Planning a wedding in the new year? ITEX of South Florida has bartering partners that can help make your special day easier, from florists to venues to special occasion-wear vendors and travel planners. There are even partners who can clean your wedding dress after the big day.
According to wedding planning site The Knot, Florida’s marriage rate is about 7.3 people per per 1,000. According to the site’s 2015 Real Weddings Study, a majority of Florida weddings take place outdoors, but only about one-fourth of the state’s 2015 wedding ceremonies took place on the beach.
The Knot said wedding trends in Florida vary by geography. Couples in northern Florida are more likely to want a church wedding than couples on the west coast, Semi-formal is the most popular wedding style, but southern Florida sees the largest number of black-tie weddings at 29 percent.
Southern Florida’s culturally diverse population means many incorporate Jewish or Latin-American elements into their Florida weddings.
Getting a sense of what you’ll pay for your wedding day expenses will make it easier to budget and negotiate with vendors. Budget can be a big sticking point when it comes to wedding planning, but that doesn’t mean it has to be stressful. Even Florida beach weddings on a budget are within the realm of possibility; plan smart and you can get what you want.
The Real Weddings Study showed that in 2015, the average wedding ceremony and reception in Northern Florida was $22,251. Since Southern Florida has more black-tie weddings, budgets average about $10,000 higher at $32,609. Central and West Florida average around $25,000.
The most popular places to get married in the Sunshine State are Jacksonville, Miami, Tampa, Orlando and the Florida Keys.
Before you make your wedding plans, make sure you check out what ITEX of South Florida members have to offer. Bartering could help you stay within your budget without giving up the wedding of your dreams.