Preparedness
HOW YOU CAN SAVE ON FUNERAL EXPENSES PART II
Here we go, Part 2 of our Funeral Arrangements and Expenses Series! If you haven’t read Part 1, please check that one too! I wanted to impress upon you that when you aren’t grieving, and you aren’t burdened with a million and one things to do and let’s add time-sensitivity to it too then you will have a free mind and few emotions around making some of these decisions that are just a part of life. For both yourself, your partner, and possibly your parents too. Because if you have been left to “look after things” when something happens then you should have a notebook full of what your parents want, what they would like things to look like when they depart. That’s the first step to looking at the options, reviewing a few life choices and options, and making some simple decisions so that your research starts there.
STEP 1
A few of the questions would be:
- Would you like to be cremated or buried?
- Would you like to have a Celebration of Life or a Service?
- Would you like to be put with the rest of the family members?
- Would you like to have a viewing?
- Would you like to do some pre-planning arrangements?
STEP 2
Doing some research on what options there are for the above questions in your area. But also, to know what you are asking about. Because you will need to know the differences and what is available to compare apples with apples and not oranges!
STEP 3
Look at the services that are available at that location because you may find that a few of the services that go with burial may be mandatory and not an option. So you will have to incorporate those into your prices for comparison. Some areas may have some policies around burial, which in term adds a service to the cost automatically. Because when you ask for a price, you may have to ask what that does and doesn’t include for that cost. And remember they will ask you if this is pre-planning or in need. The pre- planning will have different options for you and it will be less expensive option.
STEP 4
Costs will be varied from location to location. It will be actually difficult to compare a niche in one location and a niche in a different location over the phone. Until you visit the cemetery or funeral home you will find it difficult to see the differences of the availability and what it looks like at that location. Like comparing apartments to other apartments!
Just the same as burial plots that’s also difficult to compare costs because you don’t know the location of the plot, what view it has, is it up high or at the lower part of the property, is it a single plot or double? What costs are involved with the burial that are mandatory and that are optional?
The actual difficulty, as you can see, are all of these decisions are complicated enough when you are thinking properly. Watch the video above on how your brain gets broken hearted! Does that mean our hearts become broken hearted and then are unable to think straight? Yes it does! Our brain actually becomes broken so you can see that the decisions would turn out to be 500% harder than they would normally. And without pre-planning, there will be no available discounts and payment options. You will be required to pay for the funeral in total immediately.
So does that give you another incentive to pre-plan some of these decisions because you will then perhaps, by a second-hand burial plot from someone, and pre buy the services from the funeral home. That would end up saving you $thousands of dollars. So by making some of these decisions you will then save money, save the stress of the purchase with payments, and knowing your exact wishes will be looked after. When you don’t look at planning with yourself, partner or parents you will find that at the moment, at that time of difficulty, at that time of stress, at that time of grief you will definitely not make the same decisions as you would if you had a family meeting, made some decisions, and did some pre-planning.
It would be good to also know things you don’t want or want to have happen. That would be beneficial to know your wishes in great detail as well so that at the time of grief you won’t be adding in all sorts of extras.
Discussing some of these decisions with your parents will be possibly challenging because they may not feel open to the idea, or to be secretive about the decisions around that. If they are not open to looking at this with you, perhaps you can use some Randomized response technique to look at how to ask the questions, how to hold a family meeting, and how to be compassionate. We will be having workshops on how to hold a family meetings, and Pre-planning Funeral and cremation arrangements, on our Membership reward program.
This week’s Live Broadcast on our YouTube channel, we will be visiting a local Funeral home. We are going to look at the burial options and the cremation options and what that looks like.
If you are looking at the least expensive way of cremation, that would be approx. $1,000, known in the industry as Direct Cremation. You will need a container, an urn to have the remains. There will be a Travel Urn available, a on the fireplace kind of Urn or a scatter Urn as well. You may also look at holding your event, your memorial or service at home or in a restaurant for a few other options.
I also want to impress upon you that it is important to making the decisions, researching the costs, finding a cheaper way of planning for your arrangements, or the ensuring you have all of the things you want it have, look and feel. But, let’s face it if you have made all these decisions but you don’t know where to find the documentation on the decisions or the purchase of the pre-planning arrangements then what good was it at all to actually spent time with your most significant life decisions. What good was it for your kids to not know your wishes, what you want to have happen, and the costs that they will need to fork out at the most tragic time in your life. That’s where the App will assist you in making the decisions, ensuring the decisions stay up-to-date, and that you have all of the decisions logged into your App for your family or loved ones to step in and get the JOB DONE!
Let’s do this! Tuesday we will Live on Facebook, and YouTube for our Funeral home tour!
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