probably aren’t going to cut it as center pieces at the reception location, which means you’ll need to hire a florist to compliment the area. You’ll also want to hire a photographer and videographer to take candid and not-so-candid shots of the wedding party and their guests. Despite the fact these professionals no longer need to send their film to a processing house for development, they’re still going to cost several hundred dollars for their services.

Cake and Conga

Purchasing a wedding cake is no longer a simple affair where one chooses how many layers and flavors. Couples can now choose a wedding cake that resembles the skyline of their favorite city to a memorable cartoon character. Of course, these custom cakes with their flavor varieties cost more to produce. In addition, you want some music played in the background while guests enjoy their cake. The decision comes down to whether or not it’s played by a DJ or a several-piece band. Either way, the choice can cost somewhere from a few hundred to several thousand dollars.

The other stuff

There’s definitely more. You’ll need money for a wedding gown, tuxedo rental, possible limo rental to the ceremony, marriage license, blood tests, and gifts for those who attend the reception. And, last but certainly not least, you’ll need to put money away for your honeymoon. See why you need a budget for your wedding? Just stay calm, write everything down, allocate the necessary funds, and you’ll enjoy everything connected with the wedding long after the last dance.