Stapleton Elder Law

Do This for Your Family: Pre-Plan Your Funeral

It’s one of the topics people really steer clear of: their own death, and what they really want to happen after they die to their remains. It may be an awkward conversation, but it is truly worthwhile.

We hear occasionally about the individual who decides to make all of the arrangements for their own funeral without even talking to their adult children about it. They chose the funeral home, select a casket, and sometimes even write their own memorial service. It makes a difficult time a little more bearable for the surviving family members, although it’s not always easy to do.

Hometown Life’s recent article, “Perhaps awkward, preplanning funeral makes sense,” says that no matter how much we ignore it, we’re all going to die. Considering funeral arrangements can only make things easier for those we leave behind. That’s when a family is usually in shock, emotional, depressed, stressed or otherwise not at their best.

Unfortunately, if you do not make your own funeral arrangements, then your loved ones will need to make them. That is probably the absolute worst time to arrange a funeral. It can be hard to think clearly after the death of a loved one, and people absent-mindedly overspend for funeral arrangements.  As a result, the costs add up. A big advantage of funeral pre-planning is that you can make decisions with a clear head and focus more on the expenses. When considering pre-planning your funeral, think about these issues:

• Do you want to be cremated or buried?
• Do you have a specific funeral home you want to use?
• What type of casket do you want?
• What type of service would you like to have?

If you settle these questions and pre-plan your funeral, then you remove the burden from your family, and you’re more likely to have your wishes followed and control the costs.

Pre-planning your own funeral may seem morbid, but it falls in the same category as estate planning. Preparing for your eventual demise is a kindness to your loved ones.

Reference: Hometown Life (July 26, 2017) “Perhaps awkward, preplanning funeral makes sense”

To learn more about this and other pre-planning strategies, please visit our website. 

Funeral Fundamentals: You Can Trim Expenses

Funeral planning provides an opportunity to save money and spare your heirs the confusion and added stress of guessing what you may have wanted.

Death and money: they are two things that we like to pretend don’t matter and hate to talk about.  Therefore, what better way to tackle them both than a conversation about planning your funeral? An article in gobankingrates.com, “7 Money Secrets about Dying That No One Wants to Talk About,” provides useful information on what to expect when planning a funeral and some tips on keeping funeral costs to a somewhat reasonable level.

Funerals Can Be Darn Expensive. Funerals homes charge about $6,000 for funeral services, and you'll pay an additional $2,000 for burial, $1,000 for a grave marker or $2,000 for a headstone. That adds up to $10,000 or more. Your family could also spend even more, if you don't put your final wishes in writing and discuss them with your family. The high cost of a funeral you didn’t want, could put your family in debt.

Look at Less Expensive Funeral Options. It’s hard to be sensible and objective when you're dealing with the emotional stress of a loved one's death. However, there are differences in prices. You can find this information online. Do some comparison shopping for your family and tell them which funeral home you prefer.

A Funeral Package Deal Isn’t Always a Great Deal. A funeral home might offer a package, but you may not want or need everything that's included in it. Look at your options because funeral home pricing is dependent on the services provided. You can also buy the grave marker, headstone or casket online directly from wholesalers or distributors, which can cut costs.

A Traditional Funeral Isn’t the Only Option. Don’t feel pressured into having a traditional funeral for yourself or your loved one, especially if you can't afford it. The difference between a full traditional burial and a cremation can be $7,000, with the additional services required.

Prepaid Funeral Policies. Funeral homes and insurance companies offer prepaid funeral policies. This sounds like a good way to save your family money on your funeral costs, but you can spend more on premiums than the policy will pay at your time of death.

Planning your own funeral is not as much fun as planning a vacation, but not planning will leave your family at the mercy of funeral homes and their price structures. To cover all of your bases, sit down with an estate planning attorney to prepare your will and other estate planning documents. This way, all of your end-of-life business is completed, and you and your loved ones can focus on enjoying living.

Reference: gobankingrates.com (March 14, 2017) “7 Money Secrets about Dying That No One Wants to Talk About”

Please visit our website to learn how preplanning your own funeral should be part of your estate plan.

 

Single? Plan Your Own Funeral to Celebrate Your Life

The days when single people were oddballs are long gone, and today's single adults lead full and vibrant lives. But being a single adult means that you need to be in charge of your own funeral.

Midlife singles are used to directing their own lives, but many worry about what will happen when they die. With strains of The Beatles' song Eleanor Rigby in their ears, they worry that their funeral will be unattended and sad. This is one problem that has a solution: planning ahead.

The Pew Research Center's 2014 study, A Record Share of Americans Have Never Married, found that there's been a steady increase since 1970 in the share of the U.S. population that remains never married by the time they reach ages 45 to 54.

Forbes' recent article, "Single People Worry: Who'll Be There For Us?" sought advice from some of the funeral industry's leading experts, who offered these recommendations:

Pre-plan the Funeral (or Cremation). Making your own funeral arrangements sounds like a great idea, but in fact, very few people actually do this. A 2015 consumer research study found that 69% of adults over the age of 40 said they'd prefer to pre-arrange their own service, but only 17% had made arrangements. You have to bite the bullet and visit some cemeteries and funeral homes and discuss planning options and prices.

Discuss Your Last Wishes With Those You Trust. If you're single without close relatives, ask a good friend to help and have a serious discussion about how you'd like to be remembered when you die.

Try to Keep Perspective. Remember, the great memories of your life aren't tied your remains' location.

One of the benefits of being single is being able to make your own decisions, relying on your community of friends to become your family of choice and following your own path. With the help of an experienced estate planning attorney, you can plan your own funeral to be whatever you wish it to be.

Reference: Forbes (March 11, 2016) "Single People Worry: Who'll Be There For Us?"

To learn more about preplanning, not only for your funeral, but your retirement years and beyond, please visit our website.