When you’ve signed up for an online dating site, at first you’ll be dating multiple people. We know it can be expensive. Then suddenly you meet the perfect girl online. Your phone chemistry is off the charts. The first date went so well, that you can’t wait to see her again.
You’d like to show up with a dozen roses or provide a posh mode of transportation for your evening on the town to impress her. But what if you don’t have a lot of money and your credit is on the low end? It’s not uncommon with today’s economic shift to feel financially strapped while dating. Finding love online can be euphoric or cause a bit of anxiety in the early days.
The relationship between money and dating causes unnecessary stress for both men and women. Women want men who are financially secure. Men want women they’re attracted to who would fall in love with them, instead of their bank account.
So what should you do to impress her without breaking the bank? I believe that bringing a dozen tulips, costing 1/3 of the price will put a big smile on her face, but if you?d like to eventually splurge on a romantic vacation, it might be time to fix your credit and avoid spending more than you can afford.
While you’re getting your financial house in order, you still can impress a date with fun and inexpensive activities.
Inexpensive Dates
Nifty Date Ideas has several affordable suggestions for your next online date.
- Take your date to a remote spot to watch the sunset and bring a picnic lunch or dinner. If you live in a northern climate and the Aurora Borealis or a meteor shower can be seen that night, you could make an exception.
- Perform community service such as going to a community center to volunteer, planting flowers for a neighbor or shoveling snow.
- Playing board games is inexpensive, and there’s a wide range of games available: Monopoly, Candy Land or Sorry.
- Take your date on a nature walk and pick raspberries or blackberries. Eat them along the walk or save them in buckets to make a pie or tart.
- Remember the fun of school field trips? Take a free factory tour or visit a historical building to relive those grade-school excursions.
- Visit a library or bookstore, find a cozy corner and browse through books or magazines. You can also rent audiobooks or movies at most local libraries. The spot might have a coffee shop, so you can discuss what you read over a hot mocha or latte.
There’s no need to go into debt to impress your next date. You should still take some time to repair your credit in the next 6-12 months and be responsible about not spending more than you can afford.
How to Improve Your Score
Money problems is one of the top reasons for a relationship to split up. If your credit rating is low and your long-term goals are to find someone to spend the rest of your life with and even possibly buy a home or lease a car, it’s a good idea to start working on improving your credit score.
MSN Money suggests you start by opening a line of credit through a credit card. It states you don’t need to carry a balance to have good scores; it’s a myth. Consider a secured credit card if you can’t open a traditional credit card. The issuing bank gives you a credit line equal to the deposit you make for a secured card. MSN Money says paying off your mortgage, auto and student loans can help, but not as dramatically as paying off accounts such as credit cards. Pay your bills on time and, if you can, pay more than the balance due.
If you want to improve your credit in a bigger way, consider getting a used car. Used cars are a good choice because a car that is only a year old is 20 to 30 percent cheaper than a new car, according to Edmunds.com. And it’s possible to get a regular interest rate, even with poor credit. A person with good credit will usually get an interest rate on a used car between 5 and 7 percent, while many auto companies and lenders will finance a vehicle or approve a loan from 6.7 to 13.5 percent, according to bankrate.com.
Have you managed to find fun and affordable dates?
Your comments are welcome.
Julie Spira is a leading online dating expert and founder of CyberDatingExpert.com. She creates Irresistible Profiles for Singles on the dating scene.
For more dating advice, follow @JulieSpira on Twitter and sign up for the free Weekly Flirt.
Julie Spira is America's Top Online Dating Expert. She's an award-winning dating coach who's been helping singles find love online for 25+ years. Follow @JulieSpira on IG.
Don’t be fussed about the price of the date. A real woman is not looking for how much money you spend on her. It is how you make her feel. So make the date interesting and exciting, and there are many ways to do this without breaking the bank.
Thanks for your comment Michael. I’m glad you enjoyed the post and suggestions for affordable dating. The old saying holds true, a woman could live anywhere for the right man and vice-versa. When it comes to dating, when you meet someone you adore, creating memories together doesn’t come with a price tag.
Buying tulips is a nice idea. They’re not just cheaper but they’re less full-on for someone you don’t know too well. Roses might say a little too much at first.
I love to peruse used book stores, so one guy I dated for a while took me to a really nice one on our second date and bought me a book which cost only a couple bucks. I appreciated it.
Great read! I think that most first dates should be like what you posted. Not that guys are cheap, but why spend tons of money on someone you may not click with. If a guy’s going on 2-3 dates a week and always doing nice dinners it’s gonna hurt the wallet.
That’s where the creativity for a first date comes into play (like you posted above). If you do something creative and it’s free or super cheap the girl’s not gonna look at the guy like he’s well… cheap, lol.
She’ll actually enjoy the date.
Again, great read!