Re: Where is the love???

Was reading yunn's entry and definitely, i agree with the big budget of holding a wedding and all yeah. as to where is the love? my stand is to each his own yah. of course, all girls will have their own lavish dream weddings and parties. however, isnt love about each other? take another view point, planning through the whole wedding can be romantic too i guess (even though there will be conflicts and disagreements)? shopping through the wedding lists and furnishing of the new place can be romantic too right? some couples love each other enough to hold a simple wedding with their limited budget. some couples love each other enough to only want to share their joy within themselves and go overseas to get married. some couples love each other enough to want to share their joy with everyone they know, hence the big wedding and big budget. right right? er, too mushy for me though. heck, guess im tryin hard to justify.

alright, i admit im not a romantic. since we are stayin in singapore, let's just be practical. in fact, the roommate and i came up with a list of marriage & wedding expenses for our clients a couple of months ago and to tell the truth, it's scary.

this is what we came up with:

1. Meet the Parents
- Dowry, 四点金 (depends on tradition)
- 过大礼 (suckling pig and all, depends on your parents and in-laws)
- Pastries for relatives

2. ROM
- Wedding bands
- Reception or ROM packages
- Solemnizer and registration costs
- And for some, engagement ring

3. Photoshoot
- Photo Albums
- Photoshoot Sessions
- Extra costs if photoshoots are done overseas

4. Tea Ceremony
- Ang Baos
- Buffet reception for relatives

5. Actual Day & Wedding dinner
- Gowns & Suits (if not included in photoshoot package)
- Photographer for AD (if not included in photoshoot package)
- Cameraman & Multimedia ( usually friends)
- Make-up artist
- Car rental (if necessary)
- Make up artist
- Ballroom services (e.g. projector)
- Live bands?
- Expenses and corkage for liquors and wine
- And of course, costs of tables for banquet & ballroom

6. Honeymoon
- Costs of trip & expenses

7. New home!
- Cost, downpayment, loan interest, loan term, monthly repayment
- interior designer
- renovation
- furnishing

above is a very general estimation and of course, some items on our list are not applicable to every couple and can be omitted. btw, we gathered our sources from the respective forums and some websites yeah. haha. fyi, singaporebrides.com provides quite good references for all matters in relation to plannin for a wedding and all.

judgin from the lists above, perhaps that's why more and more young couples plan their actual day over a span of 2-3 years due to costs issue. another fyi, hdb aka the gahmen does give allowance for couples below 30 to fork out lesser downpayment yeah. only 10%(5+5) instead of the original 20% (10+10). as far as im concern, the lesser downpayment is applicable to new flats, not sure bout resale. guess this can be a subtle form of support too?

conclusion, the love is still around. ha.