- As we continue the transition into spring that means prom season is already upon us as students begin to pester their parents for money for the first must-attend social event of adolescence. When you calculate the limo rides, corsages, entry fees, dress purchases and tux rentals, this one-night affair can quickly add up to a hefty bill. In fact, according to a recent survey of 1,000 random people conducted by <strong><a href="http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2012/04/15/US-teens-to-spend-1078-each-for-prom/UPI-19711334527221/">GfK Roper OmniTel</a></strong>, parents can expect to pay an average of $1,078 per teen for prom this year. That’s a 34 percent increase from last year’s national average of $807. Now we’ll Decode prom costs by region and financial brackets. <em>—Anslem Samuel</em>
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- According to the survey, families in the Midwest expect to spend the least for prom related events with $696, which is well below this year’s and last year’s average.
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- Families located on the West Coast also expect to pay less than the national average with just $744 working out as the average.
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- The prom price starts to spike when looking at Southern families, who expect to spend $1,047 on average for their teens’ annual dance.
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- However, it’s the Northeast that takes the cake on prom related expenditures with an expected average of $1,944, that’s almost double the national average.
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- One of the more interesting outcomes of GfK Roper OmniTel’s survey was how families’ expected prom spending didn’t correlate to their income. For instance, families who make less than $50,000 a year reported that they planned to spend more than the national average. In fact, parents who make $20,000 to $29,999 expected to spend around $2,635.
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- Conversely, the survey found that families who made more (over $75,000) were actually more frugal with their prom plans as the average expected spending worked out to be just $842.
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