WTF, $10,000 for a burial? What kind of a fucking SCAM is this?

[Odin2005]

My stepdad's burial costs $10,000! One followed by FIVE ZEROS, they expect my mother to pay for this HOW? She gets like $8 an hour as the manager of the local VFW bar and works other odd jobs. She's using all the money sent with the cards she's gotten to pay the funeral bill but she's still gonna have thousands to pay. Seriously, WTF!?! :grr:

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

1. Funerals are crazy expensive

[Mike 03]

2. I have no clue, but I will be paying attention to this thread.

A funeral is in the future for me, so I do care what people have to say on this issue.

[lost-in-nj]

22. mike

:hug:

lost

[Midlodemocrat]

3. Dude. Hate to tell you, but that's cheap.

My dad and mom were upwards of $15,000 each. My FIL was less only because he was buried in the veterans' cemetery here.


My condolences.

[no name no slogan]

4. It cost $18,000 to bury my grandmother in 1996

And I don't think that included the plot, which my grandfather bought 20 years prior.

Sorry to hear about your loss. :hug:

[skooooo]

5. Cremation for me.

It's gotta be cheaper.

[Midlodemocrat]

6. Not by much. You'd be surprised. You still need to purchase a casket.

[Odin2005]

7. Wha...? Why would you need to purchase a casket for a cremation?

Let me guess, god damn lobbyists? :grr:

[Midlodemocrat]

8. Um, no. Health Department.

It varies from county to county, but honestly? I've never heard of one where you didn't need to purchase a casket.

Many people who opt for cremation purchase a very simple box, but others, who have opted for it as well as a viewing, purchase one that they think their beloved departed would 'approve of'.

The caskets can be astronomical. Check Costco, though. They actually sell them. Weird, I know, but they do. You might have to go online.

And, again. I'm sorry for your loss. Added financial stress shouldn't be an issue. When my FIL died, we knew we would have to pay for the service et al, but the night he was buried my husband was hospitalized and needed a quadruple bypass. Needless to say, when that bill arrived, it was a little stress inducing because we weren't sure if my husband was going to be able to work again.

Everything worked out, though and I think your situation will be the same. They will do payments. I learned that from a friend.

[Midlodemocrat]

9. Also if you have a 401K? you can withdraw the money

as a hardship. Just a thought.

[ornotna]

10. Not in Florida you don't

They can cremate me and stick me in a coffee can, then bury the can in the back yard. Woohoo! Honey I'm home.

[lost-in-nj]

23. umm

you can rent them for the wake

or get a cheaper one

I got a full blown one for my mom
but there were a lot of options


:hug:

lost

[havocmom]

24. Huh? don't have a funeral with the body there, no need for casket

Go with memorial service with no guest of honor present and skip paying for a casket they will probably re-sell over and over since it never goes anywhere.

[yellowdogintexas]

40. find a cremation society and pre pay the whole thing. Much much less expensive

Cremation for my aunt was $800 in Oklahoma City

[elifino]

11. I lost my wife in January

Cremation in this area of Georgia is 1/3 the cost of a low cost burial. The cost including visitation and a memorial service was a little over $4,000 for cremation.

[emilyg]

16. Also Georgia

We had Dad cremated - no visitation, no service. Much less.

[Captain Hilts]

12. Yes. Not unusual. Cremation is cheaper. Sorry to hear of his death.

My thoughts to your mom.

[Bravo Zulu]

13. Do it yourself casket kit

Handcrafted with love and care
Add your own personal touch
Solid pine wood construction
Easy to follow instructions


Price: $509.08

Product Description
This Casket Kit is designed for those that wish to use a solid wood casket. No metal is used in the construction or assembly of this kit. Perfect for many faiths with a NO METAL requirement, this solid pine coffin kit has an assembly time of 30 minutes with only a hammer and wood glue required for assembly. Each piece slides into the next, interlocking and creating a sturdy and handsome finished casket. Although we implore the use of wood glue in all of the joints, product testing without glue resulted in a surprisingly strong casket supporting a load of over 200lbs. Included in this kit are all necessary wood panels pre-cut and pre-sanded, rope handles, and a detailed instruction sheet.

Product Details
Product Dimensions: 79 x 26 x 17 inches
Shipping Weight: 88.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
Shipping Advisory: This item must be shipped separately from other items in your order. Additional shipping charges will not apply.
Note: Gift-wrapping is not available for this item.
ASIN: B001CHN4TO
Item model number: KIT-005
Average Customer Review: No customer reviews yet

http://www.amazon.com/MHP-Sandler-All-Wood-Coffin/dp/B001CHN4TO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=hpc&qid=1242976202&sr=8-2

[Iggo]

15. I know this is a serious subject, but ell oh effin ell...

"Note: Gift-wrapping is not available for this item."

:rofl:

[elleng]

42. Thats what I would like for myself;

want to just push up daisies. Have to figure out whom to tell about it.

[LeftyMom]

14. That's insane.

If anybody spends that much on me I WILL HAUNT THEM. And I don't even believe in that kind of thing, but I'm cheap enough that I would find a way.

When Edward Abbey died, his friends buried him in his favorite sleeping bag out in the desert. I think that's first class, and would much rather be disposed of in a thoughtful way like that than in a fancy box in some ridiculous memorial park.

[latebloomer]

19. Ha ha!

My husband's feisty old grandma said that if anybody said anything about God at her service she would haunt them!

We heard and obeyed.

[LeftyMom]

27. That's on the list too.

flvegan has strict instructions on how, should anything happen, I want shit done. Not so much because I care, but because I have really bossy family members who would do things how they want, and I figure if he's the one with the written instructions he's got a better chance of telling them to STFU.

If they insist on an officiant I told him who I trust to leave the god bothering out of it. And if certain family members don't like it, tough shit.

[lizerdbits]

17. I'm donating my corpse to a body farm

No financial burden and help science at the same time.

[bicentennial_baby]

18. Same here

:thumbsup:

[latebloomer]

20. Whoah!

Last I knew- about 8 years ago- it was around 6. That sucks royally. Condolences to your mom.

[lost-in-nj]

21. hate to say it

but they are not cheap


between a casket and plot

the price has gone up

BUT

my brothers WHOLE funeral who died in 1992
was 9k
including casket, viewing, and everything else
have you thought of creamation??
had a viewing for my Mom then a creamation (her request)]
not so expensive

I am sorry

:hug:

lost

[UndertheOcean]

25. WTF , even death costs money

depressing thought

[Lydia Leftcoast]

26. What funeral homes do

is take vulnerable people and show them a series of caskets. The reasonably priced ones look cheap. In logical terms, why should you care about something that's just going to go into the ground or into the crematorium?

But someone who is grieving isn't thinking logically. The funeral directors go on and on about how you "need" a concrete-lined vault (you don't) and a waterproof casket etc. etc. Then they sell an expensive tombstone.

Plus older people tend to have this idea that not putting on a big funeral with a fancy casket and lots of flowers is "disrespectful" to the deceased, and funeral directors take advantage of this. I've seen my mother through the process of burying both my father and my stepfather, and she wouldn't hear of a cheaper casket or not getting a concrete-lined grave.

My brothers and I have all decided that we want something a lot simpler.

[Odin2005]

31. Heh, my mom told me she was thinking the same thing when she was at the funeral home.

[gmoney]

39. pre-planning is the way to go...

you can specify the cheap casket, the low cost service, the modest marker, whatever you feel is right. And you can make payments or buy one of those TV life insurance policies that are basically designed to pay funeral costs. But if you do that, and make all those decisions yourself, rather than leaving it to your (presumably) grieving family, you can save them a lot of stress and decisions and money.

Or enlist in the military, and I think they'll pick up the tab. Unfortunately, you might end up needing it a lot sooner than you'd otherwise require.

[ThomCat]

28. By the time I pass away I'm going to have a bunch of medical issues

that a med schools is going to be BEGGING to let their students study. Hell, they might offer to pay for my corps. :P

My body can just disappear, and nobody but the medical students will ever have to deal with it ever again. No muss, no fuss, and no cost.

[LeftyMom]

29. My step-grandparents did that.

She died young of a congenital heart condition, so the med school got a nice young body in mostly good shape. He was old and had gigantic rheumatoid arthritis knots and some joint replacements and all kinds of other cool shit for the med students to look at. Both donations were very much appreciated.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

32. "all kinds of other cool shit for the med students to look at"!!!

Damn, woman, you got a way with words!!

:rofl:

[LeftyMom]

33. He kinda had this Bionic Geezer thing going in his last years.

Both of his knees and most of the joints in his hands were replaced, he had some muscle atrophy due to paralysis... All kinds of interesting disease processes and medical interventions to look at. Really, it was fantastic that he wanted to donate his body because he had a lot for the future doctors to study.

I really hope whoever got to carve on him developed an interest in one of the conditions he faced and that experience later did a living patient some good.

[Swede]

30. Isn't that the going rate?

I've been to funerals much more expensive than that.

[fortyfeetunder]

34. I am so sorry.

I PM'd you.

[LostInAnomie]

35. Funerals are a scam.

Funeral homes are total rip offs. They know that most people don't plan ahead for their funerals, and are in a very big rush. So, they try to stick you with a bunch of unnecessary things that you don't need.

The best advice I have is to plan ahead. Go to a funeral home before you die and plan out your funeral, then lock it in at that price. That way your funeral is already planned and paid for saving your loved ones the trouble.

[XemaSab]

36. My grandpa bought three plots in Fresno

He's in one of them, my grandma is going next to him, and the next person to die is going next to the two of them.

Please dear God let me outlive my relatives... I will NOT be buried in Fresno. x(

[fortyfeetunder]

37. Find out what's required vs add on....

First, my condolences to you and your family at this sad time.

After experiencing funeral planning, here are some observations on what you could negotiate for in a funeral:

Here are some things to investigate:

For example:

Concrete vault -- depends on the cemetery's requirements.

Funeral transportation -- they will offer you a ride, and that will take you for a ride. At the most a hearse to transport the casket. Find friends with a nice ride that can transport the family from home to the service.

Burial clothes-- Do not buy. Bring your own. What was your stepdad's favorite outfit? In today's services, clothing the deceased can take on all forms.

Funeral programs -- make your own. They will try to sell you memory cards, things like that.
You got a friend who's good with publishing. At the most about 4 pages

Funeral announcement in the paper -- do it yourself, not thru the funeral home. Papers charge by the word.

Transporting the remains -- funeral homes will charge every move made with the deceased. Minimize them.


Here are some other articles:
http://tinyurl.com/oodgd2
http://tinyurl.com/o7rdd8

I hope this can help you and your family.

[Kali]

38. exactly - a scam

there are alternatives but you really have to look and plan - and likely older people won't be into the hippy-ness of do it yourself funerals.

[elleng]

41. Fortunately haven't the experience,

and as Dad is a Vet, Mother was permitted to be buried at VA cemetery; low if any cost.

SO, will have to inform family simply to NOT ACCEPT ANY OF THE CRAP that seems to be related to your stepdad's costs, if and when the need arises.

(I understand how difficult that sounds, and probably is, but as I spent Mother's last 7 months with her, at hospital and nursing home, I feel 'strong' enough to face up to thieves.)

I feel quite strong when it comes to saying, 'No, we don't want that' particular 'service.'

[Callalily]

43. Sorry to hear about the

loss of your step dad, and my condolences go out to your mom too.

Unfortunately, some funeral do cost that much. Funeral directors have a person at their most vulnerable so questions like "how much will that cost?" are rarely asked.

Here are my plans for when that time comes.

http://www.eternalreefs.com/?gclid=CPCqpfyG-JoCFQSPFQodOEgvdw