Tips for a Cost-Saving Funeral

Picking a funeral home in Reading, PA is not always an easy task and will dig through your pocket if not managed well. In this article we will go about some tips to help you in cut expenses when availing services from a funeral home in Reading, PA.

Seek Options

You would not go to the whichever dealer is nearest and decide to purchase the first car that you see without looking at other options that the salesperson is recommending. But sadly, that is just exactly how most people will consume funeral goods and services. There is a notion that makes most people simply presume that they have no option than to pick a nearby funeral home. And at the worst case, some even use the same funeral home even that they have hired in the past even if the service was shoddy. If you are not employing the services of a funeral home for a viewing or service, then basically, you will not be needing the use of a local facility. And as a tip, you might want to widen your search as the one in a neighboring town which might be even be offering services at half the price you are paying and for a convenience you might not need. There are state laws that will require funeral homes to state the prices over the phone when you ask for them and they should also hand you a price list that is itemized per cost whenever you start talking about the proceedings in person. While it may not be as easy as it sounds, shopping around for the cheaper funeral home might just save you a few thousand dollars.

Tell your Family and Ask for Opinions

How do you imagine yourself when you go to your final resting place. Do you wish to be buried or cremated and do you want to be embalmed and viewed? If you decide to be buried where would you want it to be or where would you ask your loved ones to scatter your ashes? Get a pen and paper and write them down for you to then share with your likely survivors. When you decide that you want something that simple for your funeral then you have to let your survivors understand in a way that is not easily misinterpreted. In the worst case they may end up spending way more than you initially envisioned for yourself. And should you tell them specifics on the kind of funeral that you are hoping to have, without enough details on your part, you give them the problem of having to plan it all and they may have to deal with expenses which could be far beyond what you thought it would cost. Do not write your requests in your will or a deposit box which can only be opened upon your death because in this situation it will be likely that will not see it and they will not have enough time to prepare for other arrangements for your funeral. Put such matters in a place that is both easily accessible by your loved ones and subtle enough for other people not to notice.

Limit the Expenses

When looking for funeral homes in Reading, PA, always bring a trusted and sensible friend with you. There are quite a lot of people that believe that the amount of money spent is directly proportional to the love they have for that person and they usually end up buying more than what is necessary for a reason as shallow as guilt. Be wary of sales personnel that may talk you into buying something extravagant as a token of love for your dear departed. The price of the casket should never be a reflection of how much you care for that person. While you want the funeral to be beautiful and memorable there are many ways to achieve this such as having distinct and customized memorial observance especially made for him/her. It will become more meaningful to the people that he/she holds dear in his/her heart compared to the one that looks just like every other flashy and needlessly expensive service. Some famous people especially in literature, opted for cremation which cost less than what an average family spends. They simply put all the efforts on the gatherings that come after. Perhaps this speaks to the character of most people that have prepared their own funeral before hand that was made specifically with the thought of simplicity and humility.

Look further Online

When looking for caskets and other funeral materials, you can go online for a fraction of the price charged by most of the funeral homes. There is a federal law that requires mortuaries to allow its clients to bring their own casket even if they bought that casket from an external vendor and neither can they charge any extra fee for doing so. If you keep looking for caskets you will realize that there are quite an assortment of choices that includes wood veneer, cardboard printed with wood grain or a wide variety of patterns and pictures, and cloth-covered. There is also the ultra-cheap option of using plain cardboard which can be especially meaningful when guests, including children, are allowed to paint, draw and write personal goodbye messages on it. Another option is to choose the minimum container and cover it with a quilt, flag, or other attractive material. This material can represent what mattered the most for the one to be buried and in a way can be his/her final message to the world he/she leaves behind.

While it is never easy to plan out something that you may not even see for yourself, should you be planning for your own, there is at least a way for you to ensure that the cost will not exceed a number that you have set yourself. This will allow your survivors a way to grieve without having to worry about anything more.