Money and Romance: The Cost of Love

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Money and RomanceThe Cost of Love

• By
• Jim Moriarty

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The Dating Game
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• Average age when people start having serious
  relationships is 17-18, beginning of college.
• Average age when someone gets married is 27.
• This gives an average of 9-10 years of dating
  before marriage.

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General Costs In Dating

• Dinners
• Movies
• Other activities

• 20-50 1-2 times a week
• 15-25 1-2 times a week
• Who knows?

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Holidays

• Valentines Day
• Birthday
• Anniversary (1 month, 3 month, etc.)
• Christmas

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Valentines Day

• 1 dozen roses 25-55
• Candy 10-35
• Card 2-4
• Romantic dinner 50-150

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Birthday

• Flowers 10-20
• Card 2-4
• Dinner 25-75
• Gift (jewelry) 50-100

8
Anniversary

• Flowers 10-25
• Dinner 35-75
• Card 2-4
• Gift 50-100

9
Christmas

• Gifts 35-150
• Card 2-4

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Yearly Cost

• Dates 1,820-3,900
• Holidays 271-647
• Total 2,091-4,547

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Engagement

• Average engagement period is 13 months
• Engagement rings run between 2500-5000 on
  average

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Marriage
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Costs

• Stationery (invitations, announcement, thank-you
  notes, etc.) 374
• Bouquets and other flowers 775
• Photography, videography 1,253
• Wedding favors 240
• Music 745
• Clergy, church, chapel, synagogue fee 248
• Limo rental 427
• Attendants' gifts 299
• Wedding rings 1,060
• Engagement ring 2,982
• Rehearsal dinner 762
• Bride's wedding dress 790
• Bride's headpiece/veil 150
• Bridal attendants' apparel (average of five)
  720
• Mother of the bride's apparel 198
• Groom's formalwear (rented) 100
• Formalwear for ushers (average of 5), best man
  (rented) 400
• Reception (average of 186 guests) 7,246
• Total 18,874

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Wedding Costs By Region

• New York Metro 31,777(NY, CT, NJ)
• Southeast 17,142(NC, SC, GA, FL, TN, KY, AL,
  MS, VA, WV)
• Midwest 19,324(IL, MN, WI, IN)
• West Coast 17, 517(CA, AZ, TX, NV)

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Honeymoon

• Average cost 4000

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Family Life
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Costs of Raising a Child Through the Age of 17

• Housing Costs 38,550-86,610
• Food 23,340-34,920
• Transportation 16,470-34,920
• Clothing 9,210-13,980
• Health Care 8,640-12,840
• Child Care/Education 9,060-25,200
• Miscellaneous 12,120-29,430

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Costs by Year and Income Range
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(No Transcript)
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(No Transcript)
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College Education
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National Average for Yearly Costs

• 4 year private college 24,600
• 4 year in-state public college 11,310
• 2 year private college 15,530
• 2 year public college 9,210

• 98,400
• 45,240
• 31,060
• 18,420

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Total Costs by Category with Inflation Taken into
Account

• Dating (10 years)
• Wedding
• Raising children through age 17
• College

• 39,848
• 25,425
• 315,140 per child, 3 children 945,420
• 142,797

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Costs of Love Over 35 Year Period

• 1,153,490

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Before Inflation

• 748,944
• 64 increase

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Investing

• Average cost of 2,746.40 per month over 35 years
• Annuity with interest rate of 8 converted
  monthly
• 397,985!

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Divorce
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Statistics

• Likelihood of new marriages ending in divorce
  43
• Percentages of marriages that are remarriages for
  at least one partner 43
• Percent of first marriage ending in divorce 50
• Percent of remarriages that end in divorce 60

• Estimated average cost of divorce 15,000
• Estimated average length of divorce proceedings
  1 year
• Average age at first divorce males-35,
  females-33
• People age 25-39 make up 60 of all divorces

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Side Notes

• The Bridal Business is a 45 billion dollar
  industry
• From 1990 to 1997 the average cost of a marriage
  increased 25
• Average rate of inflation 1.04

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Sources of Statistical Data

• http//64.154.21.227/news1999/june99/news3629.html
  
• http//www.ivillage.com/relationships/weddings/art
  icles/0,,89536,00.html
• http//www.emeraldweddings.com/planning/articles/a
  vgcosts.htm
• http//www.chicksincrisis.com/childchart.html
• http//www.onmoney.com/Editorial/Planning/guides/c
  ollege_gauge/college_gauge1.html
• http//www.divorcemag.com/statistics/statsUS.shtml