Tuesday, June 13, 2006
How much does a wedding cost in your city?
On average, U.S. couples will spend $26,800.00 for their wedding. This does not include cost for a honeymoon, engagement ring, bridal consultant or wedding planner. Add that in and cost could reach $35,530.00. You should note that wedding cost can very widely and this is just an estimated average of what couples will likely spend based on this site's research at The Wedding Report.
The Prenuptial Agreement Dilemma
This article gives a wonderful outline of what a prenuptial can do.
Monday, June 12, 2006
The Knot and WeddingChannel.com Enter into a Definitive Merger Agreement
Other less boring alternative titles to this article:
The Wedding Channel Weds The Knot
The The Knot Ties the Knot with The Wedding Channel
A $57.9 million wedding between The Knot and The Wedding Channel
The Knot Join The Wedding Channel in Holy Merger
The Knot and The Wedding Channel Get Hitched
Yep, websites get married too!
The Wedding Channel Weds The Knot
The The Knot Ties the Knot with The Wedding Channel
A $57.9 million wedding between The Knot and The Wedding Channel
The Knot Join The Wedding Channel in Holy Merger
The Knot and The Wedding Channel Get Hitched
Yep, websites get married too!
Sunday, June 11, 2006
Finding our way through a pre-nup
If anything is worth doing, it is worth doing right. I started working on a pre-nup nearly right after my dear So and I got engaged. I can now finally feel good about the pre-nuptial work I put into it all. This is a wonderful process for me, and for the relationship.
Most people think that pre-nuptial agreements are unnecessary, unromantic, and/or only for the rich. Based on my experience, I can definitively say that it is necessary, loving, and builds a strong foundation for an intimate life commitment. Having gone through this exercise, my fiance and I are finding that we feel safer and closer.
A major quality I like about pre-nuptials is that it requires you to think like an adult and be practical. Practical is unromantic, perhaps, but honesty and financial intimacy makes love even better. The foremost in reading through a pre-nuptial is that you are positioned to be honest and open about how you feel about money and where you are with your finances. It really is not an adversarial situation that it creates, as it is rumored to be. So long as you are completely honest with your partner, this is not at all difficult. Going through this process actually really makes this a partnership even before you take the vows.
Of course, my SO and I have also created living wills, or health power of attorney. We are creating a safe and caring environment in which we protect each other during and after our life. Once we are married and looking at real estate, we will come up with a living revocable trust in addition to making changes in our last will and testament.
Before I get off my soapbox, I would also like to mention that the whole process need not be expensive. While it is recommended that you each get an attorney, it isn't really too expensive, and you have options. If you both get lawyers, they tend to want a 4 hour retainer to review document and sit there with you to go over it before and during signing. That will run you about $1000 minimum in most cases, per person. In California, the Community Property Sate, you don't really need to have a lawyer as long as you both not waive the right to spousal support. You can get templated agreements quite cheaply and get it done under $200 -- it really depends on what you both can agree on.
This last point is particularly important to me, because I came from a divorced family that warred against each other heavily. As a child of divorce, I can attest to the burden of divorce on children. Unlike the cost of your wedding, this cost is an investment. Given the divorce rate, it is a wonderful investment in time and effort to go through this process starting when you get engaged. It will not only create a stronger relationship through open and real discussions between partners, it also help to make sure that you will have a less ugly divorce.
Most people think that pre-nuptial agreements are unnecessary, unromantic, and/or only for the rich. Based on my experience, I can definitively say that it is necessary, loving, and builds a strong foundation for an intimate life commitment. Having gone through this exercise, my fiance and I are finding that we feel safer and closer.
A major quality I like about pre-nuptials is that it requires you to think like an adult and be practical. Practical is unromantic, perhaps, but honesty and financial intimacy makes love even better. The foremost in reading through a pre-nuptial is that you are positioned to be honest and open about how you feel about money and where you are with your finances. It really is not an adversarial situation that it creates, as it is rumored to be. So long as you are completely honest with your partner, this is not at all difficult. Going through this process actually really makes this a partnership even before you take the vows.
Of course, my SO and I have also created living wills, or health power of attorney. We are creating a safe and caring environment in which we protect each other during and after our life. Once we are married and looking at real estate, we will come up with a living revocable trust in addition to making changes in our last will and testament.
Before I get off my soapbox, I would also like to mention that the whole process need not be expensive. While it is recommended that you each get an attorney, it isn't really too expensive, and you have options. If you both get lawyers, they tend to want a 4 hour retainer to review document and sit there with you to go over it before and during signing. That will run you about $1000 minimum in most cases, per person. In California, the Community Property Sate, you don't really need to have a lawyer as long as you both not waive the right to spousal support. You can get templated agreements quite cheaply and get it done under $200 -- it really depends on what you both can agree on.
This last point is particularly important to me, because I came from a divorced family that warred against each other heavily. As a child of divorce, I can attest to the burden of divorce on children. Unlike the cost of your wedding, this cost is an investment. Given the divorce rate, it is a wonderful investment in time and effort to go through this process starting when you get engaged. It will not only create a stronger relationship through open and real discussions between partners, it also help to make sure that you will have a less ugly divorce.
Friday, June 09, 2006
Ka-ching! Wedding price tag nears $30K
Survey: Bridal spending tops $125 billion; parents less likely to foot ballooning bill.
I wonder what is driving up the cost of wedding? Is it the cost of living, or are weddings becoming more elaborate in general? Does that survey include all sorts of weddings, even city hall ones? And what is this The Fairchild Bridal Group. Must be some kind of industry marketing firm. It piqued me interest. I found this very interesting suvery published by The Fairchild Bridal Group in PDF format: http://www.sellthebride.com/documents/americanweddingsurvey.pdf
(note the URL! What a domain name!)
I wonder what is driving up the cost of wedding? Is it the cost of living, or are weddings becoming more elaborate in general? Does that survey include all sorts of weddings, even city hall ones? And what is this The Fairchild Bridal Group. Must be some kind of industry marketing firm. It piqued me interest. I found this very interesting suvery published by The Fairchild Bridal Group in PDF format: http://www.sellthebride.com/documents/americanweddingsurvey.pdf
(note the URL! What a domain name!)
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