Hi All -
Not sure if this is the best location for this, but I haven't spent much time on here.
Back story: My fiance and I have been together for three years, engaged for almost one, and we have known each other for six. Best friends who ended up realizing we were meant to be.
We recently went to buy a condo but due to our collective student debt we are only able to get FHA financing. Not terrible, but it limits our options quite a bit more than we expected. We originally planned on getting married in Fall of 2017 but now we are thinking of doing things in reverse.
Get married, open joint accounts and work together to pay down his loans and then mine...going from highest monthly payment amount to lowest. We are not sure how to do this without sacrificing the "party" aspect of a wedding. He is an entertainer and all about that stuff. I know we can keep our budget low and we already have a fantastic venue in mind.
My question is this:
Has anyone out there gotten married 6-8 months (at the courthouse) before their actual wedding? Have you been able to keep it a secret and start reaping the financial rewards etc. before actually doing the rest?
I'm also looking for advice as far as engagement notices, invitations etc. We haven't sent out or put anything in the paper. I thought about sending announcements/engagement photos around Christmas time but that just seems tacky.