Have you prepaid your funeral plans?

This is one of the concerns that our entire family discussed together, along with our will. Everyone agreed.
 
I haven't because I am not sure where I'll be when I die. But I've instructed DW and the kids what to do with me. Pretty simple really. Cremation, and like braumeister's folks, scattered in my favorite fishing spot, which happens to be about 1/2 mile straight off my dock. If they want to get fancy they can play Santana's Europa: Here's a preview
 
Monterey298sc said:
You are incorrect. How it works example. You pre-pay 20 years ago and we placed money in insurance company used only by FH. The insurance pays about 2% growth on policy that funeral home is allowed to keep the growth, that is only way we can freeze price for family. Family NEVER pays a dime more for funeral home costs. We CAN NOT FREEZE out of funeral home cost such as cemetery, newspaper obit, minister fee, death Certificates, ect. Because we never know how much they will increase over time, however if you pay current cost for them, just pay the increase at the time of death. Very simple .
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Thank you for clarifying!

So you are saying a funeral home would charge the same amount to all three of these people:
- healthy 40 year old man pre-paying his funeral
- 87 year old man who just entered a nursing home
- person who just died

The funeral home gets to keep the “growth” on the insurance policy to cover the inflation of their costs that might occur between the purchase and the death...and the family just pays the inflation that occurs on costs not controlled by the funeral home. Correct?

Do you know if all funeral homes are required to operate this way? If so, then seems like we should all be going out now and pre-paying at today’s rate.
 
KM said:
Thank you for clarifying!

So you are saying a funeral home would charge the same amount to all three of these people:
- healthy 40 year old man pre-paying his funeral
- 87 year old man who just entered a nursing home
- person who just died

The funeral home gets to keep the “growth” on the insurance policy to cover the inflation of their costs that might occur between the purchase and the death...and the family just pays the inflation that occurs on costs not controlled by the funeral home. Correct?

Do you know if all funeral homes are required to operate this way? If so, then seems like we should all be going out now and pre-paying at today’s rate.
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We FH DONT HAVE TO FREEZE the costs. Most do so you have to ask and get in writing that it is frozen.

Yes, we all are regulated by FTC. Federal Trade Commission. We all have to provide a general price list. Everyone pays the same as FTC requires us, to do. The law. We like that young people prepay, means future business is guaranteed. ��
 
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My parents both pre-paid and everything really was in place except an obit.

My question would be why not just have a life insurance policy to cover funeral costs instead of taken one out just for 10 to 15K?
 
street said:
My parents both pre-paid and everything really was in place except an obit.

My question would be why not just have a life insurance policy to cover funeral costs instead of taken one out just for 10 to 15K?
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Of course you could and many of my family’s do. However since you did not pre pay at a Funeral home, nothing frozen .
I did a service 2 weeks ago for a family and they pre paid for there mother 12 yrs ago. Saved them 3000 on a full burial service over just using insurance at today prices. Works the same on any type of service . Any type of service will double in price every 10 years. A 2000 dollar cremation today will be 4000 or more in 10 yrs. and with cremation becoming more popular, cost will increase faster . Just like everyone wants to live on a lake or beach cost is higher. If its popular cost will increase faster.
 
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Brat said:
I ran the ash distribution option by the kids, they are adamantly opposed claiming they want a place to go. Little do they know that about 3 years after our passing their lives will be too full for visitation.
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In my estate instructions I left a note for my son that he should do with my remains as he sees fit. If he wants a gravesite to visit or an urn to keep, great. Otherwise spread my ashes in the woods behind my house, or some place like that. If I feel otherwise later, I'll update it or pre-pay a plan. I've mentioned this to him and got no objection.
 
I can certainly see the idea of pre-paying if you think you (or your parent) is on a glide path that runs out of money. Thanks to M298 for chiming in here.

I can also see making as many decisions as possible before you go, so the kids won't have to make those decisions. I'm especially concerned about them disagreeing on what "Dad would have wanted". Pre-arranging with a local FH may be the best way to tie up those details.

We bought cemetery plots last year. If we die suddenly, that's one decision the kids won't have to make. If we eventually decide we'd rather go the scatter the ashes route, then we can resell the plots.

I should probably write out more stuff today, just in case.
(My 38 year old daughter has written funeral instructions. Her fiance died suddenly a few years ago, and she wants to be ready.)
 
Independent said:
I should probably write out more stuff today, just in case.
(My 38 year old daughter has written funeral instructions. Her fiance died suddenly a few years ago, and she wants to be ready.)
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Wow! That would be difficult, and her response is quite logical.

DW has written out what she wants. I am in the category of - the funeral is for the living, do what makes sense at the time, though I have agreed on cremation.

Back to the OP: In the case of looking at medicare coverage in the future, I think a prepay makes perfect sense if it is within the medicare guidelines ( and it sounds like it is).

Regarding pre-paying for my (and DW) own: While I think we will still be local at the time, it is possible we would move out of the area when MIL passes (but God bless her, she is 88 and still going strong). So we will defer that for a while.
 
CardsFan said:
Wow! That would be difficult, and her response is quite logical.

DW has written out what she wants. I am in the category of - the funeral is for the living, do what makes sense at the time, though I have agreed on cremation.

Back to the OP: In the case of looking at medicare coverage in the future, I think a prepay makes perfect sense if it is within the medicare guidelines ( and it sounds like it is).

Regarding pre-paying for my (and DW) own: While I think we will still be local at the time, it is possible we would move out of the area when MIL passes (but God bless her, she is 88 and still going strong). So we will defer that for a while.
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If you choose a family owned funeral home, not a chain you can take the pre-paid arrangements with you anywhere is USA . The FH in your new town will claim the insurance money and perform the services. Most will accept the price as paid in fund.
 
Monterey298sc said:
If you choose a family owned funeral home, not a chain you can take the pre-paid arrangements with you anywhere is USA . The FH in your new town will claim the insurance money and perform the services. Most will accept the price as paid in fund.
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Thanks for that info. I guess that is part of the reason this is handled with an insurance 3rd party.

FWIW, I am presuming you are a local family owned FH. When Mom and Dad passed we used a local FH. Family owned, and we knew the family (marginally). The process in that environment was so easy, and personal. Made it very easy. And there was never a request for money at arrangements. I even offered, and they said, no problem, we will bill you so you have time to arrange the family assets (which were not large), to pay out of the estate.
 
Monterey298sc said:
Of course you could and many of my family’s do. However since you did not pre pay at a Funeral home, nothing frozen .
I did a service 2 weeks ago for a family and they pre paid for there mother 12 yrs ago. Saved them 3000 on a full burial service over just using insurance at today prices. Works the same on any type of service . Any type of service will double in price every 10 years. A 2000 dollar cremation today will be 4000 or more in 10 yrs. and with cremation becoming more popular, cost will increase faster . Just like everyone wants to live on a lake or beach cost is higher. If its popular cost will increase faster.
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Thank you for the help on this subject greatly appreciated by all.

"Nothing Frozen" which would mean the look back for Medicaid right. A life Insurance policy would have the look back, but not the pre-paid funeral?
 
CardsFan said:
Thanks for that info. I guess that is part of the reason this is handled with an insurance 3rd party.

FWIW, I am presuming you are a local family owned FH. When Mom and Dad passed we used a local FH. Family owned, and we knew the family (marginally). The process in that environment was so easy, and personal. Made it very easy. And there was never a request for money at arrangements. I even offered, and they said, no problem, we will bill you so you have time to arrange the family assets (which were not large), to pay out of the estate.
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That is correct, also the law to protect family money has to go into insurance not FH own account. If we get caught doing that we loose our license to practice.
 
Bir48die said:
BTW my wife’s dad is downstairs in the storage room
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My wife's father wanted his ashes spread on some property near a river where he grew up. After he died we found out that area is now developed with houses. So for the last six years his ashes have been in a small box in an armoire at my mother-in-laws house. I think the new plan is to bury his ashes with my wife's mom when she dies.
 
mountainsoft said:
My wife's father wanted his ashes spread on some property near a river where he grew up. After he died we found out that area is now developed with houses. So for the last six years his ashes have been in a small box in an armoire at my mother-in-laws house. I think the new plan is to bury his ashes with my wife's mom when she dies.
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This is the new problem in our industry is people calling us FH to take back cremains we services years later because they are kept on a shelf and the other spouse dies and house is sold and new owners find the cremains. So sad
We don’t take them back.
 
Scuba said:
Depends on the family. I have never visited any relative’s grave. We have no children and even if we did, I’d prefer that they cherish memories and photos of us alive rather than keep an urn with our ashes in it.
Click to expand...

Here's an idea. You can now do a Doob and give the kids a 3D figurine of you while you are still vertical.

https://www.doob3d.com/
 
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