Wedding Costs

FORGET the worry about getting to the church on time, losing the ring, or tripping on the church steps. The biggest worry for couples getting married is money. And with the average cost of an Australian wedding running at around $28,000, it is unsurprising that finances are a big deal.

According to our recent survey, the most expensive wedding last year cost $130,000 while the cheapest was just $3000. For some people, having the "perfect" wedding is more important than a house deposit or paying off debt. In fact, many brides and gr ooms are going in to hock to pay for their "big day" and spend years paying back the money.

The average wedding goes around 15 per cent over budget. "We didn't really start off with a strict budget, we just knew roughly what we thought we wanted to do," says Mel Thompson, who was married last year. "But when we starting looking at the different reception places, we quickly realised we were out of our depth money-wise." "In the end, we decided on amore relaxed wedding in the grounds of an old farm, but that meant we could have more people it was like a great, big celebration. "I still had my dream dress and important things like that, but even after cutting back on some of the costs we still went almost $3600 over budget, which ended up being put on our credit cards," Thompson says.

This is typical of weddings today going over budget and being less formal. Although there are people who still have the expensive, big full-on formal wedding, the majority of weddings these days have become a lot more casual. They are more relaxed and often include a special location such as a garden or beach. Destination weddings, where family and friends might all meet up overseas in a resort or something like that, are also popular. In this case the couple might pay for the meals or a few nights of accommodation, or else everyone just pays for themselves.

According to a survey by card publisher Hallmark, about 80 per cent of couples go over budget on their wedding, with money being their single biggest pre-wedding worry. Loans to finance your wedding are offered by almost every major lender. Although borrowing money, from friends or banks might get you everything you want for the big day, it could also get you off to a poor financial start to your married life.

The average $28,000 wedding is about $4000 over the original budget. As a guide, most budgets go over by about 15 per cent. Repaying the debt from that big day can take several years, although some couples prefer to use wedding gift money to help make up the shortfall.

Who Pays for What

One of the first steps after deciding where and when is to work out who traditionally pays for what. The bride's family typically carries the biggest financial burden, but these days the costs are often met equally by both families. Tradition, however, dictates the bride pays for things such as invitations, bridal gown, bridesmaids' attire, hair and make-up, reception including drinks, music, flowers, cake and photography. The groom, on the other hand, usually pays for the marriage celebrant or minister, ceremony music and flowers, bridal party flowers, groom's attire, wedding cars, honeymoon and travel. According to Truebride, based on the average $28,000 budget, the bride will spend about $2300 on her gown, headpiece and shoes, while the bridesmaid dresses are about $170 each. The wedding reception will typically cost $11,000. Photography and a video of the day will set you back about $3300, while the average honeymoon on this size budget will cost just under $6000.

Second time around

Second marriages might be just as important in the emotional stakes, but when it comes to finances, they are definitely cheaper. The average budget for a second marriage is about half the cost of a first-time wedding. "Sure there are other factors at play, such as number of guests etc but having been through two weddings, a lot of the savings came from experience and know-how.

Prenuptial agreements

A prenutial agreement is always a thorny issue and, not surprisingly, opinions on the matter are divided. Most people think these agreements are a good idea in practice, but in reality they often cause offence and imply distrust. However prenups or binding financial agreements as they are also known can play a positive role in pre-wedding arrangements. They get everyone thinking about future finances and longer term family inheritance or business plans. According to family law specialist Moores Legal principal partner Stephen Winspear, the use of prenups has jumped about 200 per cent during the past two years. "Generally, they are used in second or subsequent marriages, or the other common category, when one party is very wealthy and the other one brings not much to the marriage," Winspear says.

Changes to the law in January have reinforced the legal status of these agreements and when they are prepared by an experienced, qualified lawyer, they are binding. However, one area of prenups that has not yet been tested by the courts is in the situation where children are subsequently born in the marriage and the prenup agreement does not make allowance for them, says Winspear, who is also the Law Institute of Victoria family law chairman. Although a request for a prenup these days does not necessarily put stress on a relationship, the devil is in thedetail. "The unhappiness turns up when, typically, a woman is taking very little and I tell her 'this is a terrible agreement' and that it's unfair. Then we get the fella screaming at us because he wants to quarantine his money and we're getting in the way of his happy marriage," Winspear says. "It generally gets resolved by compromise. "Occasionally the marriage doesn't go ahead. "Where there is a fairly trusting relationship, and it's close to the wedding, we often say 'why not do it after the marriage?' It's kind of a nice look because it means that they are not signing up just to go ahead with the wedding, but signing out of the goodness of their hearts. "These agreements between a couple can be made at any stage of their relationship, whether they are in a defacto relationship (and) have already been living together. It has the same legal effect."

Top tips to secure your dream wedding!

Can you have a luxurious Wedding for under $10,000?

Did you know the average Australian spend on a wedding is around $28,000. Did you also know that couples that marry the second time around spend less than half of this amount. Sure, there are other factors at play such as number of guests, etc., but having been through two weddings myself - alot of the savings came from experience and know-how.

Your wedding should be one of the highlights of your life where you'll be the centre of attention of a beautiful event, something people will talk about for years to come. But unfortunately, planning a wedding can be stressful for many brides as there are hundreds of things to manage and coordinate all to come to fruition on your big day.

So how can you achieve all this and have a stunning and unforgettable wedding for under $10,000? The good news is that it can be done! When I was planning my wedding (2nd time around), I came across this amazing ebook by Brenda Westwood "Wise Wedding Planning, How you can stage a successful wedding that fits your budget", and it really helped me.

You are probably thinking second wedding - no way - why would I even think about spending so much, of course it would be cheaper than the first time around!! But you have to realise that although it was the second time for me, it was the first time for my partner. Now my partner's family didn't want to scrimp at all - they wanted the full works. It didn't feel right to deny them this experience but I couldn't bring myself to spend that sort of money again. Brenda's book was just what the doctor ordered. It had everything I needed to make my wedding beautiful, keep the costs down and keep everyone happy. I saved at least $1,000 on my wedding dress alone using some of the tips from her e-book.

Definitely worth checking it out - I hope she can help you as much as she helped me.

How you can stage your dream wedding on a budget - Brenda Westwood.