Bayport Blog

How to pay for your wedding

You’ve met the love of your life, lobola has been paid and your dream wedding is about to become a reality. Except for one thing: how to pay for it. Savings, short-term loans, credit cards are all options, but let’s look at what makes the most sense.

Weddings can make us all go a little mad. Once you start planning, you keep discovering wonderful things you feel you can’t do without. Before you know it, your wedding budget has run out and you are faced with an “I need a loan now” moment. That is a good moment to take a deep breath, slow down and ask yourself a few questions:

Do we want to start our life together with debts to repay?

For most of us, the answer is no. However, there might be circumstances that change your answer. For example, your joint income will make the loan affordable, or one or both of you will be starting a new job soon and earn a higher salary, which will make it quick and easy to repay the wedding loan.

If your answer is no, you have to either postpone your wedding until you have saved enough to pay for it, or you have to scale down your plans so that the event becomes more affordable. Remember, you always have a choice.

If your answer is yes, the next question is:

How much debt can we afford?

The answer to this question is your budget planner. If you already budget monthly and keep track of your expenses, you will know exactly what your position is and if you have any dispensable income you can use to repay a loan.

For an even clearer picture, simply click here to access Bayport’s personal loan affordability calculator. Play around with amounts and repayment periods to get a very good idea of what the monthly instalment would be. Plug the instalment estimate into your budget to see how it fits into your income-and-expenses picture.

If you don’t have a budget, it is a good idea to start and to track your expenses for a month or two before you decide what you can afford. It is vital to fully understand your financial situation before you commit to a short-term loan.

In order to afford your wedding, it will probably be necessary to cut down on some non-essential expenditures, such as daily takeaways or driving your car needlessly. It will be a sacrifice, but you are investing in your future, which makes it worth it.

Bayport’s budget tool can help you get a handle on budgeting.

Where do we get a loan?

Once you start shopping for a loan, you will be spoiled for choice – but don’t rush your decision. Many companies offer loans online and promise instant approval. While this sounds great, these loans can be extremely expensive and land you in a debt trap from which it is difficult to escape.

You should only do business with lenders who are registered financial services providers. They are bound by the regulations that were put in place to protect consumers, which means they will not give you a loan you cannot afford. Working through a responsible lender can take a bit longer, but a wedding is not an emergency, so take your time and avoid becoming a victim of reckless lending.

It is a good idea to shop around, read reviews online and ask other people for their experiences with different lenders. Committing to debt is a big step and you don’t want a poor lending decision to hang over your marriage like a dark cloud.

Getting married is exciting and romantic, but the wedding is only one event and it is just the start of your life together. While a carefully considered short-term loan can really put the proverbial icing on the cake, be cautious to not spend money like there is no tomorrow after the big day.