Fall wedding season overlaps with the start of holiday spending, and guests often feel both at once. Bobbi Rebell, CFP®, CFT™, chief financial education advisor at Accredited Debt Relief, joined Fox 5 Atlanta’s Good Day Atlanta to talk about how guests can celebrate the couple without carrying the cost into the new year.
Rebell covered when to start budgeting for a wedding, how to balance it against Thanksgiving and holiday plans, ways to cut travel, gift and attire costs, how to decline an invitation kindly and what to do when wedding spending lands on a credit card.
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Start Budgeting at the Save-the-Date
Rebell said guests shouldn’t wait for the formal invitation to start planning. Airfare, transportation and hotels all get more expensive closer to the date.
“They need to start thinking about it when they get that save the date,” Rebell said.
She suggested booking flights early with fares that are refundable as airline credit, which costs less than a ticket refundable in cash. She also advised guests not to assume the couple’s hotel block is the lowest rate. Discounts through an employer, a warehouse club such as Costco or a membership organization such as AAA may beat it.
“So shop around far in advance. Do your homework,” she said.
Balance the Wedding Against Holiday Spending
With Thanksgiving and the holidays close behind fall weddings, Rebell recommended deciding which events matter most this season and scaling back elsewhere. A close friend’s wedding might be worth reusing an old Halloween costume or hosting a more modest Thanksgiving.
“So balance things out, think ahead because we don’t wanna have a hangover in your budget and your finances come New Year’s,” Rebell said.
Cut Travel Costs for Out-of-Town and Multi-Day Weddings
Rebell noted that more couples are adding events and turning weddings into full weekends, which raises the cost of attending. She suggested guests share a room with friends, drive instead of fly where possible and consider skipping a night by arriving early on the day of the wedding.
Save on Gifts and Attire
For attire, Rebell’s advice was to start with what’s already in the closet. “You don’t need a new outfit,” she said.
For gifts, she recommended sticking to the registry so the couple gets something they want. Guests feeling pressure can also organize a group gift with friends to cover a larger registry item.
“By bringing other people in, everyone will thank you for doing the legwork and also giving them a little bit of a break in terms of the cost,” Rebell said.
How to Decline a Wedding Invitation Kindly
When attending isn’t affordable, Rebell said guests can decline without explaining their finances.
“If you are going to say no, say no early and say less,” she said.
She suggested offering to celebrate another way, such as meeting for coffee or contributing to a group gift. Declining early also gives couples with a tight guest list time to invite someone else.
When Wedding Costs Land on a Credit Card
Rebell named a few signs that wedding and holiday spending has gone too far: not knowing how much you owe, not knowing how you’ll pay the balance at the end of the month and carrying multiple buy now, pay later plans.
At that point, she advised acting early. That can mean asking a credit card company for a lower rate or, for anyone who expects they won’t be able to pay off the balance, reaching out to a debt relief company such as Accredited Debt Relief to put a plan in place.
“If you know that things are set up for you to get out of debt, you’re gonna feel a lot better,” Rebell said.
About Bobbi Rebell
Bobbi Rebell, CFP®, CFT™, is chief financial education Advisor at Accredited Debt Relief. She is a Certified Financial Planner® professional and a Certified Financial Therapist™.
About Accredited Debt Relief
Accredited Debt Relief is a leading debt consolidation company that has helped more than 1.3 million clients take meaningful steps toward getting out of debt. Over the course of its work, the company has supported clients in resolving more than $15 billion in debt.
Accredited Debt Relief is recognized for its client-first approach, earning multiple ConsumerAffairs Buyer’s Choice Awards for Customer Service, Overall Process and Best Value. The company also maintains an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, accreditation from the Association for Consumer Debt Relief (ACDR) and an Excellent Trustpilot rating supported by thousands of five-star reviews.