You wouldn’t buy a house or a car without knowing exactly what you’re getting into, right? The same holds true for a wedding. A wedding is a significant financial undertaking, and wedding contracts ensure you know exactly what you’re getting, when and how you’ll pay for it, and, perhaps most importantly, what happens if those services aren’t able to be delivered in full. So don’t sign on the dotted line without spending some time with the pages.

As elementary as it sounds, read the contract.This is a really big investment. You shouldn’t throw 10 or 15 thousand dollars at something without knowing what’s going on and this just adds up on the wedding budget overall.

Wedding planning can often feel like it’s all romance and butterflies, but, at the end of the day, working with a vendor is a business transaction—and it’s crucial to ensure the components of that transaction are clear to both sides. A contract makes sure everyone is on the same page. It also protects both parties from potential issues.”

To that end, you should expect a contract from pretty much every vendor participating in your big day. One-off purchases—an Etsy cake topper, for example—will be the exception, but anything involving custom work (an escort card wall), payment installments (your dress), or goods used and services performed on the wedding day (furniture rentals, photography, etc.) should come with a formal agreement.

Making sure that everything you expect from the vendor is in the contract is the most important thing. If it’s not in the contract, it doesn’t necessarily matter. You could have something in an email, but that doesn’t necessarily count. If you want it, put it in the contract. For the rest of the document, think like a journalist: Determine the who, what, when, where, why, how, how many, and how much of your agreement, and be sure those items are included.