How To Plan A Funeral That You Can Afford

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Planning a funeral can be a big headache for a lot of people because they are afraid that they are not going to be able to afford it. While it is true that many funerals are starting to cost more and more money, you can make certain decisions that are bound to help drive the cost down. To ensure that you are planning a funeral that you can afford instead of one that is going to put you in financial trouble, you will want to make use of the following tips.

Schedule Only One Day And Time For A Viewing

Viewings are important, as they give friends and family time to come say their final goodbyes or to pay their respect. However, the room used for this is not free, and you have to pay for the number of days and the number of viewings you want to have in that space. This is because once you are set to use it, it is not going to be used by any other families during that time. They also have to keep the room clean for you and prepare all of the seating arrangements for you and your guests.

To cut back on costs, you will want to schedule one day for viewing instead of two and schedule just one evening viewing instead of an evening and morning viewing. This will ensure that you are not spending too much, but that you are giving those who want to stop by a chance to do just that.

Ask For Monetary Donations Instead Of Flowers

Tradition has stood strong throughout the years, as people like to spend very nice flower arrangements to the funeral home. The flowers are then displayed during the viewing and service, with some possibly going to the grave site once the burial is completed. However, many of the flower arrangements can cost a lot of money. It might be better if that money went towards the cost of the funeral.

People can actually spend less than they would on the flowers and yet make a bigger positive impact on the family by making a monetary donation to the funeral home. Just have the funeral home aware of your intentions and have this information listed in the newspaper and online obituary, so people are aware of this.

Consider A Cremation Instead Of A Burial

Instead of paying for a casket, grave site, and headstone, you can opt to have a cremation done instead. You can then have the ashes placed in a beautiful urn that you can put away for safekeeping or display nicely on a shelf or mantel in your home. Some people share the ashes with siblings or even spread the ashes in the ocean or in a location that was special to the deceased.

For more assistance, you might want to reach out to the funeral director of the funeral home you plan to use. He or she will most likely have helped many people like yourself throughout the years and will be able to suggest some things that can help you keep the cost down. Therefore, do not be afraid to mention to the funeral home director that you are having some trouble with finances and that you need some help planning a more affordable funeral.

Check out a website like http://www.hitzemanfuneral.com for more information and assistance. 


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