While having the wedding of your dreams is something to look forward to, planning and budgeting for it can be an extreme headache. Breaking down your wedding budget from start to finish is the trickiest yet most important thing to do. This figure will influence things such as the venue, the guest list, meal options, and anything else intended for the ceremony. While making this wedding plan, have in mind what will work for you and your guests. At least 40% is bound to go into taking care of your guests. This number will include the food, beverages, and venue. Here are a few steps to help you plan the budget.
Figure out who is contributing
It is probably you and your partner or family members who want to make contributions towards the success of the ceremony. Whatever the case, knowing who is fully interested in chipping in is the first step to planning. In this case, try to understand how much each willing partner wants to contribute. These conversations may sound awkward but they are a step to making the right budgeting decisions.
Crunch the numbers
Once you have gotten the figures from those willing to contribute towards your wedding, go back to the drawing board. How much are you and your partner willing to contribute? You also need to check on both your monthly incomes to see how much each of you is comfortable contributing. Do you have a savings account? How much are you comfortable pulling from the account? As soon as you have these answers, you can now comfortably begin to budget.
Estimate your guest count
In most if not all weddings, the number of guests will always exceed by a small percentage. It is the guest count that assists in knowing just how much you need to budget for the day. Look at your wedding as a per-person expenditure. See how much it would cost a single guest and work with an estimated budget of the number of people you are hoping to have at your ceremony.
Choose your non-negotiables
Whether you like it or not, there are things that have to be present at your wedding. For example, there is no ceremony without food and beverages or entertainment. Keep these non-negotiables aside and plan on how much each of them is going to cost you.
Do your research
By now, you already have an excel sheet that you are putting the costs down. The next thing is to do your research. Are the costs you have the same as those in the market? You will realize that some are higher and some are cheaper. Align your budget based on the findings.
Once all these are done, you can do the math. You now have an average budget for your whole wedding. Based on the totals you get, you can see if there are any things you can do without to ensure you are not too tight on budget.
