Newly-Wedded Couples Consider Eloping Just to Save Money, Study Finds

WITH VIDEO AND INFOGRAPHIC: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/fp2tqi3h6bh0uo2/AACLoAW4S9dX5-oJwF-c5eK4a?dl=0

NYWEDDING by Marie Haaland

New York office – 646-873-7565 / usnews@swns.com

Planning a wedding is so expensive – and stressful – that six in 10 couples married in the last year seriously considered eloping.

This emerged in a new study, which examined how couples budget and pay for their weddings. For these recently-married couples, 64 percent were forced to make sacrifices on their big day – with 11 percent even having to delay their wedding for financial reasons.

Finances and the wedding budget are an important part of the big day. This is especially true for recently-married couples, as 63 percent reported using personal savings to help pay for their wedding, according to the survey of 2,000 married American women.

Couples married for a year or less reported paying for over half of their wedding with their own savings.

The research, commissioned by Stillwhite.com and conducted by OnePoll, examined how wedding budgets are formed and managed, and found that modern marriages are much more likely to see couples dipping into their own pockets than relying on family payments.

It may be tradition for the bride’s family to pay for the wedding, but only 39 percent of women reported any contribution from their side of the family.

Results showed that financial difficulties are becoming more common for couples as they plan and save for their weddings.

Compared to just five percent of couples who have been married for 15 years or longer, one in five recently-married couples (22 percent) reported a need to delay their proposal for financial reasons.

Of those who were forced to delay their proposal, 23 percent pushed it off for a year or more.

This isn’t the only result of financial difficulties. Half of couples all reported making sacrifices when planning their big day – but when choosing what to sacrifice, some things were easier to give up than others.

When needing to save money and stretch the budget, brides most often compromised on their wedding dress (45 percent), the size of the guest list (42 percent) and the venue (39 percent).

That being said, 29 percent were unwilling to compromise on their wedding dress.

“The beauty of a pre-loved wedding dress marketplace like Stillwhite.com is that brides no longer need to compromise on their dream dress. You can pick up a designer gown worn for only a few hours, dry cleaned and practically brand new for a fraction of the retail price,” said co-founder of Stillwhite.com, Ingrid Szajer.

Even with the sacrifices and the financial stress, almost half of brides (49 percent) wouldn’t change any aspect of their wedding.

For those that would have done something differently, 13 percent reported wanting to change their wedding dress and the photographer, while 12 percent would change their venue.

In terms of budget, eight in 10 were satisfied with the amount of money they spent.

For their dress, 65 percent of brides budgeted $1,000 or less and 11 percent bought a pre-owned wedding dress.

Stillwhite.com co-founder Ingrid Szajer said, “We’re seeing a shift in the number of brides walking down the aisle in a pre-loved gown and guests are none the wiser. With the huge selection of 36,000 designer wedding dresses available on Stillwhite.com there something to fit every size, style and budget. Brides can even sell their dress after the big day and help pay off those wedding bills. Sellers have already earned $21 million through our platform.”

After the big day is over, brides are left with many mementos, including their dress. Seventy-one percent decided to tuck their dress away in storage, while 8 percent lent or gave their dress to a friend or family member to be used for their wedding.

TOP 5 ASPECTS OF THE WEDDING BRIDES WERE MOST SATISFIED WITH: