The first stages of planning a wedding are often surreal. Once you start adding the cost, your mindset may start to shift. But don’t worry, a little strategic planning should bring everything back to reality. The important thing is to write down everything! Do you plan to fly to your wedding destination by private jet? Maybe you just want an intimate ceremony with a few close friends. Would you rather have a small wedding and big reception?
No matter what your desires are, the final question remains. How much will all this cost? As supply decreases and demand continues to increase, naturally cost will rise. Many have taken to DIY weddings as a way to offset expenses. This can be a huge undertaking, but when handled properly, can yield big dividends. If you choose the DIY route, the first question that must be answered is “How valuable is your time”? Question number two, “How much patience do you have”? Your DIY experience will be determined by the response of these two questions. Even with this approach, there is the inevitable question of how much.
As you may have guessed, cost can vary extremely. Couples can even experience different totals from city to city, even if the wedding plan is identical for both areas. Even vendors that offer the same services can have drastically different fees. This could be because of demand, quality of work, reputation, or even time of year. With all these variables that determine wedding cost, how could you ever begin to get a clear picture of your wedding budget? Like most topics and issues, there’s a website for that. So, before you walk into your next wedding vendor’s place of business like a deer in headlights, arm yourself with some hard data.
The Wedding Report offers a free wedding cost estimator that puts you on the right track. Once you input your info, such as region, number of guests, etc; the wedding estimator provides you with stats and costs for your particular wedding, as if you had your own personal accountant! Along with the total cost for your area, you get a breakdown of costs for each wedding professional. You also get recommendations for vendors and contact info, all on the same page. If you want to get a handle on your wedding budget before it spins out of control, or just an idea of what you’re up against, The Wedding Report offers a great start.
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