We saw that a father is obligated to marry off his daughters, the question is, in a case where the father has the means, how much is he obligated to give? Is he required to buy an apartment and all the extras, or is he simply obligated to pay for the basic expenses of the chasunah?
Similarly, there is room to question, if a father doesn’t have the means, how much is he allowed to promise before he should be worried about becoming a burden on the community?
The Gemara says: ניתן לה מידי ולבשייה ונכסייה, כי היכי דקפצו עלה אינשי - “A father should give his daughter some money, dress her and provide her with clothing, so that men jump at the opportunity of being able to marry her”, the Gemara makes no mention of buying her an apartment, and providing her with all the extras that she wants.
Similarly, the Gemara (Kesubos 67a) and ruled in Tur and Shulchan Aruch (Even HaEzer 57:1, and Hilchos Tzedokah, Yoreh Deah 250:2) says:המשיא את בתו סתם לא יפחות לה מחמשים זוז – “If one marries off his daughter without any conditions attached – he shouldn’t give her less than fifty zuz”, which is not such a large amount of money, and certainly is nothing like what is expected today, where people expect an apartment and extras.
The HaMakneh (Kuntros Achron, siman 58) and Pnei Yehoshua (Kesubos 67a) explain that 50 zuz is because it is clear in Mishnayos Pe’ah (8:9):שבחמישים זוז נושאים ונותנים וראוי להתפרנס מהם – “50 zuz is enough to carry out business transactions with, and is enough money to earn a livelihood with”.
The Shulchan Aruch (Even HaEzer 58:1) writes: “Chazal instructed a person to give a little bit of his property to his daughter. If a father is poor, he should at least provide his daughter with clothing. If, however, the father is rich, he should give according to what he can afford.”
