With
wedding season in full swing, couples everywhere are planning their big
day. It’s about love, commitment, family… and, of course, spending an
ungodly amount of money on the hall, the flowers and grilled rack of
lamb for your 150 guests.
According to The Knot, which surveyed 16,000 brides and grooms who got married in 2014, couples spent an average of $31,213 on their nuptials last year –up from $29,858 in 2013 and an all-time high.
Couples tended to spend more on their reception and less on the ceremony itself. The largest chunk of the budget – an average of $14,006 – was spent on the venue, which includes the cost of catering, musicians and cake. Per-person catering costs rose from $66 in 2013 to $68 last year.
The Knot found that 45% of couples went over their budget in 2014 and 23% of couples didn’t even have one. Almost half of the couples that we spoke with who had budgets spent more than they initially wanted to.
Yahoo Finance hit the streets of New York City recently to ask real couples how much they spent on their big day.
Every couple we spoke with said they spent more on their reception than the ceremony. “I think the food was a very important part of it. We wanted our guests to feel like they were leaving satisfied,” said Barbara and Brian Ching, who got married two years ago.
At least according to those surveyed by The Knot, only 12% of couples really have to worry about paying for the wedding entirely themselves. The bride’s parents contributed 43% and the groom’s parents contributed 12% toward the overall cost of a wedding.
Jackie and Stan Oratz said that although they had a budget that was kept for their own wedding 54 years ago, they didn’t impose any financial restrictions on their children when it was their turn. “We have two children who are married. Both times we paid for a major portion of the wedding,” Jackie said.
Not all that surprising, Manhattan is the most expensive place to get hitched. On average couples there spent $76,328 in 2014. “That’s the college tuition for our future child, or at-least part of it”, Barbara Ching said when she heard the number. Runner-up on the list was Long Island, New York, with an average wedding cost of $55,327.
On the other side of the spectrum Utah is the least expensive place to get married, averaging $15,257.
Melissa and Ken Weikel have no regrets with the modest amount they shelled out for their wedding. “I’m not sure given the exact same financial abilities that we had would we have done it any differently. Would it have been more fun to have dancing and all of that? Yes. But [like he said] a marriage is what’s most important, not a wedding. A wedding is one day, a marriage is a lifetime,” Melissa said.
According to The Knot, which surveyed 16,000 brides and grooms who got married in 2014, couples spent an average of $31,213 on their nuptials last year –up from $29,858 in 2013 and an all-time high.
Couples tended to spend more on their reception and less on the ceremony itself. The largest chunk of the budget – an average of $14,006 – was spent on the venue, which includes the cost of catering, musicians and cake. Per-person catering costs rose from $66 in 2013 to $68 last year.
The Knot found that 45% of couples went over their budget in 2014 and 23% of couples didn’t even have one. Almost half of the couples that we spoke with who had budgets spent more than they initially wanted to.
Yahoo Finance hit the streets of New York City recently to ask real couples how much they spent on their big day.
Every couple we spoke with said they spent more on their reception than the ceremony. “I think the food was a very important part of it. We wanted our guests to feel like they were leaving satisfied,” said Barbara and Brian Ching, who got married two years ago.
At least according to those surveyed by The Knot, only 12% of couples really have to worry about paying for the wedding entirely themselves. The bride’s parents contributed 43% and the groom’s parents contributed 12% toward the overall cost of a wedding.
Jackie and Stan Oratz said that although they had a budget that was kept for their own wedding 54 years ago, they didn’t impose any financial restrictions on their children when it was their turn. “We have two children who are married. Both times we paid for a major portion of the wedding,” Jackie said.
Not all that surprising, Manhattan is the most expensive place to get hitched. On average couples there spent $76,328 in 2014. “That’s the college tuition for our future child, or at-least part of it”, Barbara Ching said when she heard the number. Runner-up on the list was Long Island, New York, with an average wedding cost of $55,327.
On the other side of the spectrum Utah is the least expensive place to get married, averaging $15,257.
Melissa and Ken Weikel have no regrets with the modest amount they shelled out for their wedding. “I’m not sure given the exact same financial abilities that we had would we have done it any differently. Would it have been more fun to have dancing and all of that? Yes. But [like he said] a marriage is what’s most important, not a wedding. A wedding is one day, a marriage is a lifetime,” Melissa said.
Culled from Yahoo Finance:
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