A new real estate report suggests many B.C. couples are considering whether they should splurge on nice weddings or put some of that moolah towards a down payment.
Royal LePage released a new report titled Rings vs. Real Estate, and it suggests that some B.C. couples are actually downsizing their weddings in order to afford a home.
To gather its findings, Royal LePage asked Burson to conduct a survey, and the findings suggest that a majority of Canadian couples would skip an expensive wedding celebration to afford the purchase of a home.
Many respondents who are already married said they wish they had skipped an expensive wedding.
While the report was national, British Columbian respondents were the most likely to request financial contributions toward a down payment rather than other wedding gifts.
Some of the key highlights from the report include the fact that of the people who are planning a wedding or have someone in their life who is, 43 per cent of respondents in B.C. say they would “definitely request money for a down payment on a home instead of a traditional wedding gift.”
“In British Columbia, it has become more common for couples to take a long-term approach when balancing major life milestones such as getting married and buying a home. Weddings remain an important milestone, but many couples are becoming more intentional about how they allocate their money and are prioritizing home ownership over a large celebration,” said Adil Dinani, sales representative, Royal LePage West Real Estate Services in Vancouver.
“For some, that means delaying a wedding altogether or opting for a smaller ceremony so they can direct more of their savings toward entering the housing market, especially with the rising cost of housing.”
Nearly two-thirds of respondents (64 per cent) said they would have liked to request money for a down payment instead of a wedding gift, while nine per cent did request money.
Over half of respondents (54 per cent) said they would “definitely forgo or significantly scale back a wedding” so they could put money towards a down payment.
Vancouver also happens to be the most expensive Canadian city for both a wedding and a down payment, so it’s not an easy decision.
Daily Hive spoke to some Canadians last year about how important a dream wedding was to them.
B.C. resident Sarah (this is a pseudonym as she has asked to remain anonymous) and her partner decided to take the plunge and buy a two-bedroom, two-bathroom unit in a low-rise condo.
The 26-year-old said she and her partner are prioritizing financial security.
“Weddings cost a lot of money,” the IT worker told Daily Hive over the phone. “I’ve brought up wanting kids around the age of 30… that’s also a really big expense. He’s brought up how he wants to be able to provide the same way for kids as his parents were for him. We don’t even have a car yet either, so there are certain milestones we’d want to reach first.”
With files from Isabelle Docto