Asking For Parents’ Help

Discussions over money for weddings can be difficult, but avoiding the discussion about financing a wedding won’t make wedding budget problems go away. Here are five ways you can bring up the question of getting financial help from your parents respectfully:

1. Ask them indirectly. Parents love to be asked for their advice, and they tend to have a lot of invaluable experience. When reviewing your wedding budget with them, you might be surprised to learn that they’ll say something like “we were planning to contribute”. If they don’t make that sort of offer it’s likely they can’t afford to.

2. Ask them directly. If your parents have paid for brothers’ and sisters’ weddings, and you have the sort of relationship where it’s possible to be direct, just come out and ask if they’ll be paying for your wedding too. At the very least it’ll show you weren’t just presuming they would.

3. Ask them to cover a specific cost. There are many parts of a budget, big and small, which parents can help out with. To make the discussion as tactful as possible, ask about a range of different items you’d like help with, from the food and venue to flowers and cars.

4. Ask to split the cost. There’s something logical about splitting the cost down the middle, so why not suggest that once you know the amount of money involved and what that will cover?

5. Ask them to pay for their guests. The per-head cost of food and drinks at a wedding can definitely add up. Parents have a habit of wanting friends and distant relations to attend, and there’s nothing wrong with that. If you’re already struggling to cover costs, it seems only fair that those extra guests are paid for by those who are wanting to invite them

Most importantly of all, make sure you’re sensitive to your parents’ feelings and circumstances. They’re the last people you want to have a falling out with before your big day.

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