According to "Plan a Funeral for $800 or Less" on MSNMoney, the average American funeral costs $6500. By the time extras, such as a burial plot, flowers, or prayer cards are thrown in, the price tag can easily approach $10,000. That's a real hit to the wallet of senior citizens on a fixed income or a young couple just barely getting by on their salaries.
The good news, however, is that funerals and memorial services do not need to cost that much. There are many ways you can still honor your loved one yet keep the price of the funeral within your budget.
1. Do Research in Advance - But Don't Pay in Advance
If you are anticipating a death in the family, do your research early. Find out which funeral homes and cremation societies offer the services you want at a price you can afford. Even once you are fairly sure which funeral home you will use, however, do not pre-pay for the funeral. If the funeral home goes out of business, you could lose your money.
2. Don't Equate Love with Expense
Most funeral directors are ethical, helpful people who want to help give you a good last memory of your loved one. Some, unfortunately, are not beyond using high-pressure sales tactics on grieving loved ones. "You want your mother to have the best, don't you?" "I certainly wouldn't trust my precious child's remains to a pine box."
If you hear phrases like these, remind yourself that your love for the one who has lost is not and cannot be measured in the amount of money you spend on the funeral. Don't let yourself be guilt-tripped into paying more than you can afford.
3. Consider All Options
A viewing followed by a funeral service and burial in a graveyard used to be considered the only acceptable way to treat a loved one's mortal remains, but times have changed, and there are other options available now. These include
- Direct burial, or burial without a viewing
- Cremation, with or without a viewing
- Home burial
- Burial of body or cremains in a "green" cemetery
All of these choices are less expensive than a traditional viewing/funeral.
4. Comparison Shop
Funerals: A Consumer Guide published by the Federal Trade Commission points out that costs for the same service may differ broadly between different providers. One funeral home, for instance, might charge over a thousand dollars for a direct cremation whereas another, only a few miles away, may charge under eight hundred dollars. Don't be shy about calling different places to find out where you can get the best deal.
5. Don't Feel Compelled to Buy a Package
Most funeral homes have a standard group of services that they offer to consumers as a package. Before you purchase the package, look carefully at each item it contains. If there are several items you don't want, such as embalming, prayer cards, thank you notes and pall bearers, you'll probably get a better price if your purchase each item separately. The Federal Trade Commission's Funeral Rule requires funeral directors to give you pricing information about each good or service they provide.
6. Ask for Lower-Priced Alternatives
When showing grieving families products such as caskets or urns, some funeral directors try to steer the mourners to the higher-priced merchandise. There is no shame in saying, "We can't afford that. Do you have anything less expensive?"
7. Embalming is Rarely Required
There are no federal or state laws that require a body to be embalmed if it is to be cremated or buried shortly after death. A funeral home may require embalming if there is going to be a viewing, but that is the funeral home's policy, not a law.
If there is to be no viewing, you can save yourself around a thousand dollars by deciding not to embalm.
8. Purchase a Casket or Urn from an Independent Provider
You can often buy a casket or urn on the Internet or from another third party provider for much lower prices than you would pay if you purchased the product at the funeral home. By law, the funeral home must allow you to provide your own casket or urn, nor are they allowed to charge you a fee for doing so.
9. Hold a Memorial Service at a Free Location
The funeral home, and even many churches, will charge for use of their facilities for a memorial service. If you can't afford these costs, consider holding your loved one's memorial service in the home of a friend or family member, at a public park, or at another facility that will not charge you for its use.
There are many ways to respect and honor your loved one's life without burning through your life savings. Your loved one certainly would not want to cause you financial hardship. The above tips can help you plan a dignified funeral or memorial at a price you can afford.
Join the Conversation