Plan a funeral for $800 or less

By Christopher Solomon

When a loved one dies, the last thing on most people's minds is money. Only later do grief-stricken survivors find out that dying in America is very expensive -- so expensive, the saying goes, that no one can afford to do it anymore.

The average funeral in the United States costs $6,500, according to the National Funeral Directors Association. The true sum can easily reach $10,000 once a burial plot, flowers and other costs are included, the AARPsays.

You needn't go into debt in order to honor the dead, however. In many parts of the country, a loved one can be laid to rest with dignity for less than $800, by choosing cremation and using creativity. Even those who favor a traditional funeral and burial can save hundreds or thousands of dollars by taking a few simple steps.

Whatever your preferences, consumer advocates recommend three steps above all others:

Plan ahead. Talk about death with your spouse and/or parents. Know what they want and commit those wishes to paper. Do they want to be cremated shortly after death with no ceremony? Or do they want a large funeral with a choir -- but absolutely no fancy headstone? Lack of communication is costly.

"There's more psychological baggage surrounding death than any other emotion or life experience -- even sex. And that's why we pay a high price," says Karen Leonard, a researcher for "The American Way of Death Revisited," the update of Jessica Mitford's landmark 1963 muckraking exposé of the funeral industry.

Know your rights. The Federal Trade Commission's "Funeral Rule" requires mortuaries to present a price list of services to consumers before showing them products such as caskets. A new FTC brochure that summarizes your rights is "Paying Final Respects: Your Rights When Buying Funeral Goods and Services." Another detailed but very readable overview is the FTC brochure "Funerals: A Consumer Guide."

Shop around. Many survivors also don't shop around for deals because they consider bargain hunting an affront to the dead. Getting fleeced, however, is hardly a tribute. Even a few quick calls to compare prices once a relative dies can be worthwhile.

"Most people choose a funeral home for the wrong reasons: It's close to their house, or it has served their family in the past," says Joshua Slocum, executive director of the Funeral Consumers Alliance. "The range of prices offered by various funeral homes for comparable services is incredibly wide."

The same funeral package that costs $6,000 at one mortuary can be $2,500 across town, says Slocum.

The $800 (or less) funeral

Though prices vary widely around the country, consumer advocates say a sub-$800 funeral is possible in most places. It requires cremation, however, which now occurs in about a third of all deaths. Here's how:

Choose "direct cremation." Direct cremation simply means that the deceased is promptly cremated, without a funeral service or viewing. Direct cremation usually includes transport of the body, cremation and a cardboard or plastic container for the ashes. Embalming -- the temporary preservation of the body by injecting chemicals -- is usually unnecessary if the body is promptly cremated. Avoiding this expense can save several hundred dollars.

Be sure to ask whether the cost of direct cremation includes the crematory fee; that can cost an additional several hundred dollars.

Even cremation prices can vary -- a lot. In a 2007 survey of prices at 170 funeral homes in western and central Washington state, the nonprofit People's Memorial Association found that the price for simple cremation in the Seattle area ranged from $425 to more than $2,800.

Select the simplest casket. Buying a $5,000 mahogany casket if a loved one's body is soon to be burned to ashes makes little sense. The Funeral Rule requires a funeral home to offer a cost-effective alternative such as an unfinished coffin or a heavy cardboard enclosure to house the body for its trip to the crematorium, where it will be burned along with the body. Ask for one. No state or local law requires a casket for cremation.

Ask the funeral home if a casket can be rented if the body is to be viewed before cremation.

If the total cost of direct cremation is more than $1,000 or so, even in the most expensive areas, "that's not a fair price," says Slocum. "This is not a lot of work for the funeral director." In many places the price should be closer to $600, Leonard says.

Continued: More ways to save

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