If you truly love your partner, does a ring and a ceremony really do anything?
I know there are certain legal situations where an official marriage changes who has certain rights, but aren't those same rights available if you make other legally-official decisions E.G. a will or trusts, etc?
I'm generally curious why people get married beyond the "because I love them" when it costs so much money.
I didn't get married for the love or the religious reasons, it's just way easier when you buy a house together. Now, if I die, all my stuff automatically belongs to my wife.
We got married on a Tuesday morning at the municipal building at 8:30 making it free. The only thing we spent money on was the rings.
That actually depends on the country. In Germany, as an example, it doesn't automatically go to your wife - you still have to declare that in your will.
We have the option. If you get married you can get married in '(beperkte) gemeenschap van goederen', which means 'what's mine is yours'. Caveat is that anything you owned before you got married will not be taken into account.
Then there's 'huwelijkse voorwaarden' which means 'what's mine is mine'.