How to Cut Costs on Funeral Preparations

Funerals can be one of the most taxing, and costly processes that every family has to go through every once in a while. If you are looking for tips on how to lower expenses for the services from funeral homes in Reading, PA then read on.

1. Consider a Quick Funeral

There are many laws that ensures that there are specific packages that should be made available on every funeral homes list of services offered. These options are direct cremation and an immediate burial. When you choose a direct cremation, you have the option of any funeral home, even ones which are further than your home, which can save give you thousands of dollars in savings. They make an arrangement for the cremation services and perhaps mail or even deliver directly the ashes at your doorstep. You can also choose to have an alternative container which will usually be included in the package for the price you will be paying. Furthermore, there will be no more need for embalming which can give you additional savings. The cemetery space that is required for remains from a cremation will generally cost less compared to burying an entire body. You also have the added benefit of having an option of scattering the remains in a ceremony that you can preside however you want.

Most people still prefer a burial, and if you are one of those, the direct burial package might be a better option for you. This package is quite similar to many already existing traditions mainly involving religious denominations such as with the Jewish, Muslim and Bahá’í. In their practices the body is generally buried shortly, almost hurriedly, after death, without embalming, viewing, and with the least time devoted for rituals. If you prefer to, you usually can add on the service for a little charge in pricing. However, you have to keep things simple, otherwise, the price would drive up again out of your control. And even with a quick burial you can still choose caskets and pick one that you prefer.

2. Plan the service

You might be in a situation where, sadly, you do not have access to the body of the deceased. In this case, there will be no more need for any embalming nor refrigeration, a fancy casket, or any casket for that matter, and you need not worry in transporting the body to the funeral home, Reading, PA, religious institution, and lastly you do not need to look for and buy a gravesite. There may be scheduled private visitation and goodbye ceremonies which can be done on the home of the deceased, of the survivors, or other place of death, and you would not even have to call for the funeral director anymore. While most funerals will feel the pressure of preserving the body, you will, on the other hand, have the flexibility to hold the service whenever and wherever it is convenient for everyone involved. You can even choose to have a formal or informal service at a religious institution, home, park, club, or community center, and again, there will be no need to hire funeral home staff which are usually expensive. And lastly, depending on where you are staying, you might save a lot of money if you choose a funeral home in another town or by widening your search for a funeral home.

3. Embalming may be Optional

The embalming procedure is invasive and while some states require it, most do not require it. There are many times when this is necessary especially if the family of the deceased wishes for the body to be viewed for a longer time. There are however, no state which would require it even when burial or cremation is planned within two days, and in most states, refrigeration is a viable alternative.

4. Donating the Remains

Medical schools will offer to buy the body of the deceased. In these cases the medical school will pay for all the procedures required to preserve the body so it can be studied with the survivors needing only to pay for the transportation of the body. In some cases, the school may even offer to pay for the transport with some even giving money back as compensation. Usually, after a year or two, the body is returned back to the family as cremated which will also paid for by the school.

5. Save on the Cemetery Expenses

There are some cemeteries which will ask you to have a vault for the body. However you should remember that there is no state law that requires it. Thus, you should make sure that you can find one that does not have that limitation. Cemeteries covered in grass will allow usually allow burials without a vault so you may start looking for these kinds of cemeteries. The are also several religious groups that eschew the use of a vault and if burial in a shroud is allowed, a liner may not be necessary anyway. When looking at in perspective, the outer burial container was originally designed to keep ground flat and intact under the load of commercial mowing equipment. However, it also slows decomposition of the body for it to finally return back to the earth. Whatever the case, you should opt for the least expensive option, and these are usually called a grave liner. If you fancy the idea of being part of nature once again, then you can ask to have it installed upside down and without a lid so the decomposition can progress faster as well. Lastly, you have to be sure to shop around and remember that while the prices similar to those for caskets, the vault is still just simply a box for something that is already covered in one. This will be quickly covered by the cemetery lawn and may not even serve its purpose in the long run.

Searching for cost cuts for your loved one may be easy especially for funeral homes, in Reading PA, however, the reward will outweigh the effort.