So, I recently got a great question from Amanda (which you can ask any Wedding related question by the way) about paying for your wedding and how to go about it. She writes:
Hi Joshua, Love your blog. I want to know the best way to pay for our 2017 wedding. Would you recommend any loan companies or ways to go about it?
Well, thanks for the great question. First of all, as someone that was into nearly $30,000+ in personal debt back in the 2000's, I personally do not recommend loans, at all. However, everyone has different points of view and different thoughts on debt, credit cards and the like and that's for another blog, another day. Let me give you some insights on both loans and simply saving up for your wedding day. The days of asking mom and dad to pay for your wedding are quickly drying up in today's world, as fewer and fewer parents are helping out.
Budget
Before you start looking for loans or trying to pay for this and that, create a budget, even if it's a rough one. It doesn't have to be set in stone but I highly encourage you to make one in either Microsoft Excel or even just Word. Budgeting does a couple of things, first it keeps you on track with spending and second it gives you a realistic point of view on how much your overall wedding is going to cost.
Loans
As I stated before I personally do not believe in loans, I lived through paying monthly loan payments into my late 20's and I will never go back. If you feel like you do need a loan however, the best place to check is with your local credit union on an unsecured loan. These are loans where banks will give money for the purposes of getting married (or whatever really) with a monthly payment plan. These loans are generally higher in interest rates simply because the funds you borrow are not backed with something else, like equity in a home for example.
Credit Unions are going to be better than national banks with rates simply because most of the Credit Unions are local. Additionally, you can try online at places like Propser.com which is a peer-to-peer lending company. That means people like you and me put money into the website and it's polled for people that needs loans for whatever reason.
Pay as You Go
In simple terms, it's called saving. It's not a new concept honestly and it's one that
Online Crowd Funding
Some people use websites like GoFundMe.com or HoneyFund.com for example to help raise money for their big day. It's a new way to ask for money from friends, family and Facebook friends in order to help pay for your wedding or honeymoon. Most experts in the wedding business say that most couples will get up to 10% of their overall budget from these places so it's worth trying them out.
Wedding Help
Believe it or not my blog gives you great money saving ideas for your wedding. As someone that has been in the wedding industry for a long time, I see brides, grooms and couples make mistakes everyday that keep them paying full price on everything from venues, to food, to wedding photography. I highly encourage you to go through the tips and blog pages on the website here to learn some of the best wedding industry insider tips that can help save cash into your pocket. With a little bit of thinking 'outside the box', you can literally save 50% or more on your overall wedding!
eGuide
Finally, I encourage you to email me for your FREE eGuide. I give you some great personal insights on the wedding business from a vendors point of view and I help give you a little bit of clarity when it comes to preparing for your own wedding. It's something that's current FREE so get it before I put the pricing back up! you can get it here.
Hi Joshua, Love your blog. I want to know the best way to pay for our 2017 wedding. Would you recommend any loan companies or ways to go about it?
Well, thanks for the great question. First of all, as someone that was into nearly $30,000+ in personal debt back in the 2000's, I personally do not recommend loans, at all. However, everyone has different points of view and different thoughts on debt, credit cards and the like and that's for another blog, another day. Let me give you some insights on both loans and simply saving up for your wedding day. The days of asking mom and dad to pay for your wedding are quickly drying up in today's world, as fewer and fewer parents are helping out.
Budget
Before you start looking for loans or trying to pay for this and that, create a budget, even if it's a rough one. It doesn't have to be set in stone but I highly encourage you to make one in either Microsoft Excel or even just Word. Budgeting does a couple of things, first it keeps you on track with spending and second it gives you a realistic point of view on how much your overall wedding is going to cost.
Loans
As I stated before I personally do not believe in loans, I lived through paying monthly loan payments into my late 20's and I will never go back. If you feel like you do need a loan however, the best place to check is with your local credit union on an unsecured loan. These are loans where banks will give money for the purposes of getting married (or whatever really) with a monthly payment plan. These loans are generally higher in interest rates simply because the funds you borrow are not backed with something else, like equity in a home for example.
Credit Unions are going to be better than national banks with rates simply because most of the Credit Unions are local. Additionally, you can try online at places like Propser.com which is a peer-to-peer lending company. That means people like you and me put money into the website and it's polled for people that needs loans for whatever reason.
Pay as You Go
In simple terms, it's called saving. It's not a new concept honestly and it's one that
most millennials are starting to do for their wedding. Each month, the couple will literally live on less than what they make, poll their available funds together and each month, make payments to the various vendors for their wedding day. For those that use this concept, usually tend to live within their means and they have learned how to save money. Dave Ramsey is a radio host that shows you how to get out to get out of debt quickly, save for the future and shows you how to literally pay cash for everything once you are out of debt. I highly recommend checking out his website and radio program. this is the best way you can pay for a wedding without having to pay for it afterwards.
Online Crowd Funding
Some people use websites like GoFundMe.com or HoneyFund.com for example to help raise money for their big day. It's a new way to ask for money from friends, family and Facebook friends in order to help pay for your wedding or honeymoon. Most experts in the wedding business say that most couples will get up to 10% of their overall budget from these places so it's worth trying them out.
Wedding Help
Believe it or not my blog gives you great money saving ideas for your wedding. As someone that has been in the wedding industry for a long time, I see brides, grooms and couples make mistakes everyday that keep them paying full price on everything from venues, to food, to wedding photography. I highly encourage you to go through the tips and blog pages on the website here to learn some of the best wedding industry insider tips that can help save cash into your pocket. With a little bit of thinking 'outside the box', you can literally save 50% or more on your overall wedding!
eGuide
Finally, I encourage you to email me for your FREE eGuide. I give you some great personal insights on the wedding business from a vendors point of view and I help give you a little bit of clarity when it comes to preparing for your own wedding. It's something that's current FREE so get it before I put the pricing back up! you can get it here.
