For richer, for poorer...

Planning and paying for a wedding in undeniably expensive, but have you ever argued with your partner over the cost of being a wedding guest? Apparently, almost a quarter of us brits have done just that.

Experian's latest survey has found that the rising cost of weddings is affecting the wedding guests, as well as the bride and groom. By the time you have both your outfits sorted, paid for a taxi there and back or got a hotel room and paid for your drinks all night, you can have spent well over a few hundred pounds, if not more. That may alright if it's your best friend's big day and is a one off, but if you're invited to 3 or 4 weddings each summer, it can really rack up and start to become an issue.

Here are some more findings from the survey; 

+ One in six people (17%) who are in a relationship are missing the nuptials of loved ones because they cannot afford to attend,

+ More than one in ten people in relationships (11%) have spent over £800 each on attending weddings, compared to just 6% of single people. Meanwhile, 4%, equating to almost a million Brits*, report having spent more than £2,000 participating in other people’s weddings over the last year,

+ Nearly eight in 10 (77%) couples always choose to split the cost but almost one in five (17%), foot the entire bill for both to attend the wedding of their own friends and family, while their partner does the same for their nearest and dearest. 

If the wedding season is becoming an issue for you and your partner, having a budget in place and sticking to it can help. Keeping financial harmony in a relationship is not easy, but with these do's and don'ts below, it can become easier and less stressful. 

Do's

• Set the ground rules. Do you want a joint account for regular expenses and separate bank accounts for personal spending? Or do you want everything to go together?
• Agree on short and long-term goals and how you’re going to achieve them, and review regularly together
• Work out who does what. The more frugal partner could look after the budget, while the more extravagant works out the ‘treats’, like meals out or trips away
• Be honest about your past. If you have a less-than-perfect history of repaying money you owe, this could affect both of you in the long-term if your credit reports become linked
• Take time together to understand if you need to improve one or both of your credit reports. Do this well in advance of applying for credit together

Don'ts

• Spend all your time together talking about money
• Keep secrets. Research from Experian shows that 29% of people in the UK discovered that their partner was keeping credit card debt from them
• Dig yourself into a hole. If you find yourself in debt, don’t borrow more in the hope of putting things right. Ask for help and be open about it with your partner
• Talk about money issues when you are angry. Arguing about money is never going to be productive
• Expect your partner to completely change. It’s unlikely an extravagant spender will do a complete about-turn and suddenly become frugal

Any other tips for keeping financial harmony?

*PR collaboration

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