Eight Wedding Expenses You Might Not Be Thinking About

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   Photo: Love + Wolves

   They’re not exactly “hidden”, it’s just that you’re not automatically going to consider them as part of the budget. Sort of how your $5 latte at the cool coffee shop down the street is actually $5.45 with tax. Or, how you have tickets to Disneyland, but you still have to pay to park ($20), and eat (~$30 per person if you’ve already had breakfast). Here’s eight things that I’ve noticed takes my couples by surprise, with a resounding reply of “Oh, yeah, huh?”:

3. 1. Tax and Service – Just about everything and everyone that you purchase or hire for your wedding is going to come with tax. Catering and bartending are going to add a service charge on top of that. Here in Los Angeles, that can add as much as 30% to her final costs.
7. 2. Delivery and Setup fees – Rentals, flowers, your cake.
10. 3. Including yourselves in the final meal count – People forget to do this all the time!  Just put the both you on your guest list spreadsheet now.
13. 4. Including your vendors in the meal count – anyone who’s going to be working during your wedding reception needs to be fed. Some of them -like your photographer, videographer, and, uh, your wedding coordinator – bring assistants with them. Ask and count them up.
16. 5. Stamps – I’m coordinating a wedding next month with 400 guests. Between 175-200 invitations. Stamps are 70 cents each, plus 49 cents for the RSVP cards (they went old school). So, roughly $200.
18. 6. Marriage License – In California, marriage licenses start at $85, plus $15 to have it mailed to you. Bonus Tip: Pay the extra to have it mailed to you.
21. 7.Hotel room for the night before your wedding – You have to stay the night before in order to be there in the morning to get dressed and ready. If you want to stay in a suite on your wedding night, most hotels will be happy to transport all of your things while you’re gone. But get a room the night before.
24. 8. Transportation – How are  you and your wedding party getting from point A to point B? And then back again? Shuttle, separate cars, Uber/Lyft? How much is it, and who’s paying? What about parking? Plan it out and add it up.

What else do have questions about right now? Let’s talk about your wedding: Complete the contact form below, or call/text me directly at 323-592-9318, and I’ll get back to you to schedule your complimentary wedding consultation.

See you at the end of the aisle,

Liz Coopersmith