Debt after the wedding?

[The future Mrs.]

Hello again! I tried to make a poll, but couldn't figure it out.

Here is my question...

Will you have any debt after your wedding? (relating to the wedding costs)

a.) No debt! We are ready to start our lives together!
b.) A little bit of debt, maybe up to $2,000
c.) Enough debt... up to $5,000
d.) Holy moly! A lot of debt

i wanted to see what others are doing. Some people are very lucky and don't have to worry about this kind of thing... Just curious about others...
Gina

p.s. we are thinking that we might owe an extra $2,000 max after all is said and done.

[justnmary]

A. No debt. It was wonderful! We were able to concentrate on being married and enjoy it!

[feb-bride]

A. No debt. We did not charge even one cent for our wedding, including the rings, wedding, reception, honeymoon. It was GREAT.

[churchmusicgirl]

Just starting the planning process here, but my fiancé and I are trying to be VERY conscious of the budget.

I'm hoping for A), but we decided that *if* we were to go over budget, the only way we would allow ourselves to do so would be if we knew exactly how we would repay it within 4 months. So it's almost more a cashflow issue than anything.

[KaileK]

No debt!!!

We paid for everything in cash! (saved a lot to do that though!)


No way did I want to be paying for the wedding after the fact... its not fun anymore then

No debt for us. Fortunately, our tastes happened to fit in with our budget and we had what we wanted for what we could afford (with some very generous help from my parents). The only thing we went over-budget on was our rings....and it was worth it.

It also helped that my fiance is from a more-or-less out-of-the-way area and things were cheaper in his hometown than if we'd tried to get married here in Chicago.

[Emily]

No debt, we were lucky as my parents paid for the whole wedding.

[Complicated Woman]

No debt for us, my dad paid for the majority of the wedding and everything we needed to pay for we paid for with cash. It meant less expensive rings, flowers, etc, but it was worth it.

[RJE080703]

NO debt for us. We paid for 90% of it with cash and my grandparents and his parents took care of the other 10%.

[NovemberGal]

No debt.

To be honest with you, I think going into debt for the wedding is one of the silliest possible ways to start off a marriage. It's one day. If you can't afford what you'd like, wait and save until you can, or trim until you can afford it with what you've got. It's not about being "lucky," it's about having financial sense and stability.

[The future Mrs.]

i am sure soooooooooooooome people around here will have to owe after the wedding! (where are they?)
well, basically we will have to invite more people then i originally wanted, which drives up the price. also, i don't really want to cut costs on the things that I want... like getting not getting my makeup and hair done or something like that.
i am thinking we might break even, but i am not assuming everyone that is coming will give a large financial contribution (i know... don't count your chickens before they are hatched!)
i was just surprised everyone so far has said "No debt", and i know a lot of the girls were paying for their weddings themselves, like i am.

[Heather]

Originally Posted by The future Mrs.

i am sure soooooooooooooome people around here will have to owe after the wedding! (where are they?)

Here!

We took out a loan from my credit union to supplement what we had saved in two years (more than $10K), but still needed more bucks to get everything exactly as we wanted it. We did a three year loan (could have done 5 year, 7 year, etc.). Thing is, finances (income, debt, budgeting) are something we have been open about and discussed way before we even thought of getting married. We knew exactly what we could afford per month. Both our vehicles are paid off, I had no credit card debt, etc. It was the right decision for us instead of waiting another two years to save up another $10 or $15K. There were some things we did that I absolutely did not want to compromise on, and some of that was very pricey. (Just the food (4-star chef) and open bar was almost $17K.) To this day, four years later, a lot of friends and family still say it's the best wedding they've attended and the food is always mentioned... (Ask Steph, she was there, lol.)

We didn't want to take a dime from our family - though they gave generous gifts when we became engaged. We absolutely did not plan for our guests to cover the cost of anything. Most of the money we received as gifts went into the bank to save for the home we were able to buy a year after we got married. We could have paid off the loan, but we had actually budgeted everything very well.

ETA: I also want to add that I was 32 when we got married. We were well established in our careers, had money in the bank, etc. If I had gotten married at 22, 23, there's no way I would have done a loan.

[ladedah]

A. We had no debt. We were fortunate that my parents paid for half the wedding, we paid for the other half, plus our rings and honeymoon...yes, we had to compromise on some things and choose the less expensive route, but we had the absolute best day ever and I'm can guarantee no one noticed the cut backs or complained that we had a buffet meal instead of a sit down one. Our wedding was completely for our guests, but the focus (for us) was more about the weeks and days after the wedding...and didn't feel the need to compete with the Joneses, so to speak.

[m_t_rose]

A) We didn't go into debt for the wedding other things were more important to us at that point then a big expensive wedding. Plus the cost in my city is not high so I think if I lived in a bigger city we would have probably went into debt.

[The future Mrs.]

ok hey there is 1 person that is on the same boat! sometimes it's unavoidable... who has 10, 15, $20,000 laying around for a wedding? i think sometimes you owe a little, sometimes you break even...

[AimeeJorge]

a) No debt. We where fortunate that my parents gave us $1,000 towards the wedding and the I got my income tax return the month prior.