If you've been laid off or fired while planning a wedding, your stress levels probably go through the roof. But should you cancel, postpone, or just radically alter your wedding budget?
The US recession and generally terrible state of the world’s economy has many people questioning their future plans. But getting married isn’t some indulgent vacation – it’s an important ritual and milestone of your life. If you’ve been laid off, or you’re worrying about the potential of future unemployment, you might be thinking about postponing or canceling your wedding. Even if you’re sure about going ahead, you’re probably wondering how everything’s going to get paid for.
Before you panic and cancel the wedding, here are some ways to make your wedding work in spite of the economy.
Think about Where You Can Cut Wedding Costs
Of course, the most obvious solution is to just have a cheaper wedding. But since that’s easier said than done, read Cutting Wedding Costs and Cheap Wedding Fridays Tips.Outline What About a Wedding is Most Important To You
If you haven’t already filled out the newly engaged questionnaire, now is a good time. This will help you see if it’s possible to cut costs while still having the elements that are most important to you. Do you want a fancy event with fewer people? Or would you rather have a very simple event that everyone you know can be at? If both are equally important to you, consider if having the wedding of your dreams is more important than getting married soon. In that case, maybe postponing the wedding would be a good idea.Consider Having a Two-Tiered Event
If you don’t have the money for a lavish wedding, maybe you want to elope, or have a very modest wedding reception now while planning for a bigger event later on. It could just mean waiting until your jobs are more stable, or planning to renew your wedding vows on an important future anniversary.Look Into Wedding Insurance
If you still have your job, but are worried about losing it and thus not being able to afford the wedding, wedding insurance might be a good option. But be careful: Many policies don’t cover unemployment, and others are very expensive. Make sure it’s a wise financial decision for you.Make Sure You Know Your Vendors’ Cancelation Policies
Before you sign a contract with a photographer, caterer, or other wedding vendor, make sure you know what their cancellation policies are. Know whether you can get back all or part of your deposit if you cancel before a certain date. Some vendors will only charge you a small fee for postponing, as long as you book them for a future date. If you’ve already signed contracts, go back and read the fine print. If it’s still before the cancellation date, it might make more sense to cancel or postpone now, rather than waiting to see what happens. And, if your money is already non-refundable, you may want to go ahead with the wedding in spite of money worries.What You Shouldn’t Do
- Spend Your Wedding Gifts
If there is any chance that you might have to cancel the wedding or indefinitely postpone it, don’t use any already received cash wedding gifts. Though it’s tempting to spend cash when you have it in hand, especially when there’s not another ready source of income, this is not a wise financial decision. Etiquette says that you should return all wedding gifts, and if you’ve already spent it, that will be very difficult to do. - Charge The Whole Wedding
Putting your wedding expenses on a credit card and not worrying about the expense until “later” may seem appealing at first. But unfortunately, “later” will come sooner than you think. Most likely, you'll be dealing with those bills and their high rates of interest long before your economic situation improves significantly.