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FOSTER CITY, Calif. — Two tickets to Disneyland. A sunset sail. A three-course gourmet meal. A roundtrip flight from Utah to New York City.
What do all these things have in common? They’ll cost you less money than asking someone to prom.
That’s according to a new Visa report this week revealing the average American family with teenagers will spend a whopping $324 on so-called “promposals” in 2015. For those of you picking your jaw up off the floor, allow me to break it down for you.
The promposal is the term used to describe the elaborate gestures and antics employed by the youth of today in order to snag the perfect prom date. In many cases, these schemes born out of hormonal affection could well outshine even the most romantic of marriage proposals.
“Prom is a fun night for kids to get together and dance, but spending $300 plus on a promposal to simply ask your date is exorbitant,” said Nat Sillin, head of U.S. financial education for Visa, in a statement.
Even more shocking — the promposal makes up just a third of the overall prom cost, with the average teen planning to drop $919 on the big night this year, according to the report.
Prom is a fun night for kids to get together and dance, but spending $300 plus on a promposal to simply ask your date is exorbitant.
–Nat Sillin, head of U.S. financial education for Visa
So how in the world could a high school dance cost that much dough? Here’s how: Tuxes, dresses, limos, flowers, pictures, food, tickets, accommodations, after parties … need I go on? And here’s the kicker: Prom spending is actually down 6 percent from last year, when teens spent about $978 on the dance.
In a somewhat disturbing trend, families who make below $25,000 a year plan to drop the most money on prom — $1,400 to be exact. In stark contrast, it’s the richest families who plan to be the most frugal about the dance, spending just $800, according to the report.
In addition, dads will be the ones handing over their credit cards — outspending moms by 63 percent.
Visa released its report in conjunction with the launch of its free “Plan it Prom” app, which aims to help teens and their parents set and stick to a budget by tracking spending as you go. It can be downloaded on iTunes and Google Play.
This is the first year Visa included the “promposal” category on its annual survey, which was conducted by phone with more than 3,000 Americans over 18 in January of this year, according to the report.
