5 Ways to Save Money When Planning Your Own Funeral

The idea of saying “no” to having a funeral makes good emotional and financial sense, even if your loved ones disagree.

Funerals are exhausting and time-consuming and they cost an average of 7 to 10,000. Dollars. Your no-funeral idea could save loved ones from missed workdays and expensive cross-country travel. It could mean a hefty contribution to your grandchildren’s college fund. Unfortunately, guilt, tradition and the funeral industry work together to discourage your family from adhering to such a radical strategy.

If you’re healthy and don’t plan an exit any time soon, your family could refuse to discuss your no-funeral idea. If you’re elderly or sick, their heartfelt concern over “closure” and “missing out on saying goodbye” might make it difficult to stand your no-funeral ground.

Ultimately it’s your decision, but if you can’t steer your family away from the idea of packed churches, high-end caskets, and black limousines, you can always compromise with time-saving and economical funeral plans.

Reduce costs by planning your own funeral

To save your loved ones from accusations of going cheap on your service, you should do the planning yourself. You can pre-plan with a funeral home but remember this. Funeral home employees may be soft-spoken, well-dressed, and polite but it's their job to bring in a profit. They are sales professionals who make money by marketing goods and services to you. Their profits are greater when they nudge you toward higher end choices.

Of course, it’s difficult to make rational buying decisions when you are considering the inevitability of death. You enter a funeral home with the idea of saving money, then you say yes to an all-inclusive funeral package without knowing what you’re getting for the price.

You concede to an elegant mahogany casket upsell just so you can get to the bottom line and go home. You hope that when you get to the bottom line, the life insurance policy or bank balance you’re working with will cover the cost.

Uncovering Economical Funeral Options

This Cincinnati funeral store owner
delivered low-cost caskets in his Prius.

Pre-packaged funeral plans make funeral talk a little bit easier, but they camouflage your options and disguise money-saving opportunities. When you don’t understand your rights as a consumer and don't know all the tricks to saving funeral dollars, you simply do what many people do. You select a traditional package and pay the going price, often without ever knowing these cost-saving options.

1. Direct Burial

If you prefer not to share your grief in a church or funeral chapel, you don’t have to. A direct burial bypasses the emotional and financial drain of extended family gatherings, music, flowers, ministers, long black limousines, and somber cross-city processionals. A direct plan includes a simple casket and transportation directly to your burial site soon after your death.

• Direct burials don’t include visitation, viewing, or a formal service.
• You may choose to have family members present at the burial.
• If your family requires more closure, they can schedule a memorial or graveside service at a later time.

 

2. Direct Cremation

You probably already know that cremation is a less costly alternative to traditional burials. Cremation containers are less expensive than caskets. They don’t require a burial plot, vault or headstone unless you choose those options. A direct cremation reduces your costs even more.

• You are delivered to a crematorium soon after death.
• There is no formal viewing or visitation.
• Your family may choose to have a memorial service at a later time.
• Your remains may be buried in a crypt or grave, scattered, taken home, or worn in specially designed jewelry.

3. Donate your body to science

Yes, you really can donate your body to science. Body donation programs allow you to make a difference after you die. They also rescue you and your grieving family from the funeral planning process and its inherent costs.

You finalize anatomical donation arrangements via will, power of attorney, or other methods outlined in your state’s legal codes. Once the donation process is formalized, the recipient medical institution arranges transportation after your death is confirmed. Your family may still conduct a memorial service if and when they choose.

4. Have a friend or family member conduct your funeral service

If you don’t want to deal with a funeral professional, their involvement might be optional in your state. Most states don’t require that you hire a mortician to plan or execute a funeral service. That gives you the option to designate a willing friend or family member to do the honors. They must comply with these and any other state-specific guidelines.

• Report an at-home death to the police
• Obtain a death certificate
• Get a burial permit

Alabama, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, Nebraska, New Jersey, and New York require that a licensed funeral professional complete the death certificate, burial permits, and other formal filings.

5. Choose low-cost funeral products and services  

If you want to save money on funeral costs, but you can’t imagine a non-funeral home service, there are other ways to save money. A funeral director's itemized list of products, services, and prices gives you the ability to refuse certain services or purchase items elsewhere.

• Refuse embalming

Except under certain circumstances, embalming it is not legally mandatory in many states. You may save on funeral costs by forgoing this procedure.

• Buy a discount casket

You have the right to supply your own casket. If you choose that option, your funeral professional must accept your choice. Funeral store showrooms sell caskets and urns and deliver them to your designated funeral home. You may also order caskets from Amazon, Walmart, Costco and many other online retailers.

• Save the cost of a burial vault or liner

As some states do not require concrete burial vaults or liners, it’s an item you can eliminate to save on funeral costs. If your state or graveyard requires them or you simply want your grave reinforced, you can buy vaults or liners from a local funeral store or order one from an online retailer.  

Know your funeral options

There’s always a remote possibility that your family will agree with your no-funeral idea. If they don't and you choose to compromise with a low budget funeral, you should enter the funeral home as an informed consumer.

Before making any decisions, it's important to understand your rights under Federal Trade Commission Funeral Industries Practices regulations. These guidelines are commonly known as “The Funeral Rule.” They outline many of the options contained in this article and they can help you skip tradition and plan an economical service.

The FTC guidelines explain your consumer rights and discuss cost-saving planning alternatives your funeral home is unlikely to disclose. They outline your funeral director's legal duties and your right to an itemized list of services and pricing details. The guidelines are a valuable resource that makes it easier to choose options that help you stick to your funeral budget.