Money Fix: Giving cash for wedding presents

It's wedding season. Instead of china and fancy goblets, many couples want cash. Some might think it gauche to ask for money, but thanks to online cash gift registries they don't have to.

"Couples want to start their future together the right way, by using gifts for financial purposes like a down payment on a first home or student debt," says Michael Levenson, CEO and founder of PresentValue.com, where couples can register and do just that. "Financial gifts make a lasting impression on a couple's lives in a way a blender could never do."

PresentValue.com is going a step further by creating partnerships with financial institutions to connect registrants with institutions so they can receive financial advice.

Here are other sites:

-- On newlywish.com, couples can receive cash to fund a honeymoon, buy a new car, or for experiences like dance lessons and cooking classes.

-- At feather thenest.com people register for real estate-related goals or home improvement projects.

-- On our wishingwell.com and deposit agift.com you can raise money for many purposes, including weddings and honeymoons.

-- Other sites just offer the opportunity to chip in on the honeymoon, like honeyfund.com and honeymoonwishes.com.

Despite the niceties, read the fine print. "Some websites may have fees that aren't blatantly mentioned," says Gyutae Park of Bayside, Queens, co-founder of financial website Money Crashers.com. For example, on Honeyfund.com, guests give for free, but newlyweds pay PayPal fees -- 2.8 percent, plus 30 cents per transaction.