Funeral Planning & Costs
When a loved one dies there are many issues to be addressed. One of the most pressing is that of the funeral. Here we provide some things to consider in your planning.
One thing to keep in mind is that costs can vary significantly between funeral homes and casket sources.
Burial Arrangements
- Choose funeral home
- Choose casket source
- Purchase burial plot
- Funeral/service dates/locations
- Coordinate police escort, if needed
- Services of clergy, musicians/singers
Notification of friends and family
- Those in address books
- Social Media friends
- Clubs and organizations
- An obituary
- About charitable donation accounts in lieu of flowers
Funeral Services
- Decide whether the funeral home director or someone else with coordinate the funeral
- Decide location of service(s)
- Decide funeral speakers
- Determine family transportation
- Flower transporatation to/from burial
Post-Burial Considerations
Notify the following as applicable.
- Deceased’s attorney and CPA
- Social Security Administration (deceased’s benefits and survivor benefits)
- Military and/or Veterans Administration
- Insurance companies
- life
- health
- automobile
- home/renters/other
- business
- Banks and credit card companies (including store charge cards)
- Sources of real estate, vehicle, and other loans
- Investment companies holding retirement/investment accounts
- Organizations to which the deceased paSys dues or has a membership
Cost Considerations
Many items are optional.
- Funeral director and staff costs (called the Non-Declinable Fee)
- Transportation of the body from place of death to the funeral home
- Refrigeration of the body
- Body preparation
- embalming
- dressing the body
- placing in the casket
- makeup
- hair preparation
- Public viewing at the funeral home
- Conduct of service at the funeral home, graveside, and/or other locations
- Transportation of the body to other viewing/service locations
- Visitors book at the viewing(s)/service(s)
- Thank you cards
- Programs for the service(s)
- Transportation of the body to the location of internment
- Flower transportation
- Family transportation
- State/federal offices if deceased owned a business
- County tax office if a property owner
Additional Costs
Normally in addition to funeral home charges ($4000 to $8000)
- The casket. This can make up much of the additional cost if purchased from a funeral home. Let us help you reduce this cost
- Burial plot
- Opening and closing the grave
- Grave liners during the graveside service
- Cost of an obituary
- Flowers
- Services of clergy or other speakers, musicians
- Cost of police escorts
- Other costs not specifically included by the funeral home in their pricing
Additional Resources and Information
Funeral Consumers Alliance of Central Texas (FCA~CTX, formerly AMBIS) (http://fcaambis.org/)
Funeral Consumers Alliance (national organization) (http://www.funerals.org/)
Time Warner Cable News – Austin: Nonprofit helps relieve the stress of funeral arrangements (http://www.twcnews.com/archives/tx/austin/2010/01/24/nonprofit-helps-relieve-the-stress-of-funeral-arrangements-TX_264789.old.html)
