Financing a funeral without the anguish |
| By Dan Weil • Bankrate.com |
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Thinking about funerals isn't pleasant.
But planning ahead ensures the elderly that they will receive the type of funeral they desire and enables
survivors to avoid spending excessively after their loved ones are gone.
Deciding what you want
"The more you can deal with ahead of time, the easier it will be," says Karen Altfest, vice president of LJ Altfest & Co., a
New York City financial planning firm. "There's usually not time for shopping around after a person has died. Many people
aren't in a position where they can shop around at that point."
The median price of a U.S. funeral, including a vault, totaled $7,323 in 2006, up 11.3 percent from two years
earlier, according to the latest data from the National Funeral Directors Association. Deluxe funerals can top $10,000, while cremations can cost as little as $800.
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| Easing the pain of planning a funeral |
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Thus deciding what you want carries great financial significance. "Have a frank conversation with the people who
will be living," says Joshua Slocum, executive director of the Funeral Consumers Alliance in South Burlington, Vt.
"Do you want a religious or secular service? Is a viewing of the body important? Do you want a cremation or burial?
Does what you're looking at fit with how you spend money on an important life passage?"
William Counts, president of the Chicago Memorial Association, opted for simplicity when his wife died in 2006.
"She wanted to have her ashes scattered at Rocky Mountain National Park," he says.
Counts received the park's permission to do so and gathered the couple's three children and two grandchildren. "We
just had a meeting one morning and went out and scattered the ashes. It was like a memorial service outside."
Total cost: $800, all of which was for cremation. "We did it with a funeral director," Counts says. "He came
and picked up the body for cremation. Then they sent us the assets through the mail in a plastic bag that was enclosed in a cardboard
box. We kept that until we took it to Colorado."
Shopping for the best option
You'll want to check out several funeral homes to see which has the best prices and gives you the most comfort. "When you're going
to buy a car, most people go to several dealers. You don't just walk into a dealership and buy, but that's what many people do with
funerals," Slocum says.
Ron Hast, who has owned 14 funeral homes in Los Angeles and now publishes two trade publications about the funeral
business, offers three additional tips for the shopping process.
1. Talk to them early
When you telephone a funeral home to inquire about its services,
let the staff know that death hasn't yet occurred. That way they can give you time when they have it. "People want to get information
on the phone right now, but that's just not good," Hast says. "The funeral director tries to be helpful, but if someone is crying in
the next room, he'll be distracted."
2. Visit the homes in person
"That's because you will see more in person than on the phone
or Internet," he says. "A firm might have an appealing presence on the Internet, but what's there in reality might not meet your needs."
Hast compares shopping for a funeral home to shopping for a wedding. "A bride goes to see what's there. She doesn't just get on the
phone for prices and services."
3. Call ahead
"If you call a home and say you want to get information about arrangements
and funding, they can put aside time for you."
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