先舉辦婚禮還是先買(mǎi)房?美國(guó)情侶也有同樣的苦惱
艾米麗和布拉克斯頓是一對(duì)20出頭的情侶,對(duì)于買(mǎi)房還是舉辦婚禮,他們一時(shí)拿不定主意。布拉克斯頓想買(mǎi)房,他不想與愛(ài)人分開(kāi)生活。目前,他們各自跟父母住在自己家里。
在認(rèn)真對(duì)比買(mǎi)房和舉辦婚禮儀式的各項(xiàng)細(xì)節(jié)之后,這對(duì)新人最終決定花3萬(wàn)美元舉辦婚禮。他們?nèi)匀缓透改缸≡谝黄稹?/font>
奈飛(Netflix)新推出的真人秀節(jié)目《舉辦婚禮還是按揭買(mǎi)房?》(Marriage or Mortgage)共邀請(qǐng)了10對(duì)情侶,艾米莉和布拉克斯頓是其中的一對(duì),婚禮策劃人莎拉?米勒與房地產(chǎn)經(jīng)紀(jì)人尼科爾?霍姆斯展開(kāi)角逐——在花3萬(wàn)美元舉辦婚禮還是買(mǎi)房之間,看看情侶們最終會(huì)如何選擇?
該節(jié)目提出了一個(gè)很受關(guān)注,同時(shí)也令人生畏的問(wèn)題:你會(huì)用你的數(shù)萬(wàn)美元積蓄買(mǎi)一棟婚后居住的房子,還是用它來(lái)舉辦只能持續(xù)一天的婚禮呢?
霍姆斯在接受《財(cái)富》(Fortune)采訪時(shí)說(shuō):“如果一對(duì)情侶有能力同時(shí)承擔(dān)舉辦婚禮和買(mǎi)房的費(fèi)用,完全可以兩者兼顧。但這10對(duì)情侶并非都是此種情況。他們時(shí)常為錢(qián)苦惱?!?/font>
該節(jié)目的策劃方案很出色,節(jié)目組在納什維爾及周邊地區(qū)邀請(qǐng)了幾對(duì)討人喜歡的情侶參加節(jié)目。他們中有年長(zhǎng)的,有年輕的,有混血兒,也有同性戀。這些情侶看起來(lái)都很快樂(lè),但他們?cè)诟髯缘年P(guān)系中也存在一些問(wèn)題。另外,拍攝外景地選在納什維爾,這個(gè)地區(qū)本身也存在一些問(wèn)題:隨著科技和醫(yī)療行業(yè)的發(fā)展,納什維爾的婚禮市場(chǎng)蓬勃發(fā)展,人口持續(xù)增長(zhǎng),中間房?jī)r(jià)也在不斷上漲。
節(jié)目組給每對(duì)情侶的預(yù)算都一樣:3萬(wàn)美元。The Knot提供的數(shù)據(jù)顯示,新冠疫情前,在美國(guó)舉辦一場(chǎng)婚禮平均花費(fèi)28,000美元左右,這還不包括婚戒或蜜月費(fèi)用。人們一般在20多歲就會(huì)結(jié)婚,對(duì)于大多數(shù)人來(lái)說(shuō),這筆錢(qián)是一筆不小的開(kāi)銷(xiāo)。相比之下,Zillow提供的美國(guó)平均住房估值不到27萬(wàn)美元。如果首付10%按揭買(mǎi)房,購(gòu)房者需先付款27,000美元。對(duì)于可能在30多歲時(shí)才能攢下這筆錢(qián)的情侶來(lái)說(shuō),舉辦婚禮還是按揭買(mǎi)房是無(wú)法回避的一個(gè)沖突。
如果經(jīng)濟(jì)條件允許,可以選擇買(mǎi)房。這確實(shí)是一項(xiàng)投資,因?yàn)檫x擇買(mǎi)房的這對(duì)情侶將會(huì)積累財(cái)富,在出售房屋時(shí)會(huì)得到投資回報(bào)。而租房則會(huì)讓錢(qián)進(jìn)入一個(gè)你無(wú)法收回的黑洞。但讓每個(gè)人都做出理性的財(cái)務(wù)決定是不切合實(shí)際的。我們是人,我們也會(huì)做出情緒化的購(gòu)買(mǎi)決定。再加上來(lái)自社會(huì)的壓力,會(huì)促使準(zhǔn)新娘傾向于選擇舉辦一場(chǎng)“盛大的婚禮”,讓自己感覺(jué)像公主一樣。無(wú)論是在奈飛真人秀節(jié)目中還是在現(xiàn)實(shí)生活中,我們都能看到情侶們的這種傾向。
米勒說(shuō):“婚禮是承諾的象征,在我們開(kāi)啟下一段人生之前,還有其他更好的方式來(lái)實(shí)現(xiàn)這一點(diǎn)嗎?我很尊重傳統(tǒng)習(xí)俗,大多數(shù)年輕情侶們可能已經(jīng)忘記了父輩和祖輩們的信仰。考慮其他事情之前,還是先讓彼此的愛(ài)緊密相連吧。”
節(jié)目并未呈現(xiàn)每個(gè)決定是多么的錯(cuò)綜復(fù)雜,尤其是婚禮儀式和賓客招待事務(wù)中的細(xì)節(jié)?;槎Y主題似乎只側(cè)重于三個(gè)關(guān)鍵部分,這難免讓觀眾懷疑他們是否考慮過(guò)大家關(guān)注的其他方面,如攝影師、鮮花、調(diào)酒師,甚至是著裝。
婚禮策劃完全基于兩個(gè)錯(cuò)誤的假設(shè),這兩個(gè)假設(shè)使很多沒(méi)有參加節(jié)目的情侶備受困擾:一是結(jié)婚就得舉辦婚禮;二是婚禮是一種投資。首先,即使是沒(méi)有大量賓客的盛大婚禮儀式,也照樣能結(jié)婚。在大多數(shù)州,領(lǐng)取結(jié)婚證差不多只要25美元,剩下的29,975美元?jiǎng)t可以作為買(mǎi)房首付。和大多數(shù)人認(rèn)為的并不一樣,先領(lǐng)結(jié)婚證,以后再舉辦婚禮,這種情況更加普遍。也就是說(shuō),任何一對(duì)情侶都可以先領(lǐng)證,然后買(mǎi)房子,將來(lái)再舉辦婚禮。
在你的朋友和家人面前做出婚姻承諾是很重要的,米勒不斷提醒情侶們,婚禮可不僅僅只是一場(chǎng)聚會(huì)。她可能會(huì)試圖用直升機(jī)巡游和定制禮服吸引賓客們來(lái)參加婚禮,但她的本意其實(shí)是讓那些相信這對(duì)情侶彼此相愛(ài)的人們出席現(xiàn)場(chǎng)。
盡管人們常把婚禮稱(chēng)為投資,但這種說(shuō)法并不恰當(dāng)?;槎Y可以給人留下美好的回憶,確實(shí)有情感價(jià)值,但這不是投資。正如霍姆斯所說(shuō),“放生斑鳩或乘馬車(chē)去看夕陽(yáng)這種浪漫的事不可能賺到錢(qián)?!弊冑u(mài)婚禮儀式上的用品所得,根本不及你當(dāng)初買(mǎi)它們時(shí)所花費(fèi)的錢(qián),更不可能增值,但房子可以。例如,據(jù)點(diǎn)對(duì)點(diǎn)轉(zhuǎn)售市場(chǎng)的Tradesy提供的數(shù)據(jù)顯示,即使你在網(wǎng)上出售婚紗,所得也僅有其零售價(jià)的一半左右。但大多數(shù)房子,尤其是在像納什維爾這樣處于經(jīng)濟(jì)增長(zhǎng)的地區(qū),投資一套房產(chǎn),你會(huì)因?yàn)樯刀嶅X(qián),至少也能保值。
在情侶們決定舉辦婚禮還是買(mǎi)房之前,米勒和霍姆斯都在想方設(shè)法說(shuō)服他們,比如供貨商折扣和免費(fèi)贈(zèng)品等,這種事在鏡頭外究竟發(fā)生了多少次,我們不得而知;畢竟,想讓觀眾看到多少,是奈飛的自由。其中的大多數(shù)情侶很可能只能通過(guò)這些折扣交易才能花3萬(wàn)美元舉辦一場(chǎng)夢(mèng)幻婚禮。
他們的要求看起來(lái)與雜志和社交媒體上的婚禮內(nèi)容并無(wú)二致;但據(jù)知情人士透露,大多數(shù)婚禮的費(fèi)用可能高達(dá)六位數(shù)甚至更高。如果新娘有10萬(wàn)美元婚禮預(yù)算,那么一件價(jià)值6,000美元的婚紗可能只是九牛一毛。但如果預(yù)算只有其20%,還要宴請(qǐng)150名賓客,情況就完全不同了。同樣,霍姆斯設(shè)法讓房主為昂貴的Smeg家電準(zhǔn)備預(yù)算。僅一臺(tái)入門(mén)級(jí)冰箱就要2,000美元。如果這些是真的,我都想跟她合作了。
該節(jié)目的收益與奈飛推出的另一個(gè)婚禮系列真人秀節(jié)目《大日子》( The Big Day)形成了鮮明對(duì)比。參加《大日子》的是來(lái)自印度的情侶們、他們的婚禮策劃人以及數(shù)千名嘉賓,幾天之內(nèi)就舉辦了多場(chǎng)活動(dòng),有時(shí)甚至在不同的國(guó)家舉辦了兩場(chǎng)婚禮。《大日子》共三集,情侶們面對(duì)的挑戰(zhàn)是,如何在不同的宗教或傳統(tǒng)背景下走到一起,有兩對(duì)情侶完全取消了傳統(tǒng)的印度教婚禮儀式。但對(duì)這些情侶來(lái)說(shuō),錢(qián)不是問(wèn)題,他們的父母已經(jīng)為他們積蓄多年,完全有能力舉辦盛大的婚禮。
《大日子》確實(shí)匯聚了一場(chǎng)最完美的夢(mèng)幻婚禮的全部亮點(diǎn):豪華的裝飾,人潮擁擠的舞池,從世界各地飛來(lái)的朋友,以及不惜一切舉辦一場(chǎng)夢(mèng)幻婚禮的家人。一位新娘的父母一年前就種了幾十株芥菜,讓婚禮看起來(lái)就像一部非常受歡迎的印度電影《勇奪芳心》(Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge)里的場(chǎng)景。還有一家聘請(qǐng)了兩位寶萊塢明星在婚禮儀式入口處客串出場(chǎng)。另一位新娘和她未來(lái)的小姑子與著名設(shè)計(jì)師高拉夫?古普塔在他的新德里工作室合影。誰(shuí)來(lái)買(mǎi)單?當(dāng)然是新郎的父母,他們還送給新娘一條搭配禮服的珍珠鉆石項(xiàng)鏈。
在上述兩檔節(jié)目中,多數(shù)情侶想要表達(dá)的一個(gè)想法是:無(wú)論有沒(méi)有錢(qián),他們都“值得”擁有一場(chǎng)夢(mèng)幻婚禮。新人們大多有這種權(quán)利感,這就引發(fā)了一個(gè)問(wèn)題:這種電視娛樂(lè)節(jié)目對(duì)思考自己未來(lái)的人有什么影響?這就像是人們對(duì)婚禮、婚姻、理財(cái)知識(shí)和自有住房的一種長(zhǎng)久誤解。這會(huì)讓人想起整個(gè)婚禮貸款行業(yè)中的那些房貸小作坊,像Upstart這樣的公司,推銷(xiāo)他們?yōu)榛槎Y提供的貸款(利率有時(shí)很高),而Maroo則提出幫助情侶用分期預(yù)付等方法,為舉辦婚禮提供資助。
米勒說(shuō):“我所處的行業(yè)并不是為了讓情侶們破產(chǎn)或負(fù)債,”世界各地的婚禮策劃人都是如此。聘請(qǐng)婚禮策劃人的好處很多,其中一個(gè)是為婚禮安排進(jìn)行指導(dǎo),尤其是在費(fèi)用方面。“要善于規(guī)劃,虛心聽(tīng)取意見(jiàn)。你會(huì)驚訝地發(fā)現(xiàn)你居然能負(fù)擔(dān)得起某項(xiàng)費(fèi)用,”她補(bǔ)充道。
幸運(yùn)的是,參加《舉辦婚禮還是按揭買(mǎi)房?》真人秀節(jié)目的購(gòu)房者和婚禮策劃人的人數(shù)幾乎各占一半。事實(shí)上,有一對(duì)情侶證明了你真的可以擁有一切:丹尼斯和尼古拉斯選擇買(mǎi)房,幾個(gè)月后,鏡頭變成了霍姆斯和米勒帶著喬遷禮物來(lái)拜訪。在他們的新家向節(jié)目主持人祝酒之前,尼古拉斯有意無(wú)意地說(shuō)出“妻子”,丹尼斯則戴著婚戒。通過(guò)攝影師抓拍的鏡頭,我們看到這對(duì)夫婦穿著奢華的服裝,住在他們夢(mèng)寐以求的房子里。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
翻譯:郝秀
審校:汪皓
艾米麗和布拉克斯頓是一對(duì)20出頭的情侶,對(duì)于買(mǎi)房還是舉辦婚禮,他們一時(shí)拿不定主意。布拉克斯頓想買(mǎi)房,他不想與愛(ài)人分開(kāi)生活。目前,他們各自跟父母住在自己家里。
在認(rèn)真對(duì)比買(mǎi)房和舉辦婚禮儀式的各項(xiàng)細(xì)節(jié)之后,這對(duì)新人最終決定花3萬(wàn)美元舉辦婚禮。他們?nèi)匀缓透改缸≡谝黄稹?/font>
奈飛(Netflix)新推出的真人秀節(jié)目《舉辦婚禮還是按揭買(mǎi)房?》(Marriage or Mortgage)共邀請(qǐng)了10對(duì)情侶,艾米莉和布拉克斯頓是其中的一對(duì),婚禮策劃人莎拉?米勒與房地產(chǎn)經(jīng)紀(jì)人尼科爾?霍姆斯展開(kāi)角逐——在花3萬(wàn)美元舉辦婚禮還是買(mǎi)房之間,看看情侶們最終會(huì)如何選擇?
該節(jié)目提出了一個(gè)很受關(guān)注,同時(shí)也令人生畏的問(wèn)題:你會(huì)用你的數(shù)萬(wàn)美元積蓄買(mǎi)一棟婚后居住的房子,還是用它來(lái)舉辦只能持續(xù)一天的婚禮呢?
霍姆斯在接受《財(cái)富》(Fortune)采訪時(shí)說(shuō):“如果一對(duì)情侶有能力同時(shí)承擔(dān)舉辦婚禮和買(mǎi)房的費(fèi)用,完全可以兩者兼顧。但這10對(duì)情侶并非都是此種情況。他們時(shí)常為錢(qián)苦惱。”
該節(jié)目的策劃方案很出色,節(jié)目組在納什維爾及周邊地區(qū)邀請(qǐng)了幾對(duì)討人喜歡的情侶參加節(jié)目。他們中有年長(zhǎng)的,有年輕的,有混血兒,也有同性戀。這些情侶看起來(lái)都很快樂(lè),但他們?cè)诟髯缘年P(guān)系中也存在一些問(wèn)題。另外,拍攝外景地選在納什維爾,這個(gè)地區(qū)本身也存在一些問(wèn)題:隨著科技和醫(yī)療行業(yè)的發(fā)展,納什維爾的婚禮市場(chǎng)蓬勃發(fā)展,人口持續(xù)增長(zhǎng),中間房?jī)r(jià)也在不斷上漲。
節(jié)目組給每對(duì)情侶的預(yù)算都一樣:3萬(wàn)美元。The Knot提供的數(shù)據(jù)顯示,新冠疫情前,在美國(guó)舉辦一場(chǎng)婚禮平均花費(fèi)28,000美元左右,這還不包括婚戒或蜜月費(fèi)用。人們一般在20多歲就會(huì)結(jié)婚,對(duì)于大多數(shù)人來(lái)說(shuō),這筆錢(qián)是一筆不小的開(kāi)銷(xiāo)。相比之下,Zillow提供的美國(guó)平均住房估值不到27萬(wàn)美元。如果首付10%按揭買(mǎi)房,購(gòu)房者需先付款27,000美元。對(duì)于可能在30多歲時(shí)才能攢下這筆錢(qián)的情侶來(lái)說(shuō),舉辦婚禮還是按揭買(mǎi)房是無(wú)法回避的一個(gè)沖突。
如果經(jīng)濟(jì)條件允許,可以選擇買(mǎi)房。這確實(shí)是一項(xiàng)投資,因?yàn)檫x擇買(mǎi)房的這對(duì)情侶將會(huì)積累財(cái)富,在出售房屋時(shí)會(huì)得到投資回報(bào)。而租房則會(huì)讓錢(qián)進(jìn)入一個(gè)你無(wú)法收回的黑洞。但讓每個(gè)人都做出理性的財(cái)務(wù)決定是不切合實(shí)際的。我們是人,我們也會(huì)做出情緒化的購(gòu)買(mǎi)決定。再加上來(lái)自社會(huì)的壓力,會(huì)促使準(zhǔn)新娘傾向于選擇舉辦一場(chǎng)“盛大的婚禮”,讓自己感覺(jué)像公主一樣。無(wú)論是在奈飛真人秀節(jié)目中還是在現(xiàn)實(shí)生活中,我們都能看到情侶們的這種傾向。
米勒說(shuō):“婚禮是承諾的象征,在我們開(kāi)啟下一段人生之前,還有其他更好的方式來(lái)實(shí)現(xiàn)這一點(diǎn)嗎?我很尊重傳統(tǒng)習(xí)俗,大多數(shù)年輕情侶們可能已經(jīng)忘記了父輩和祖輩們的信仰。考慮其他事情之前,還是先讓彼此的愛(ài)緊密相連吧?!?/font>
節(jié)目并未呈現(xiàn)每個(gè)決定是多么的錯(cuò)綜復(fù)雜,尤其是婚禮儀式和賓客招待事務(wù)中的細(xì)節(jié)。婚禮主題似乎只側(cè)重于三個(gè)關(guān)鍵部分,這難免讓觀眾懷疑他們是否考慮過(guò)大家關(guān)注的其他方面,如攝影師、鮮花、調(diào)酒師,甚至是著裝。
婚禮策劃完全基于兩個(gè)錯(cuò)誤的假設(shè),這兩個(gè)假設(shè)使很多沒(méi)有參加節(jié)目的情侶備受困擾:一是結(jié)婚就得舉辦婚禮;二是婚禮是一種投資。首先,即使是沒(méi)有大量賓客的盛大婚禮儀式,也照樣能結(jié)婚。在大多數(shù)州,領(lǐng)取結(jié)婚證差不多只要25美元,剩下的29,975美元?jiǎng)t可以作為買(mǎi)房首付。和大多數(shù)人認(rèn)為的并不一樣,先領(lǐng)結(jié)婚證,以后再舉辦婚禮,這種情況更加普遍。也就是說(shuō),任何一對(duì)情侶都可以先領(lǐng)證,然后買(mǎi)房子,將來(lái)再舉辦婚禮。
在你的朋友和家人面前做出婚姻承諾是很重要的,米勒不斷提醒情侶們,婚禮可不僅僅只是一場(chǎng)聚會(huì)。她可能會(huì)試圖用直升機(jī)巡游和定制禮服吸引賓客們來(lái)參加婚禮,但她的本意其實(shí)是讓那些相信這對(duì)情侶彼此相愛(ài)的人們出席現(xiàn)場(chǎng)。
盡管人們常把婚禮稱(chēng)為投資,但這種說(shuō)法并不恰當(dāng)。婚禮可以給人留下美好的回憶,確實(shí)有情感價(jià)值,但這不是投資。正如霍姆斯所說(shuō),“放生斑鳩或乘馬車(chē)去看夕陽(yáng)這種浪漫的事不可能賺到錢(qián)?!弊冑u(mài)婚禮儀式上的用品所得,根本不及你當(dāng)初買(mǎi)它們時(shí)所花費(fèi)的錢(qián),更不可能增值,但房子可以。例如,據(jù)點(diǎn)對(duì)點(diǎn)轉(zhuǎn)售市場(chǎng)的Tradesy提供的數(shù)據(jù)顯示,即使你在網(wǎng)上出售婚紗,所得也僅有其零售價(jià)的一半左右。但大多數(shù)房子,尤其是在像納什維爾這樣處于經(jīng)濟(jì)增長(zhǎng)的地區(qū),投資一套房產(chǎn),你會(huì)因?yàn)樯刀嶅X(qián),至少也能保值。
在情侶們決定舉辦婚禮還是買(mǎi)房之前,米勒和霍姆斯都在想方設(shè)法說(shuō)服他們,比如供貨商折扣和免費(fèi)贈(zèng)品等,這種事在鏡頭外究竟發(fā)生了多少次,我們不得而知;畢竟,想讓觀眾看到多少,是奈飛的自由。其中的大多數(shù)情侶很可能只能通過(guò)這些折扣交易才能花3萬(wàn)美元舉辦一場(chǎng)夢(mèng)幻婚禮。
他們的要求看起來(lái)與雜志和社交媒體上的婚禮內(nèi)容并無(wú)二致;但據(jù)知情人士透露,大多數(shù)婚禮的費(fèi)用可能高達(dá)六位數(shù)甚至更高。如果新娘有10萬(wàn)美元婚禮預(yù)算,那么一件價(jià)值6,000美元的婚紗可能只是九牛一毛。但如果預(yù)算只有其20%,還要宴請(qǐng)150名賓客,情況就完全不同了。同樣,霍姆斯設(shè)法讓房主為昂貴的Smeg家電準(zhǔn)備預(yù)算。僅一臺(tái)入門(mén)級(jí)冰箱就要2,000美元。如果這些是真的,我都想跟她合作了。
該節(jié)目的收益與奈飛推出的另一個(gè)婚禮系列真人秀節(jié)目《大日子》( The Big Day)形成了鮮明對(duì)比。參加《大日子》的是來(lái)自印度的情侶們、他們的婚禮策劃人以及數(shù)千名嘉賓,幾天之內(nèi)就舉辦了多場(chǎng)活動(dòng),有時(shí)甚至在不同的國(guó)家舉辦了兩場(chǎng)婚禮。《大日子》共三集,情侶們面對(duì)的挑戰(zhàn)是,如何在不同的宗教或傳統(tǒng)背景下走到一起,有兩對(duì)情侶完全取消了傳統(tǒng)的印度教婚禮儀式。但對(duì)這些情侶來(lái)說(shuō),錢(qián)不是問(wèn)題,他們的父母已經(jīng)為他們積蓄多年,完全有能力舉辦盛大的婚禮。
《大日子》確實(shí)匯聚了一場(chǎng)最完美的夢(mèng)幻婚禮的全部亮點(diǎn):豪華的裝飾,人潮擁擠的舞池,從世界各地飛來(lái)的朋友,以及不惜一切舉辦一場(chǎng)夢(mèng)幻婚禮的家人。一位新娘的父母一年前就種了幾十株芥菜,讓婚禮看起來(lái)就像一部非常受歡迎的印度電影《勇奪芳心》(Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge)里的場(chǎng)景。還有一家聘請(qǐng)了兩位寶萊塢明星在婚禮儀式入口處客串出場(chǎng)。另一位新娘和她未來(lái)的小姑子與著名設(shè)計(jì)師高拉夫?古普塔在他的新德里工作室合影。誰(shuí)來(lái)買(mǎi)單?當(dāng)然是新郎的父母,他們還送給新娘一條搭配禮服的珍珠鉆石項(xiàng)鏈。
在上述兩檔節(jié)目中,多數(shù)情侶想要表達(dá)的一個(gè)想法是:無(wú)論有沒(méi)有錢(qián),他們都“值得”擁有一場(chǎng)夢(mèng)幻婚禮。新人們大多有這種權(quán)利感,這就引發(fā)了一個(gè)問(wèn)題:這種電視娛樂(lè)節(jié)目對(duì)思考自己未來(lái)的人有什么影響?這就像是人們對(duì)婚禮、婚姻、理財(cái)知識(shí)和自有住房的一種長(zhǎng)久誤解。這會(huì)讓人想起整個(gè)婚禮貸款行業(yè)中的那些房貸小作坊,像Upstart這樣的公司,推銷(xiāo)他們?yōu)榛槎Y提供的貸款(利率有時(shí)很高),而Maroo則提出幫助情侶用分期預(yù)付等方法,為舉辦婚禮提供資助。
米勒說(shuō):“我所處的行業(yè)并不是為了讓情侶們破產(chǎn)或負(fù)債,”世界各地的婚禮策劃人都是如此。聘請(qǐng)婚禮策劃人的好處很多,其中一個(gè)是為婚禮安排進(jìn)行指導(dǎo),尤其是在費(fèi)用方面。“要善于規(guī)劃,虛心聽(tīng)取意見(jiàn)。你會(huì)驚訝地發(fā)現(xiàn)你居然能負(fù)擔(dān)得起某項(xiàng)費(fèi)用,”她補(bǔ)充道。
幸運(yùn)的是,參加《舉辦婚禮還是按揭買(mǎi)房?》真人秀節(jié)目的購(gòu)房者和婚禮策劃人的人數(shù)幾乎各占一半。事實(shí)上,有一對(duì)情侶證明了你真的可以擁有一切:丹尼斯和尼古拉斯選擇買(mǎi)房,幾個(gè)月后,鏡頭變成了霍姆斯和米勒帶著喬遷禮物來(lái)拜訪。在他們的新家向節(jié)目主持人祝酒之前,尼古拉斯有意無(wú)意地說(shuō)出“妻子”,丹尼斯則戴著婚戒。通過(guò)攝影師抓拍的鏡頭,我們看到這對(duì)夫婦穿著奢華的服裝,住在他們夢(mèng)寐以求的房子里。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
翻譯:郝秀
審校:汪皓
Emily and Braxton are a couple in their early twenties grappling with the decision of whether to buy a house together or throw a wedding. The house seems preferable to Braxton, who appears to be tired of living apart from his sweetheart. They each reside in their respective parents’ homes.
After seeing the options for each—massive showers vs. doughnut walls, backyards vs. wedding bands—the couple ultimately decide to spend their $30,000 on a wedding day. They still live with their parents.
Emily and Braxton are just one of 10 couples on Netflix’s new show, Marriage or Mortgage, which pits a wedding planner, Sarah Miller, against a real estate agent, Nichole Holmes, to vie for a couple’s $30,000—which they can spend on either a wedding or a house. It debuted today on the streaming service. (Warning: minor spoilers ahead.)
The show brings up a popular, perhaps daunting, question: If you had to choose between buying a house you could live in for the rest of your life or a party that lasts one day, what would you put your tens of thousands in savings toward?
“If a couple can afford to do both, by all means, go for the bash and buy a house,” Holmes tells Fortune. “But that is not the experience of these 10 couples. It was pretty emotional at times.”
The show does a standout job in finding a diverse set of endearing Tennessee couples, based in and around Nashville, for the competition. Some are older, some are younger; some are mixed race, and some are gay. They all seem like genuinely happy people who have faced no shortage of challenges in their relationships. The scene, Nashville, offers its own obstacles. Its wedding market is thriving, and the median home price is increasing as the population expands, thanks to its growing tech and health care industries.
The couples all come in with about the same budget, and it’s an important number: $30,000. The average cost of a wedding in the U.S., pre-pandemic, hovers around $28,000, not including the engagement ring or a honeymoon, according to The Knot. To many, that’s a hefty chunk of change to save up by your mid- to late-twenties, the age when the average person says “I do.” By comparison, Zillow prices the average home in the country at just shy of $270,000. If you’re looking at a typical mortgage with a 10% down payment, that means the home buyer will need $27,000 to put in an offer. It’s clear to see how these are two competing uses for the nest egg that a couple may save by the time they are in their thirties.
The financially practical option is to purchase a home. It’s an investment in the true sense of the word, as the couple will build equity and will see a return on that investment when they sell it. Unlike renting, money isn’t going into a black hole that you can’t recoup. But it’s shortsighted to assume everyone would make the rational financial choice. As humans, we make emotional purchases, too. Add to that social pressures, especially on women, to have a “big fat wedding” and feel like a princess, and it’s easy to see how a couple, on Netflix or in real life, may be swayed.
“A wedding is symbolic of commitment, and what better way to have that before taking any other steps in life,” Miller says. “I am such a traditionalist on customs that most younger couples might have forgotten about—what their parents and grandparents believed in. Have your love bound together first.”
What the program doesn’t present are the intricacies of either decision, especially when it comes to the wedding ceremony and reception details. Wedding topics seem focus on just three key parts, leaving viewers to wonder if they considered line items for other popular categories such as the photographer, flowers, bartending staff, and even attire.
The wedding planning operates under two false assumptions that plague plenty of couples not on the show: one, that a marriage equals a wedding; two, that a wedding is an investment. To start with, couples can easily get married without the fanfare of a party with 150 guests. A marriage license in most states will put you back, give or take, $25. That leaves $29,975 for a down payment. It’s more common than most people think for couples to be legally wed prior to an actual wedding celebration, meaning any of the couples could say “I do,” purchase the house, and hold a wedding down the road.
There is something to be said for making the marital commitment in front of your supportive community of friends and family, and Miller reminds couples consistently that a wedding is more than a party. She may attempt to sway them with helicopter rides and custom suits, but always comes back to the inherent idea that it’s about having those who believe in the couple’s love with them on that day.
It would, however, be remiss to call a wedding an investment, despite that word often being thrown around in that way. Yes, a wedding allows you to create memories, which do hold sentimental value, but that’s not the definition of an investment. You can’t later sell your wedding for the same as or more than you paid, as you can a house. As Holmes says, “You aren’t making a profit off releasing turtledoves or carriage rides off into the sunset.” For instance, even if you were to sell your wedding dress online, you’d get about 50% of the retail price, according to Tradesy, a peer-to-peer resale marketplace. Many houses, especially in growing areas like Nashville, will sell for the same as or more than what the homeowner paid.
Both Miller and Holmes do find ways to sweeten their arguments just before the couples decide between a wedding and a house by offering discounts and freebies from vendors. It’s unclear how often this really happens when the cameras are off, but maybe that’s the liberty of a Netflix production. These deals are likely the only way many of these couples could ever hold their dream wedding for $30,000.
Their requests seem in line with wedding content presented in magazines and on social media—but the insider knowledge is that most of those weddings likely cost close to six figures or more. A $6,000 wedding gown may be a drop in the bucket for a bride with $100,000 to spend. That’s very different when it’s 20% of the total budget and she needs to feed 150 guests. Similarly, Holmes somehow manages to get a homeowner to offer an appliance budget for the pricey Smeg line. The entry-level refrigerator alone is $2,000. If that happens in real life, I want to work with her.
The show serves as a financial counter to Netflix’s other wedding series of the moment, The Big Day, which follows couples in India and the planning of their nuptials, with thousands of guests, multiple events over the course of days, and sometimes even two weddings in different countries. In this three-episode collection, the challenge the couples face is how to come together despite differences in religion or tradition, with two couples doing away entirely with a customary Hindu ceremony. But money is no object to these couples, as their respective parents have saved for years or even decades to throw this massive event.
It does have all the flash of a quintessential dream wedding: over-the-top decor, packed dance floors, friends flying in from around the globe, and families sparing no expense. One bride’s parents planted dozens of mustard plants a year in advance so that the ceremony would look like a scene out of Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, an immensely popular Hindi film. Another family hired two Bollywood stars to make cameos at the entrance to a pre-ceremony party. And another bride and her future sister-in-laws get personal fittings with acclaimed designer Gaurav Gupta at his studio in New Delhi. Who footed the bill? The groom’s parents, who also gave the bride a pearl-and-diamond necklace to wear with her gown.
A thought expressed by many a couple on both shows is that they “deserve” a dream wedding, whether or not they can afford it. This sense of entitlement is rampant among to-be-weds, and it prompts the question: What effect does televised entertainment like this have on someone thinking about his or her future? Anecdotally, it feels like a perpetuation of misconceptions about weddings, marriage, financial literacy, and homeownership. It calls to mind an entire cottage industry for wedding loans, with companies like Upstart touting wedding funding (with sometimes very high interest rates) and Maroo offering to help couples finance their weddings with layaway-like payment plans.
“I am not in this industry to make my couples broke or in debt,” Miller says, echoing a sentiment shared by wedding planners everywhere. It’s one of the perks of hiring one: to serve as a guide, especially around cost. “Be smart about planning, and come in with an open mind. You will be surprised what you might be able to afford,” she adds.
Luckily, on Marriage or Mortgage, there’s almost a 50-50 split between home purchasers and wedding planners. In fact, one couple proves you really can have it all: Denise and Nicholas opted for a house, and the scene pans to Holmes and Miller stopping by with a housewarming gift months later. Before they toast with the show’s hosts in their new space, Nicholas casually drops the word “wife,” and Denise flashes a wedding band. The couple eloped in their dream outfits, captured by a photographer, and now live in their dream house.