How to budget for your wedding

Getting married and planning a wedding is an exciting time, but weddings can also be very costly.

To make sure that you and your partner have the perfect wedding, without paying it off for years into your marriage, make sure you plan your finances carefully. Here are four steps to keep your wedding within budget:

Set your budget and do your research:

Whether large or small, weddings require a lot of time, thought and attention to detail and, most importantly, a water-tight budget. You need to have financial discussions as soon as you start to plan. Will you and your partner be paying for the entire wedding, will family members help and, if so, how much will they be able to afford? Once you have an understanding of how much you are going to spend, you can start doing your research and plan accordingly. A contingency amount that is accessible is great in case your costs exceed your initial budget.

Decide on three big things to spend on and stick to them:

From the beginning, you need to identify what is important to you, however, do not exceed your budget and enter your marriage on a negative balance. Every bride is different, so one bride might not be worried about having a fancy wedding dress, but she might want an extremely glamorous venue, whilst another one might want extravagant decor. The point is you need to assess your finances and settle for what you can afford without breaking the bank.

Always shop around for suppliers:

Your suppliers can either make or break your wedding, so it is really important to shop around. A wedding planner, for instance, will add their professionalism and make your event world class. However, if you want to take on the wedding yourself you will need to research vendors, set up meetings with them and compare prices. Without a wedding planner, you have to be very careful with pricing because there are other factors that you need to consider when sourcing a service provider, such as what else will be included in the package that you are paying for.

Tap into your network:

Have a good look at your circle of friends to see where you can leverage off their skills or contacts. Services such as photography, wedding invitations, bridal make-up, a DJ and entertainment can definitely be assigned to your friends. It is easier to convince these people in your life to offer their services at a discounted rate or as a gift to you. Don’t be afraid to ask for help from your network, you will be surprised at how people are willing to help and contribute their skills to your special day.

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