Posted by on June 13, 2009
Contrary to popular belief, most funeral directors are willing to give discounts to families that ask in an appropriate manner.
Many goods and services provided by a funeral home can easily be discounted by several hundred (or even several thousand) dollars before the funeral home starts to lose money.
Since most funeral homes buy their merchandise from the same few suppliers, they should be able to sell their goods and services for a similar price.
However, if you come across a particular funeral home that is selling its merchandise for considerably more than other funeral homes in the area, they may be a good candidate for negotiating a lower price on funeral costs.
If you don’t want to do the legwork yourself you can use a resource like the Funeral $aver’s Kit to quickly gauge which items are negotiable and how much of a discount is realistic. The kit also shows you the proper way to discuss and negotiate a discount with the funeral director. This simple, non-confrontational method has been proven to increase your chances of getting a fair deal.
Click here to learn more about negotiating a funeral discount.
Posted by on May 9, 2009
Many people don’t realize that prices can vary greatly between funeral homes.
Over just the last three years many family-run funeral homes (and local cemeteries) have been taken-over by big global corporations.
These big corporate funeral homes often keep the original owner’s family name on the door so they don’t scare away their old customers. Unfortunately, these corporations often raise prices by 30% to 50%.
This is why you should NOT automatically use the same funeral home you have used in the past UNTIL you check to see if they have SINCE become part of one of the big funeral corporations – as so many have!
Choosing a reasonably-priced local funeral home instead of one of the many corporate funeral homes can substantially reduce your out-of-pocket funeral expenses. …often reducing your overall funeral bill by $2,000 – to $4,000 for the same exact items.
This same principle applies to cemeteries. These funeral corporations have also been buying up many of the older, better established cemeteries across the country. They realize that if you already have a family history with a particular cemetery you are more likely to pay their larger fees just to be buried next to a deceased relative.
So what can you do about all this? Well, the first thing you should do is call a few funeral homes in your area and ask them if they are now owned by one of the big corporations. If they’re still a family-run business they’ll be proud to tell you so.
If you don’t feel comfortable calling and asking funeral homes about this, check out section 3 of the Funeral $aver’s Kit to learn a neat little trick that lets you to use your computer to find out each and every corporate funeral home in your area. You can do it right from the comfort of you home in less than 5 minutes and it’s completely free.
After eliminating the really expensive funeral homes, you’ll want to find out which funeral homes offer the most reasonable prices. Again, you can do this simply by calling funeral homes in your area and requesting their price information.
Although funeral homes are NOT required to send you price information when you ask for it over the phone, some are still willing to do this.
Unfortunately, a lot of families have trouble getting accurate price information from funeral homes….so the Funeral $aver’s Kit now includes detailed price estimates for all funeral, burial, and cremation goods and services….this makes it easier to know what to expect in terms of costs.
Once you get price information from several funeral homes, simply compare prices for each of the goods and services that interest you. Families using the Funeral $aver’s Kit have access to both a computer spreadsheet and a simple paper form that can be completed with just a pencil and calculator. These forms make it easy to see which funeral home in your area offers the lowest overall price for the type of service you want.
You can repeat this same process for cemeteries in your area. Once you have identified the funeral home and cemetery that offer the most reasonable prices, contact the funeral home and schedule an “arrangement” conference.
If you need to save money on funeral costs, check out the Funeral Saver’s Kit.
Posted by on April 12, 2009
Funeral homes provide different services depending on the needs and preferences of the decedent’s family.
While many people use the phrases “funeral service” and “memorial service” interchangeably, they are actually different services.
A “funeral service” is any official ceremony that takes place in the presence of a casketed body. In other words, the body (inside a casket) is present during the ceremony. The casket lid may be open or closed.
A “memorial service”, on the other hand, is any official ceremony that takes place without the casketed body being present. For example, the ceremony might take place with just an urn containing cremated remains (i.e. “ashes”) serving as the focal point of the ceremony. Alternatively, the focal point could be just a picture of the deceased displayed on an easel.
Other than this distinction, both a funeral service and a memorial service are similar. Both types of services last approximately 25 minutes and are usually accompanied by a eulogy delivered by a family member or clergy member.
Usually, a funeral home will charge the same amount for a memorial ceremony as they charge for a funeral ceremony (around $500). Remember, the ceremony itself is just one component of overall funeral costs. A typical funeral or memorial service can easily run more than $7,000.
There are many things you may want to consider when deciding between a funeral, memorial, or cremation service.
Learn more about funeral and memorial options.
Posted by on January 8, 2009
A “traditional” funeral involves the laying out of a casketed body for friends and family to pay respects. The casket itself may be either “open” or “closed”. An open casket is one in which the casket lid is left open so that the deceased is visible throughout the ceremony. A closed casket ceremony means the ceremony is held in the presence of the casket, but the casket lid is closed. The decedent’s family decides which option they prefer after considering the manner of death and condition of the body.
During a traditional funeral, some type of remembrance ceremony is held. This ceremony gives friends an opportunity to “say goodbye” to the person who has died and comfort surviving family members. The funeral ceremony may be open to anyone that wishes to come, or it may be restricted to invited friends and family members.
With a traditional funeral, the body is removed from the place of death and transported to the funeral home. At the funeral home, the body is embalmed and cosmetically repaired (i.e. the hair is combed, cleaned, and set and makeup, if needed, is applied). After the body is prepared, it is laid out in a casket.
Usually, a viewing or visitation ceremony is held the night before the actual funeral service. This gives friends and well-wishers an opportunity to pay their respects even if they can’t attend the actual funeral service (which is usually held during normal work hours). If the casket lid is closed during this time, it’s called a “visitation” ceremony; if the casket lid remains open during the ceremony, it is known as a “viewing.”
The actual funeral ceremony is usually held the day after the viewing ceremony. This is the formal ceremony in which the eulogy is given, often by a religious official.
Immediately following the funeral ceremony, the body is transported to its final resting place – usually a cemetery or mausoleum. A committal service (i.e. separate service held at the grave side) may also be held right before the casketed body is buried or entombed.
More about traditional funerals.
Posted by on January 5, 2009
Many people want to know what services are offered by a funeral home. Funeral homes, cemeteries, and memorial dealers all play an important role in caring for a deceased family member. However, funeral homes normally handle the actual funeral or memorial service.
Different funeral home services
But not all funeral services are like. In fact, funeral homes offer a range of services designed to accommodate different wishes and budgets.
Here are the most common types of services offered at most funeral homes:
· traditional funeral service
· immediate burial
· direct cremation
· cremation with services
· donation
· memorial service
· graveside service
· private service
You should not finalize any funeral arrangements before you understand the goods, services, and costs associated with each option. During the arrangement conference you should ask the funeral director to explain his services and prices in easy-to-understand language so you can make the right decision for your family.
Click to learn more about funeral home services and prices
