If Your Family is Paying for Wedding Expenses – Read This

In last week’s article, I gave you a step-by-step guide to create your wedding budget.  I briefly mentioned how to include monetary gifts from family in your budget.

In today’s post, I’m going to give a little more detail about family contributions to the wedding.  You’ll notice that today’s article is shorter than usual – that’s because my take on this is super straightforward:

Don’t count on any gift money until the money is in your hand.  

(Of course, if your wedding is being paid entirely by others, then that’s a different story – lucky you!)

I’ve heard many stories from couples whose families promise to pay for wedding expenses, and then for whatever reason, they’re unwilling or unable to contribute financially.

Unfulfilled promises can happen for so many reasons.  Here are some examples:

• Perhaps the family member(s) financial circumstances changed – like a job loss
• Maybe there was an emergency that they need to resolve – like a new medical bill, or a car accident, or a home repair
• Maybe they over-promised on a financial contribution without first looking at their budget
• Or maybe there was a conflict in the relationship and they no longer wish to contribute

I don’t mean to sound like a total downer, but these are likely scenarios.  You just never know what could happen – things can change at any moment.  That’s why it’s best to prepare for the contingencies.

This way, your budget and your wedding plans don’t go off-track if your family member(s) are unable to fulfill their financial promises.  If you prepare for the contingencies, you’ll be able to keep moving forward and your plans won’t fall apart 🙂

And guess what?  If the promised funds do come through after all you can always adjust your budget to make room for the new funds.

Think of it like getting a bonus at work – you don’t count on it until you receive it.  And when you receive it, you’ll always find a way to use it!

Plus, when you treat it like a possible “bonus,” you won’t wonder or worry constantly about whether or not the money is coming, or when you’ll get it, or if the amount has changed, etc.  That adds a layer of stress that you just don’t need!

BOTTOM LINE: If anyone has promised to pay for anything, don’t count on it until they hand it to you.

What do you think?  Am I being harsh?  Post a comment below or email me – I want to hear from you.