Planning A Beautiful Service

4 Ways to Reduce the Cost of Your Funeral

4 June 2015

Cherly Fox

It is becoming more popular for people to start to plan their own funerals and set aside the funds that they will need for it. This is very helpful because it helps ensure that your funeral is exactly the way that you want it, that you don't have to force a huge task on your grieving loved ones, and that you will not impose any huge financial obligations on your family. However, you might not have a great deal of money to get ready for a funeral, on top of living your day-to-day life and contributing to your retirement savings. Here are some ways to reduce the cost of your funeral when you are planning for the future.

1. Make Your Casket Simple

When you are planning your funeral, make sure that you purchase a casket ahead of time. This allows you to shop around and removes the stress of any time pressure that might be on a family right after a loved one has died. The easiest way to keep the cost of the casket down is to make sure that it is as simple as possible. Don't pay for any extras such as engraving on the casket, seals, or any special coatings that are designed to preserve the casket for as long as possible. Instead, choose a simple casket that will degrade quickly. You can compare costs online.

2. Consider a Biodegradable Shroud

Another action that you could take to make your funeral less expensive is to choose to be buried in a biodegradable shroud, rather than in a casket. The biodegradable shroud will break down over time rather quickly. A casket can run in the thousands of dollars, but the shroud will cost only a few hundred dollars.

3. Contact a Church

Specify in which church, if any, you would like to have the ceremony. Make sure that you talk to pastors and those in charge of the churches in your area to find ones that cost the least amount of money. Many will perform the ceremony for free, but make sure that you set aside money as an honorarium. Having a ceremony at a church is often less expensive than having a ceremony at the funeral home.

4. Schedule Your Own Transportation

Don't a hire a limo. Instead, talk to a family member that has a vehicle large enough for a casket or a shroud and see if they would be willing to help transport your body in the future. Limos are expensive and this significantly cuts the cost.

For more information, talk to a funeral home. 

Share