Getting a ‘wedding loan’

Happy couples spend more and more on the dream day as the costs of weddings spiral out of control. If you are having trouble affording your dream wedding is it salient to consider taking a wedding loan? Rajab Ruhinda, a teacher in Kigali disagrees. “You’re kidding me. When people get married, I think this is the time they need to be most financially stable.” The huge costs associated with holding a wedding can prove very difficult for young couples with bad saving habits. “There is no point in applying for a loan that you cannot pay back. It will get you into financial trouble. Your wedding is important but not at the cost of landing you in serious money trouble that pushes you further down the line,” Ruhinda says. Daniel Mutsinzi, a truck driver, says that, “a personal loan could help with planning for a couple’s wedding dream.”Mutsinzi says it is very important to understand that every loan needs to be paid back. Gadi Rutazinda, a second year student at Rwanda Tourism University, opts to differ. “Please don’t get a loan for a wedding. It’s outright silly! You do not want to put yourself in debt over a wedding. Save up for it,” he exclaims. Paul Rwego a 35-year-old Office Assistant says that he took out a loan for his wedding. He wanted to make sure they had enough for everything. “If you are taking a loan, don’t go overboard. You could just have a civil wedding today and have a more traditional wedding of your taste later when you have the means.” Richard Ndahiro, the Marketing and Product Development Manager at Banque Populaire du Rwanda (BPR) says there are no ‘Wedding Loans’ but Personal Loan that can be availed for any purpose, be it a holiday, wedding expenses or purchasing any consumables. Many banks don’t care how a client uses a personal loan; they are at liberty to finance it. “The main advantage of taking a personal loan is, it’s an all purpose utility for one’s personal use. I am of the belief that you take what you can afford. To me, going further into debt for one day is not worth it,” Ndahiro advised. ntagu2005@yahoo.com