If you like it, you should definitely put a ring on it … but maybe not too big of a ring.
Few things set engaged couples into the boxing ring faster than just how much to spend on their wedding, but a new study from Emory University economics professors indicates that moderation in all things leads to a longer union.
“‘A Diamond is Forever’ and Other Fairy Tales: The Relationship between Wedding Expenses and Marriage Duration,” a new study from Andrew M. Francis and Hugo M. Mialon, isn’t just one of the first looks at how wedding spending correlates with marriage duration — it’s also an indictment of the persuasive powers of the wedding industry.
The pair surveyed 3,000 U.S. adults who had once been married to a member of the opposite sex and discovered you should:
Spend no more than $2,000 on the engagement ring.
Men who shelled out between $2,000-$4,000 on engagement rings were 1.3 times more likely to get divorced than men who spent between $500 and $2,000. But that doesn’t mean you should just use a plastic ring you got out of a gumball machine, either. Spending less than $500 on a ring also led to higher divorce rates.
Keep your wedding costs under control.
Spending more than $20,000 on a wedding led to divorce 3.5 times more frequently for women than for those who spent between $5,000 and $10,000. And maybe a reception at a fast food restaurant is warranted: Spending less than $1,000 on a wedding decreased chances of divorce.