How to organise your budget

If there was just one rule when it comes to budgeting for your South African wedding it would be to only plan for the type of wedding that you can afford. It's important right from the start to decide who is paying for what and whether there are any financial constraints. You certainly need to know how much money you have to spend and how many guests you want to invite, before you can begin making plans.

Consult with your parents

It may be that your parents have been saving for your wedding since the day you were born but if this isn't the case then you need to discuss the subject with them. Don't ever expect your parents to pay, since it may be that they simply don't have the finances and at this stage of their life they don't want to be borrowing money. If they can pay for the entire wedding then think yourself extremely fortunate but in many cases, couples these days pay for the majority of the wedding themselves with the parents offering whatever help they can.

If your parents can contribute, then without appearing rude ask them how much they can afford to pay. Rather than have them say they will pay for the reception, ask if possible that they can just give you a monetary sum and then you will have a better idea of the type of wedding that you can hold.

How much weddings cost in South Africa?

The average wedding costs in excess of R70,000. This includes wedding outfits, rings, pampering leading up to the day and the wedding itself. The reception and honeymoon plus any other extras are all additional expenses.

Wedding account

You and your groom to be need to see whether you have any savings that can be used for the wedding and from there work out how much money you can realistically save per month to put into a wedding account between now and the anticipated date of your wedding. This amount should be paid each month by standing order or direct debit and can be used to pay all of the wedding bills, helping you to keep on track with the budget.

Naturally there's ways that you can keep the budget under control and these involve such things as not having a sit down wedding breakfast, keeping the guest list short and  marrying out of season.