Ways to Finance a Wedding

How to Finance a Wedding

In the "old days," it was very common for the parents of a bride-to-be to pay for the wedding. Naturally that is pretty nice if you happen to be the bride. However that financial benefit did come with some drawbacks... such as the parents required approval of the groom, and the inevitible "takeover" of the wedding planning by the bride's mother. There may never be anything we can do about the mother of the bride and her opinions, but these days it usually falls partially or entirely on the betrothed couple to pay for the wedding expenses.

So how do these grooms and brides to be come up with the money to pay for their big day? Just like paying for any large expense, there are realistically only a few options:

• Save up the money beforehand. Obviously this is easier said than done. If you get engaged and plan a wedding for the following year, what are the chances that you can save up ten or twenty or thirty thousand dollars in that amount of time? Unless you have been putting money in a special "wedding savings account" during your entire life up to this point, this option probably isn't very realistic.
• Get your family to pay for it. We've already touched on this one. If your family wants to foot the bill and you have no inherent qualms with accepting that money, then go for it. If your family wants to buy you a wonderful wedding as their gift to you, take it and thank them!
• Raise the money the old fashioned way. How does anyone raise money for anything? Sell all of your possessions. Get a second or third job. Start renting out rooms in your home. If you can raise it, raise it!
• Get financing for the expenses. If you own a home, a home equity loan may work. Although, in this current housing market with record-low home values, an equity loan may not be the most viable option. Another option is an unsecured loan or payment plan to finance a wedding. This is the most commonly used method for paying for a wedding on credit. Also, even for people who have bad credit, wedding loans are available through a varietly of funding programs.