The funeral home never holds the money--an insurance company does that so if the home goes out of business, another facility will honor it because it is available cash flow. You get discounts with pre-planning, and when your loved one dies you do NOT want to be burdoned looking for a place. Funeral homes WILL gouge you if you do not preplan. I got my mom cremated for $800 total due to preplanning. I put mom's ashes in a high quality Humador cigar box made of oak and that was $40, and keep her remains in an antique cabinet along with my father's ashes.

---->>What counts is how you care for your loved one when they are ALIVE. When they are dead they are gone and that is that..<<<-----

My brother is Catholic (I am not) so I have no issue keeping the ashes. My brother was pressuring me to bury the ashes. If he persists I'll be giving my brother a pile of diatomaceous earth and tell him those are my parents's remains. He's not taking mom's ashes away from me.

In most states it is illegal for funeral homes to hold money given by families for their funeral arrangements. For safekeeping and good business practices, most funeral providers work with third-party insurance companies who hold premium payments or single payments in an irrevocable trust which can only be used for the purpose of funeral expenses for the individual named on the funeral contract. Preplanning and prefunding stops the inflation on goods and services, and guarantees that an individual will not pay higher prices in the future or at the time of need. "At need" funeral providers do not offer any discounts or opportunity to pay a large sum of money on time payments like preplanned funeral contracts offer.

I definitely agree with your statement that a budget funeral can still be a beautiful affair. Like you said, you aren't shortchanging your deceased loved one by minimizing the expenses of the funeral. Often, I think simplicity in events such as these can help you focus on celebrating the loved one's life and work.

My mom lives with me in Texas but wants to be buried in Arizona, where she's from originally, when she dies. She's 90 now and frail. I want to be prepared but unsure where to begin. Money will be an issue and I'm afraid I won't be able to afford to get her body back to Arizona. I have 3 other siblings (I'm the middle child) but I don't foresee either of them helping financially with the funeral. Im scared!!

I was pleased with assistance given me by the Veterans Administration in planning the interment of my husband's cremated ashes, the inscription on his monument, and the appearance of the VA cemetery where he was laid to rest.

Anne, I really think tip number three makes for some great advice. Planning a funeral can be hard to do alone and it makes sense to bring someone to help you out. I had an uncle that recently passed away and I think this would be some great advice to share with his family.

My mother died last night, so being the eldest of six kids, I was put in charge of planning Mom's funeral. I've never planned a funeral before, so I'm feeling a bit over my head right now. It really helps to have some pointers. I didn't know that it's best to personalize a funeral rather than get a packaged deal. All of my friends who have arranged funerals in the past have bought packaged deals. I suppose it may be best to personalize Mom's funeral. It's good to know that you could pre-pay a funeral. I should check if mom pre-paid for her funeral while she was still alive. Thanks for the tips!

death as a part of everyone's life, and respecting that by talking freely and openly about all aspects.

To Clarify:

The Funeral Trust is valid in any state, it is portable to ANY funeral home. It is protected from funeral home Management or business changes. It allows for Portability to ANY funeral home in any state. It can be used in CRISIS Medicaid planning. As long as it it arranged before the Medicaid application, and the funds that would otherwise be paid to the nursing home can pay towards or for the seniors final expenses, including those of their family, and is immediately Medicaid exempt. It is a qualified Medicaid spend down. It does NOT require a visit to the Funeral home. which can be done then at a later date.

Don't pay in advance. I found out the hard way that there are much better options when you are arranging when a death is imminent, and you can take advantage of 'at need' prices. My aunt had a prepaid plan for her husband which cost just under $3000 for a simple cremation. I arranged my father's cremation when he passed, which was the same basic cremation, for just $675.

Even if you want to plan ahead you can find out how much a simple cremation will cost and put the money aside. Especially if it only costs a few hundred dollars.

I've been trying to learn more about funerals for a friend of mine. His mother is passsing away soon and he's too busy spending time with her. It is sad for us all, but I want to help him out the best I can. I'll be sure to ask if he wants a memorial or a normal funeral service.

There are some good pointers here. I would just like to add that many people do not get chance to plan ahead, and many funeral are arranged at the time of need, when families are rallying round to pull together the costs. If the budget for a funeral is important to you, you make want to locate your nearest DFS Memorials provider. This is a network of local, family-owned funeral homes that all guarantee to offer a low cost funeral option. In many cases they are the best-priced funeral or cremation provider for their local area. It just does take a lot of the hassle of price comparison away at a difficult and emotional time.

The more good folks educate themselves about what their end-of-life options and alternatives are, the more people are empowered to make informed decisions. Too often a funeral purchase is made as a 'distressed purchase" and consumers fall victim to the trade's tactic of 'up-selling' services.

Thank you for the clarification of the difference between a funeral trust and a burial policy. I don't believe that funeral trusts exist in my state, I think I would have heard about it working in geriatric care services in this state (including funeral services) for many years. Respectfully, I submit that in the state where I live, the laws were written many years ago to protect consumers and written in such a way that the laws absolutely do prevent people from losing money pre-paid for funeral expenses. That may not be true in the state where you live. I stand by my earlier suggestion: "I would encourage readers to find a reputable funeral services provider and discuss state laws in their states that apply.

One can purchase a burial policy which requires a monthly payment... It is an insurance policy that pays a stated amunt upon death, as long as the montly payments are up to date.
A Funeral Trust is just that: A TRUST, a prepaid single amount which usually increases in vaue by 1% or more per year, and is MEDICAID EXEMPT.
Any amount not "used" is payable to the estate.
When 'Funeral Shopping' ask what charges are for services/goods,;never devulge 'how much you have in mind'
On 10/20 /2012 the Milwaulkee Journal Sentintal News puplished andarticle about the Wisconsin Funeral Directors "trust' being insolvent, because of risky investments they made over the years.
Consumer protection laws do not PREVENT abuse, speeding laws do not stop speeders.

It's worth noting that burial insurance policies can be eaten away by inflation. Again, I would encourage readers to find a reputable funeral services provider and discuss state laws in their states that apply to this situation THEN decide whether or not to pre-pay. If appropriate consumer protection laws are in place, it is a very good investment to pre-pay. Whatever else, just please don't wait until there is a death to start planning final arrangements...Best to all -

Paying in advance to a specific home disallows a change, such as need or want to move for a number of reasons, and may require someone in one state having to have funearl in another.
A funeral trust not purchased from a specific home is good at any location. when needed. In 2012 the Wisconsin Funeral directors fund was found to be short millions due to risky investments and may not be able to meet future obligations There was a discrepancy in IL recently ...

Thanks for all the advice. My mom has to plan a funeral in Toronto and it's been really stressful. I decided I should help her out and I predicate all the tips! Thanks for sharing.

In spite of best laid Plans people move, or have to move, so having Final Funds in an account at a Specific funeral home, might make things inconvenient, or prove to cause a delay, or be subject to pressure in time of need, if utilizing a different location
A Funeral Trust is MEDICAID exempt, "overs" are payable to the estate
it is good in all 50 states, do not make the funeral home the beneficiary.

Great article with one exception. I respectfully disagree with #1, "don't pay, in advance:" In my state, funeral services pre-paid cannot "get lost or stolen if the funeral home goes bankrupt or goes out of business." Funds pre-paid for funeral services go into a state trust. If a funeral home goes bankrupt or goes out of business, the trust assigns the account to another provider. I would encourage readers to find a reputable funeral services provider and discuss state laws in their states that apply to this situation THEN decide whether or not to pre-pay. If appropriate consumer protection laws are in place, it is a very good investment to pre-pay. Thanks for this great article.