One of the first things on the minds of newlyweds is buying a house. This is ironic, because most young newlywed couples aren’t in a good financial position to buy a house. Buying a house is a huge endeavor, and you must have SOME cash to buy it. The days of getting into a house with no money down and no closing costs have passed. It’s very tough to get approved for 100% financing, because lenders are much tighter on their underwriting guidelines. When the housing market took a tumble and the subprime mortgage market almost bankrupted our country, lenders retreated. Having said that, it’s a great time to buy a house. It’s a buyer’s market, and there are plenty of great deals on the market right now. Before you go shopping for a house, make sure you have these things in place:

• At least a 3% down payment
• Enough money to cover closing costs (you might be able to get this paid by the seller)
• Make sure you are going to stay in the same town for more than 2 years.
• Pay off any old debts or collections

Now, here are four steps that you can take to find an affordable house:

Research and hire a great real estate agent.

It’s a misconception that you can save a lot of money buying a for sale, buy owner house. Many FSBO sellers overprice their homes, and they are unwilling to compromise to get a deal done. Hiring a real estate agent can be the worst or best thing you’ll ever do. Do your research, and prepare interview questions when hiring a real estate agent. Stay away from family real estate agents unless they are really good at what they do and if they are willing to give you a cut of their commission. A great real estate agent can save you a ton of money if they are great negotiators. Great real estate agents are also great at finding hidden deals on the market.

Seek out short sales, bank-owned, and pre-foreclosure properties

Right now, you can find a huge amount of these distressed properties. A short-sale property means that the owner is upside down on their mortgage loan, but the mortgage company is willing to accept a sales price less than the amount of the mortgage upon their approval of the price. Everyone wins in this situation, because the seller doesn’t have to pay the difference to the their lender and you get a good deal. The problem is that these deals take a while to close, and mortgage companies are often stingy. Pre-foreclosures are simply properties that are somewhere in the process of being foreclosed, but the owner is still in legal possession and has the right to sell the property. You can find a deal here, but typically the seller doesn’t have much room to negotiate given the high mortgage amount, but they might be willing to update the kitchen, pay closing costs, and pay for a home inspection.

Negotiate your butt off

Start with a low offer, and prepare to start the negotiation process. Give yourself enough room to negotiate a price that you can afford. For instance, if the asking price is $200,000, then offer $150,000. They might counter back, but you could end up paying $175,000 when it’s all said and done. If you had originally offered $175,000 and they make a counter offer, you’ll probably end up paying $185k to $190k. Other great negotiating tools are closing costs, home inspections, a year’s worth of property taxes, and upgrades to the house. Have fun with it, and be willing to concede on a few of your demands in order to make the deal happen. If you want to find out how realistic the asking price of a home is, try looking it up on Zillow.com. Zillow takes the comparatives of other similar houses in the area that recently sold and formulates an estimate of the land plus the house.

Calculate how much you can afford before you start looking for a house

Add up your total gross income between you and your wife. Then, divide it by three. This is the maximum payment you can afford without feeling house poor. So, if your calculation comes out to $1,500, then you should start looking for houses in the $200k to $250k range. This is one of the most important tips for finding a house that you can afford. You must know your price range ceiling before you start looking at houses. Agents will try to get you to buy outside of your range, but be firm with them. Only look at houses out of your price range that you would plan on offering less than the asking price.

Conclusion

You can find a great deal on a house right now, but don’t get caught up in the moment. Renting for a little while is always an option. Buying a house is a great investment, but it can also be a huge burden on your marriage. I would not recommend that any newly married couple buy a house in their first year of marriage. I’ve been married for three years, and we bought and renovated a condo in our second year of marriage. There were some rough times, and painting ceilings at 12am wasn’t our original idea of being newlyweds. If both of you were well-established financially before you got married, then buying a house right before or after the wedding might not be so bad. Don’t take the housing process lightly. Be wise and use common sense. You’ll be fine. Good luck!

With all the money spent on your wedding the last thing you want to do is break the bank on your honeymoon. You still want it to be a beautiful, romantic trip to remember though! Here are a seven ways to get the most out of your honeymoon without spending a fortune:

1. Make a budget first - Traditionally it is the responsibility of the brides family to pay for the wedding, and the groom’s family to pay for the honeymoon. However, few people today follow the old traditions, which means that more and more couples are paying for both their wedding, and their honeymoon.



If you are the ones footing the bill, make sure you create a budget that includes your honeymoon! It is so easy to spend all of your money on your wedding, and hope that you have enough left over to take the trip of your dreams – don’t count on it! Make that budget, or you may find yourselves with a less than desirable honeymoon location. Even if you do not have a lot of money you can still have a beautiful honeymoon celebration in the location of your choice, you just have to work within your own budgetary guidelines.




2. Consider a Honeymoon Registry - Plenty of people have bridal shower and wedding registries, but did you know that you can create a honeymoon registry as well? This will let your friends and family donate directly to your honeymoon fund to purchase your airfare, or hotel rooms.

   It’s a good idea to let people know about this as early as possible. By the time you get married any money that is donated may be too late. Best to mention it before your bridal shower instead of right before your wedding.

   There are several ways to start a honeymoon registry, but the easiest is to contact a travel agent in your area. You can also find out more about honeymoon registries when you click here.




3. Plan your wedding and honeymoon in the off season - It’s no secret that every tourist destination has an off season. During those times, you can always find amazing deals on just about everything – your hotel, plane tickets, even cruises or total vacation packages. You don’t have to go way off season either. Just target your dates slightly to either side of the peak seasons, and you can travel for less. Sometimes thousands less.




4. Use your travel agent - Travel agents offer a ton of resources. They can help you book the cheapest flights, save on your hotel rooms, and get you package deals at a discount. The money you can save with them should more than cover the cost of their fees. After all, this is what they do every single day, and for your once-in-a-lifetime honeymoon, trusting an expert to take care of the details will save you a lot of stress, and still let you get the most for your money.




5. Go on a cruise - Whether you want to see the northern lights or explore ancient Mayan ruins, there’s a cruise that goes there. Cruises are ideal for honeymoons because they are package deals. You get everything (or almost everything) for one low price. When you choose to go on a cruise for your honeymoon, you will not have to worry nearly as much about what things cost once you get there. Most meals are included, and you can arrange your on-shore outings before you leave. No surprises, just a fun time.

   Besides cruises are known for their good food, great entertainment, and on-ship amenities like spas. They really can be all-in-one dream vacations. The off-season rule applies here too, you can save a lot if you go during a slow month. You can use the internet to compare packages, prices, and off peak specials. Just google “cruise” + your desired destination.




6. Consider having your honeymoon close by - My husband and I went to a tiny little tourist town about an hour away from us. We booked early, and online, and got a free night’s stay at the hotel. We had an amazing time because there was no pressure, no flights to catch, no phone ringing…just us. IT was very romantic, and I will never forget it. We got all of that for under $500, and that included our meals while we were there. So, it doesn’t have to be expensive, and it doesn’t have to be far away to still be one of the most amazing memories you will ever have!




7. Tell people you are on your honeymoon - you will be really surprised by some of the free things you will get. Everything from free drinks, to free items, to hotel room upgrades, to free tours. Everyone loves a couple in love, and you can definitely take advantage of it during that special time!




8. Consider a timeshare, or beach house - Have a talk with your relatives before you make your honeymoon plans. See if anyone they know has a timeshare, or beach house, or cabin that you could borrow or rent cheaply. There are fewer things more romantic than a cabin or house on the beach where you and your love can spend some time together. If you did something like this you could focus what money you do have on your honeymoon activities instead of the cost just to get a room somewhere.

The most important tip is really just to look for deals wherever you go. Your honeymoon does not have to be expensive. If you plan early, and ask for a discount every time you can, then chances are you really will have a much nicer honeymoon for less money than you expected to spend on it.

For other ways to save money on your wedding, read how you can save money planning your wedding without spending a fortune and how to get the most for your money when you register for wedding gifts.

This review of honeymoon ideas that are fun but more affordable is part of the Marriage Money Guide.

Photo Credit: Tahiti Experience.com

For those of you who decided that buying a house isn’t right for you at this point in your life, your next step is finding an affordable apartment or rental house. In Florida, rent for apartments and houses has sky-rocketd, because the demand has increased so much. In metro areas of cities in Florida such as Orlando, Jacksonville, Tampa, and West Palm Beach, it’s tough to find a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment for less than $1,000.00. This is a lot of money for a new couple starting their life together. So, is it possible to find an affordable rental? Let’s walk through this together.

First, check websites like your local Craigslist in the “apts / housing” section. My wife and I always check this when we’re looking for rentals. We also check it for for-sale, buy-owner houses. You need to watch out for Craigslist, because there are a ton of scammers on there. Never send any deposit money via Western Union or any other crazy delivery method. Craigslist is great for finding individual landlords looking to rent their properties at a discount price and individuals renting out their home or condo that didn’t do well on the sales market.

Second, check with your network of friends and family to see if they know anyone with a property for rent. Landlords are more willing to negotiate a deal with tenants that they can trust. A direct referral from someone they know is a good way to get an apartment at a discount price.

Third, don’t forget your negotiating skills when renting an apartment. Some people don’t realize that they can negotiate rent price and lease terms. Just because someone posts $1,000 for the rent doesn’t mean you need to accept it. This is harder to do with large, corporate-owned rental properties, because their demand and marketing budget is high enough to dismiss those that are looking for a deal. But, you can definitely negotiate with the everyday landlord. Ask them to reduce the security deposit, reduce the lease term, or trade work for money off the rent. If you’re a good landscaper or a handy around the house, ask them to take $100 to $200 a month off the rent in return for you maintain the home. Just make sure the landlord is still paying for the materials and supplies.

Lastly, find an apartment or rental home off the beaten path. Never sacrifice your safety for a cheaper rental, but there are plenty of nice, underdeveloped areas with cheaper rent. Look five miles away from “the hot spots” in town, and there is where you’ll find the deals. Apartments above the garage of an older couple’s property are also rental gems at a discount price.

Are you ready for the challenge? Don’t settle for paying $1,200.00 a month for a 1 bedroom apartment just because it has a nice pool and an exercise facility. Some cities make it tough to find cheaper rent, but the majority of you live in suburban America, and the deals out there. You just need to do your research, ask friends and family, and scour the internet classifieds.

These tips for helping newly married couples on find an apartment are part of the Marriage Money Guide.

Creating a wedding registry is one of the best parts about getting married. (Besides the fact that you’ve found the love of your life, and you’re about to embark on your happily-ever-after.) Here’s the quick and simple guide to get the most out of your wedding registry with the least amount of stress:

• Understand that not everyone is going to use your registry - No matter how well meaning she might be, your Aunt Fanny is going to go right ahead and buy those $30 faux crystal candlesticks. Love her, and let it go.




• Skip the fondue pot, pasta maker, and anything else that slices, dices and also makes julienne fries – Trust me, you are going to regret it later when you only get four place settings of china and have a brand new chocolate fountain. Don’t put this stuff on your registry at all, or people will buy it for you.




• Do keep your registry simple - Put only the things you really want on your registry, and you will not end up with assorted items that gather dust and take up space in your future garage. Many of us get giddy at the idea of all those gifts, and the result is that we go hog wild with the registry. Please don’t make that mistake! Better to register for fewer things that you really want than to have pages and pages of possible gifts for people to sift through when they print your registry.
  
  
  

• Do register at a store chain that is available to all of your friends, family, and guests - It’s important to understand that not everyone who will send you a gift will live close to you. I had friends of our family on the other side of the United States send me gifts. Please keep your far-flung relatives and friends in mind. Choose a store chain to register with that is big enough for them to get to locally, or has an easy to use online registry search.




• Consider creating at least two registries, one high dollar, one low dollar – We registered at Dillard’s, and Target – While neither one of them is particularly high dollar, Target was a definite value option for those friends and family who did not have a lot of money, but still wanted to give us a gift.




• Do register for your basic household appliances if you do not already have them, or need new ones – A vacuum, a microwave, a good set of knives, even a carpet steamer, or an iron and ironing board would not be out of place here. I mean really. would you rather spend your hard earned money on a carpet steamer, or be grateful that your family loved you enough to buy you one and spare you the expense? You might even end up with a nicer one than you would buy for yourself.




• Do include a shipping address on your registry - Not everyone will want to bring your gift to the wedding, and you need to have a secure shipping address listed so that they can have your gifts sent directly to you.




• If possible, allow your guests to choose gift cards as a registry option - Target offered this when I registered, and many more stores are now starting to. This will help you fill in the gaps between what people bought you, and what you still need for your new life together.




• Do register for china, silverware, and enough place settings for at least 8 people - You in-laws will come for Christmas eventually, whether you want them to or not. The best you can hope for is to at least have matching place settings!




• Encourage your guests to pool their money - If you have several expensive items on your registry, then it makes sense to ask people to pool their money. You only need so many salad spinners, bathroom towels, and kitchen gadgets.




• Do not be afraid to ask for money, but DO tell your guests what you plan to use it for! - Many of your guests may buy you a gift for your bridal shower, but give you money for your wedding. A polite thank you note explaining what you intend to do with the money is a beautiful thing to do to repay their kindness.




• Do not register for duplicate items - We made this mistake and ended up with a couple of duplicate items. If you register at more than one place, make sure you print the list from your first registry and have it handy when you do the second one. Also, do not assume that you can remove items from your registry. We found things that we liked at both Dillard’s than Target, but Dillard’s was slow to remove the registered items when we tried to fix them online.




• Stay on the lookout for freebies, warranties, and rebates on the items your guests give you - Save any gift receipts, and get money back where you can.




• Be prepared to return duplicate or unwanted gifts - You will probably get them, there is no way around it. Make sure you schedule a day to go around and return things for cash, or store credit whenever possible. If possible, keep the gift giver in the dark about it, they gave the gift out of their love for you, and it’s better not to embarrass them or make them angry over returning a gift.




• Do get everything you can for free before you register – Before you register as a couple, talk frankly to your parents and family on both sides. Find out if they have used items like vacuums, etc. before you register for them. If you can get some things for free, or very cheaply from your family members, you can register for other things that you need instead.

Above all, please remember that registering for practical items will serve you best. The intent behind wedding gifts is that in a way, they help give the new couple the foundation of their future home together. If you register for things that will not help you build your new home into a happy place, then both you and your guests will miss out on this opportunity.

Be sure to check out ways to save money planning your wedding and how to save money on a destination wedding.

This checklist of tips on how to get the most for your money when you register for wedding presents is part of the Marriage Money Guide.

Photo credit: Zimbio.com

Jetting off to an exotic location surrounded by your closest friends and family may not sound like a cheap way to tie the knot, but the truth is it can actually cost far less than a traditional wedding.

If you are interested in planning a destination wedding, then here are eight tips to save you even more money on the happiest day of your life.

1. Give yourself as much time to plan as possible – Booking your flights and hotels as far in advance as possible will save a considerable amount of money for you and your guests. Keep in mind that when you plan a destination wedding, the polite thing to do is to pay the hotel and some meal expenses for your guests. Guests at a destination wedding are typically expected to pay for their own flights, but not much else.




2. Consider hiring a travel agency instead of a wedding planner – Travel agents can often get you, and your wedding party an excellent deal on almost everything. Many of them are also familiar with the marriage laws in foreign destinations. Hiring someone to take care of these things for you will save you time, stress, and money in the long run.




3. Consider getting married in the off-season – Flights, hotels and nearly everything you can imagine will be cheaper this way. Now, I am not telling you to get married on a beach in the middle of winter! If you can time your wedding just before, or just after the area’s peak season, then all of the associated discounts are yours for the taking.




4. Keep your guest list small – Having a destination wedding gives you the perfect excuse to pare down your guest list. After all, not everyone is going to be able to take off work and travel to your wedding – no matter how much they might want to. By keeping your guest list to the bare minimum (i.e. the wedding party, close family, and best friends) you will have the people there that really matter to you and your future spouse, and you will get to spend a lot more time with them before and after the ceremony.




5. Always ask for a group discount – Both hotels and airlines offer excellent group discount rates when you have parties of ten or more. The best way to maximize your money is to combine group rates with early bookings and off-season specials. If you can manage to do all of those things, then you could save as much as 40% off of your total travel costs.




6. Consider getting married at a resort, or on a cruise – Destination resorts and even some cruise ships often keep a wedding planner on staff. The planner they provide to you will already be familiar with the local caterers, bakeries and florists, and they can usually help you save money on every aspect of your dream wedding.




7. Buy a “package deal” – Destination resorts also usually offer pre-planned wedding packages where all you have to do is make a few decisions, and then show up for the big day. The wedding packages range from simple and elegant, to the truly extravagant. If you take some time to research online, and call around, then you should not have any trouble finding a package that fits your needs, and your budget.




8. Give simple favors to your guests – Suntan lotion, local chocolates and specialties, or even a group scuba trip are all nice ways to treat your guests to the local culture and encourage them to have fun – without spending a ton of money.

Don’t be fooled:

Paying for your wedding guest’s food and lodging might seem outrageously expensive, but if you put it in perspective, it’s really not. Consider this:

If you stayed at home, rented a church, and had a large traditional wedding with a sit down reception you could end up paying upwards of $50 – $100 per guest. Getting married locally would encourage everyone you knew to attend, so that $50 to $100 per person could easily turn into $5,000 – $10,000 dollars if you have close to 100 guests.

A destination wedding on the other hand, requires only that you pay for the hotel rooms and several of your guest’s meals. Some resorts will even offer you a free wedding package in exchange for booking your group into their hotel!

If you took ten people to your destination wedding, and paid an average of $500 each, you would still only be out $5,000 on your guests. And you would have a more intimate, romantic setting for everyone involved.

Where ever you choose to have your destination wedding please be sure that you give yourself and your guests enough time to get passports, book flights and take off of work. This will be one of the most special days of your entire life. Careful planning will not only make things run smoother, but will save you a lot of money in the end.

Check back for the next article in the series where we look at how to save money when planning a wedding yourself or hiring a wedding planner

These tips on saving money on a destination wedding are part of the Marriage Money Guide.