What Are the Advantages to Pre-Planning Your Funeral?
Advantages to Pre-Planning Your Funeral
It’s a fact of life that everybody dies. When our time comes, it is often up to our surviving family to make sure that our funeral plans be carried out in the way we wish. But what if you’ve never discussed this with them? What if they don’t know what your wishes are? This is where pre-planning your funeral comes in. There are many advantages to pre-planning your funeral, some of which you may not realize. Below, we will discuss a few reasons one may choose to pre-plan their funeral arrangements.
Allows Family Room to Grieve
Probably the most common argument seen in support of pre-planning is to remove the stress of planning a funeral service from your immediate family. Any time a death occurs, emotions are high and decision making can be difficult. Often, there are time constraints on the decisions that must be made, adding more stress to the situation. By pre-planning, these decisions can be made ahead of time. Plans can be made to the most minute of details, allowing your loved ones the space to grieve.
You Can Plan Exactly What You Want
Pre-planning your funeral offers the great advantage of planning exactly what you want. Do you want everyone to wear purple? Great- document it in your funeral plan! Do you like a specific type of flower arrangement for the cemetery after the burial takes place? We can make sure that happens. Pre-planning gives you the opportunity to sit down with your trusted funeral director and document everything, from start to finish, so that your wishes are known.
Relieves the Financial Burden
An advantage of pre-planning that is often missed is the opportunity to pre-pay. There are typically two parts to a pre-planning conference, the gathering of vital and service information, and creating financial awareness. When you are presented with an itemized statement for the goods and services needed for the chosen funeral. With this financial awareness, you also have the option to pre-pay the funeral in full or part. By pre-paying your funeral, you can alleviate this financial stress from your family. For those with the financial means to do so, this is a great option as it takes away the question of “What type of service can we financially support?” from the surviving family. It also gives peace of mind that cost will not be a prohibitive factor in carrying out your final wishes.
You May Have Guaranteed Pricing
When choosing whether to pre-pay your funeral arrangements, one thing to ask your funeral home if they offer guaranteed pricing. As an incentive and advantage to pre-planning, some funeral homes will guarantee part, or all, of the pre-need funeral arrangement. This means that while prices will increase over time, your funeral arrangement does not. Each state has different laws regarding pre-payment and each funeral home sets forth their own rules within these laws. It is always good to ask about these options when making your pre-arrangement.
Pre-planning your funeral has many advantages and can be one of the best parting gifts you leave to your family. From noting your exact wishes, to potentially pre-paying for your arrangements, pre-planning removes some of the stress and worry of making these decisions after a death. This allows your family the space to be present with each other and grieve without the added decisions looming over them. Have you made your pre-plan appointment yet?
