In India, marriage is a big deal. The big fat Indian wedding can spread across days and involve several rituals, functions, and expenses. According to a report by KPMG, Indian weddings can cost anywhere between Rs. 5 lakh to Rs. 50 million depending on the grandeur. Furthermore, an Indian is likely to spend around a fifth of his lifetime’s wealth on a wedding.
Given these startling figures, it’s no wonder that people are turning to mutual fund investment to foot the bill for marriage! In this blog, we take a look at how mutual funds can help prepare you to save for your grand day.
Typically, the major expenses for a wedding are as follows:
These expenses depend on how down-to-earth or up-in-the-sky you want your wedding to be. Whatever your personal decision, it’s time to talk about funding the wedding of your dreams. Apart from savings, you will have to also invest a portion of your money to get to the desired budget. Let’s see which are the financial products worth investing in.
Equity Mutual Fund: Mutual fund investment in equity mutual funds is suitable for a marriage horizon that is at least 10 years away. Equity mutual funds also provide higher returns in general. You can also invest in hybrid mutual funds if you are risk averse. Reduce your exposure to equity with hybrid funds.
Debt Mutual Funds: If your time horizon is shorter, and you are risk-averse, you can choose to invest in debt mutual funds. These are a safer investment vehicle and are more liquid than fixed deposits. So if your wedding is 1 or 2 years away then choose to invest in debt mutual funds.
Gold ETFs: Investing via gold ETFs is a good investment move to make. You can invest in this precious metal through ETFs instead of hoarding the metal at home which could be potentially unsafe.
For mutual fund investment you can choose either SIP or lumpsum as per your convenience. SIP investments are more convenient for a person than lump sum investments because not everybody has the liquidity that lump sum investments require.
So, if you are planning to invest for marriage, mutual fund investment is a great option for you. With a good mix of budgeting, planning, and investing, you can create the right corpus amount for your marriage.
