To all the ladies in the house, you’re in for a real treat! To all the fellas thinking about proposing, maybe not! It all depends on how materialistic you are in the first place. Even if you are already married ladies, point your hubby to this article and you might just get a ring upgrade!
It’s 2019, so what’s the new rule for engagement ring buying you ask?
Well before we get into the most obvious new engagement buying rule all of society should follow, let’s discuss some of the current ridiculous rules that must be thrown out the window!
Current Engagement Ring Buying Rules
1) The Three Months Gross Salary Rule. This rule stipulates that if a man makes $80,000 a year, he should spend $20,000 on an engagement ring! What kind of nut came up with that idea? There’s really no rhyme or reason why a man should spend 3 months of his gross salary on an engagement ring, let alone 2 months. After taxes, 3 months gross is equivalent to 1/3rd his take home pay.
Imagine if the man makes $400,000 a year. Is he supposed to buy her a $100,000 Harry Winston pink diamond? Ridiculous.
1b) The Three Months Net Salary Rule. Crazy!
1c) The Two Months Gross or Net Salary Rule. Nuts!
1d) The 1 Month Gross or Net Salary Rule. OK, not so bad as it’s under 1/10th a man’s annual gross or net income. Again, here we go with the 1/10th rule for car buying, which hints at something beautiful.
2) The Age Rule. Another crazy rule is for the man to buy a quality ring whose size is equivalent to the age of the woman. For example, if the man proposes to a 32-year-old woman, he should buy a 3.2 carat diamond engagement ring! Wow! Even if he gets em young at 18, that’s still 1.8 carats!
What if you’re a late bloomer, or are simply into older women? Is a man supposed to buy a 50-year-old vixen a 5.0 carat ring? Forget it! A very rich woman told this rule to me with a straight face at a bar one day. She showed me her 3 carat, E color, VVS1 princess cut diamond as proof. Poor guy.
3) The Hotness Rule. This could be the most dangerous rule for men as it is all or none. Essentially, every man before proposing will say how beautiful his girlfriend is. The problem with showering her with praise such as, “You are the most beautiful woman in the world,” or “Your beauty makes the stars look dim” is that you are setting expectations incredibly high!
Your fiancé will rightly think that if she really is the most beautiful woman in the world, she better get the biggest, most beautiful rock in the world! If I am a 10/10, then you better give me the most luxurious engagement ring among all my girlfriends. Women will pretend to tell you they don’t care what ring you get, but don’t listen, not for one second, unless you want to start sleeping on the coach for no good reason.
The Solution: The Car Rule For Engagement Ring Buying
Now that you understand what silly rules there are for guys to follow when spending money on an engagement ring, you’ll now realize the absolute beauty of The Car Rule For Engagement Ring Buying. The Car Rule simply states that a man should spend up to, but no more than the initial purchase price of his car!
Most guys like cars. The more obsessed he is about cars, the bigger and better your potential ring. We all realize that buying a car hurts our finances because it’s a depreciating asset. Yet, guys still overspend anyway, and in a big way.
If a guy making $80,000 a year is dumb enough to buy a $50,000 Cadillac Escalade (78% of his net after tax income) you should most definitely demand he spend $50,000 on a 2 carat, Tiffany Novo ring that is an E color with VVS1 clarity! Blow up his finances with glee!
Conversely, if your man is fortunate enough to make $300,000 a year, but drives a 10 year old Honda Civic he bought for $3,000 8 years ago, then all you can really hope for is that he buys you a nice 0.25 carat, H color, VS2 ring from a generic store.
Unless you live in New York City, Boston, or Los Angeles where the average carat size is 1.8-2.0, the national average carat size is around 1 carat, so stop being greedy!
Finally, if the man so happens to be the biggest nature lover on earth and takes the bus and rides his bike, well, you’re out of luck! There is no way you can demand anything more than a Push Pop ring!
Be Practical With Your Engagement Ring Purchase
Cars are to men what engagement rings and are to women. If your man can’t spend as much money for a ring as he does on his car, you’ve got a problem. He is being completely self-centered and selfish if he hints to you that spending money on a nice engagement ring is a waste of money. This is especially true if he’s sporting anything MORE than a $20,000 Honda Civic in his garage!
If a man follows the 1/10th rule for car buying, he’ll never be stuck in this engagement buying predicament. Of course, the woman can be incredibly gracious and tell him only love matters. But we all know you’re just being nice!
Top 20 Most Popular Engagement Rings
Curious what the most popular engagement ring designs are right now? Check out the latest top 20 most popular engagement rings. There are so many beautiful choices nowadays with that wow factor you’re looking for.
It’s hard to go horribly wrong with a classic solitaire of course. But, it’s definitely worth looking at the top 20 engagement ring designs if you want to find an impressive ring that will bring tears of joy to your finances eyes, make her proud to wear it every single day, and make a long lasting impression. After all, you know the first thing everyone (at least your female friends) will say when they find out you’re engaged is, “Congrats! Show me the ring!!”
If you want to add your own personal touches to one of the most popular engagement ring designs or get a custom ring , it’s easier than ever to do so now. Blue Nile, the first and largest on-line diamond retailer, has a Build Your Own Ring feature that lets you choose from over 300 settings.
Filter by price, metal, metal karat, band width, designer, material and more. Once you find a setting, select a diamond using convenient filters for price, carat, cut, clarity, color and much more.
Being able to browse for engagement rings and compare prices from home or anywhere you have internet access without the pressure of a salesperson staring at you the whole time is super convenient and so much less stressful.
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Thoroughly updated for 2020 to account for the 10-year long bull market we’ve been experiencing.
Regards,
Sam @ Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”
Let me share you a story of about the importance of the home appraiser when it comes to refinancing your mortgage or qualifying for a new mortgage. My previous mortgage refinance took 65 days, and I wanted to share what I learned.
