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What are the Costs of a Funeral?
By Matt Schmidt
When a family member or loved one passes away, it is truly a difficult time. It is very important to make sure that one’s life is honored properly. This includes having a perfect funeral for them, from the ceremony to the cremation. Total funeral costs can refer to not just the ceremony but also to all the products and services that can add thousands of dollars to the process of paying final respects to a loved one.
Funerals can be extremely costly, and a lot of the time, it can take a toll on the family who is footing those bills. In addition, there will usually be additional final expenses, that people will need to address, at the time of death.
To begin, let’s review some sample funeral expenses from Funeralwise.com.
In this scenario, total costs would approximate $9,000, and that’s just for the “main” items. There could be additional charges for things like placing the obituary in the newspaper and buying flowers.
Starting with the cheapest options, for those who prefer to have no ceremony at all, there is a direct cremation package. This consists of simple containers for the body and ashes. There is no viewing, embalming or funeral service. It typically averages $1,000-$2,500 when purchased from a funeral home, mortuary or crematory. Cremation plus a full traditional funeral package, including embalming and visitation, can cost $2,000-$9,000 or more (not including the gravesite and internment fees).
Funeral homes and mortuaries must offer an “immediate burial” or “direct burial” package. This is a funeral without a major ceremony, although a small graveside service might be included. The body is buried in a simple container shortly after death, with no viewing. The cost of this ranges from $700-$2,400, not including the cemetery plot ($200-$5,000) and internment fees (fees for opening and closing the grave) ($350-$3,000), bringing total expenses to $1,250-$10,400.
Although funeral homes and mortuaries usually offer funeral “packages” with standard services and products included, federal law allows consumers to customize their package and choose just the items they want. However, funeral homes and mortuaries are permitted to charge a basic fee to cover staff time for consultations and other expenses. Also called a minimum or professional services charge, this basic fee can range from $700-$2,000 depending on the location and company.
If you want to have a full-service funeral for a loved one, the costs increase. Total costs for a traditional full-service funeral package — with a viewing or visitation, a formal funeral service, a hearse to transport the body, plus burial, entombment or cremation — start around $6,000-$9,000 but can easily increase to $10,000-$15,000 or more, depending on what’s included. There are multiple charges that can raise the total funeral costs if not included in a package, too. These include fees for washing and dressing the body ($95-$400), embalming ($200-$700); using the funeral home and staff for a viewing or visitation ($100-$1,200) and funeral or memorial service ($100-$1,100 or more); limousines or other vehicles to transport family members ($125-$500 and up depending on size and distance); an escorted funeral procession ($450-$1,800) and a more elaborate casket ($900-$10,000 and up) or other container. Make sure to be aware of time limits. Most funeral homes or mortuaries allow up to an hour of viewing or visitation before a funeral service and charge $100-$200 an hour for additional time.
In addition to the previously stated, there are more items that are not typically included in average funeral costs. These include a gravesite ($200-$5,000) and a grave liner or burial vault ($400-$5,000 or more) if required by the cemetery. If you desire to have an above-ground burial, a crypt in a mausoleum can cost $3,000-$30,000 in a community building or $25,000-$500,000 or more for a private mausoleum. These can bring total expenses to $6,000-$15,000 for a typical funeral and burial, or $11,000-$35,000 or more for high-end top-of-the-line materials and services.
If that wasn’t enough, there are still many indirect costs of losing a loved one. There can be additional fees for outside services, such as a published newspaper obituary (from free to several hundred dollars, depending on the publication).
If you want additional death certificates, that will cost you $5-$25 a copy. Floral arrangements can average $400-$500 for each floral package. If not included in a package, memorial cards/programs can cost $20-$50, a guest register can be $17-$170 and acknowledgment/thank you cards can be $10-$50.
Honorariums for an officiate/celebrant to lead a funeral or memorial service, or for musicians such as an organist, harpist or bagpiper, can run $50-$250 each, depending on local rates and the person’s relationship to the bereaved family.
Transportation of the body is another overlooked cost. If you or a family member were to die out of state, fees may range from $2000 to $5000 to transport the body.
To begin, you should realize that prices will vary by funeral providers. So it’s always a good idea to visit with multiple funeral homes, and get their quotes.
Next, if needing some resources to find a provider in your area, there are websites specifically designed to assist you and your family.
Websites like Parting.com and Funeraldecisions.com will help you compare prices, and provide estimates on funeral expenses in your area.
Another tip to remember is as you’re gathering quotes from funeral homes, is to get an ‘itemized price list’ of ALL the services they are providing. This is important as you compare the quotes from the various funeral homes.
Perhaps the best way to save significant money on a funeral is to request a ‘direct burial’ or a ‘direct cremation. These options mean that you could be buried/cremated right after you pass away. This would eliminate expenses such as embalming and viewing. These expenses could run you $600 to $2000. Depending on your preferences, this could be something to consider for yourself or family member.
Everyone’s financial situation is different, and there are several ways to financially address a funeral. Let’s look at some of the more popular options available to families.
Burial Insurance is a term given to ‘smaller’ amounts of whole life insurance. Many people take out these types of policies, to address burial, funeral, and final expenses. There are many insurance companies who offer these types of policies.
Luckily, there are fairly easy to qualify for, as the underwriting for these types of policies is very lenient. Even people who are in poor health can be eligible for guaranteed acceptance policies.
At the time of the insured’s death, the insurance company pays the beneficiary a lump sum, and tax free payment. They are then able to use this money, to take care of all the various final expenses. Often times the children will take out a burial insurance policy on their parents, and be the owner and payor of the policy.
For some people, it may make sense to prepay your funeral, while you are still alive. These pre-need plans are sold directly by funeral homes. You will sit down with the funeral homes staff, choose all the services you would like performed, pick out a casket, grave site, and head stone.
To fund these types of plans, you can elect to pay a ‘lump sum’ installment, or many funeral homes will put you on a monthly payment plan.
Before you think this is the ‘best’ way for you and your family, there are SEVERAL questions to ask yourself, and the funeral home:
Another method of addressing funeral expenses is to simply set aside money, to cover all of these expenses. Such simple methods include setting up a separate savings account, or maybe a money market account, that is ‘earmarked’ to cover all of your burial costs.
People who are financially disciplined could benefit from this type of savings plan. However, if the account is not a ‘joint’ account, your family would have to wait for the probate process to be completed, before family members could access the funds. That’s one drawback.
Another drawback is the temptation, to possibly dip into these savings accounts. IF you were in financial difficulty and had to use these funds, there would no longer be adequate savings to address your funeral expenses.