Money Matters
Survey finds most couples overspend on their big day
Couples, obviously, try to rein in their wedding spending as much as possible. However moneywise they are, though, the bulk of newlyweds find that they overspend somewhere, according to a recent study.
The study by Visa, Inc., found that 88 percent of couples believe they overspent on some aspect of their wedding. The guiltiest parties: food, drink and cake were reportedly overspent on, each claimed by 18 percent of respondents. The honeymoon and hotel (14 percent), reception costs (12 percent) and clothing costs (11 percent) also were claimed as budget-busters.
The couples themselves (parental or other financial contributions not included) spent an average of $8,721 on their wedding and honeymoon.
Overall, the brides and grooms were in agreement on food and drink overspending, but showed some disparity in how money was spent elsewhere:
• Women (14 percent) were twice as likely as men (7 percent) to say the one item they overspent on was clothing (dress/tuxedo).
• Men (17 percent) were more likely than women (12 percent) to say they overspent on th honeymoon and hotel.
• Men (14 percent) also were more likely than women (10 percent) to name the reception as the budget-busting expense.
Visa’s wedding survey also found a wide range in the overall wedding spending:
• 26 percent of respondents spent more than $10,000
• 19 percent spent between $5,001 and $10,000
• 30 percent spent between $1,000 and $5,000
• 5 percent spent between $501 and $1,000
• 18 percent spent between $1 and $500
• 2 percent spent nothing
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