Although the Federal Trade Commission mandates funeral service businesses list their general prices for services, other services, costs and items can result in a surprising final bill.
The cost of funerals can range from a couple of thousand dollars to upward of $11,000 or more. Traditionally, funeral service businesses issue a bill for services after the survivors settle the estate and insurance. However, many of the services provided come from other sources that demand payment upfront.Those services include, but aren't limited to, flowers, music, food, obituaries and preparing the grave.
The price of those cash advance items can vary significantly. Flower arrangements can be a few dozen dollars to hundreds of dollars. Monuments can vary by thousands of dollars depending on size and materials. A detailed obituary, at a rate of $20 per column inch, can cost hundreds of dollars. The cost of feeding the mourners can range from a free potluck to a thousand-dollar catered affair.
More funeral homes and funeral service businesses are now requiring payment upfront for those cash advance services.
"Part of it is cash flow," said Shawn Overton, manager at Overton Family Funeral Homes. "Those can involve several thousand dollars."
Funeral service businesses take care of those services as a convenience for their clients, Overton said. However, doing so can leave the businesses open to significant loss.
"My grandfather did that with a handshake," said Eric Locke, a fourth-generation funeral director at Locke Funeral Home. "The national trend is now shifting to upfront payments."
Opting for cremation over traditional burial is another national trend funeral service businesses and cemeteries are seeing. Some trend watchers speculate the choice has to do with cost.
Transporting a body to viewings and services adds to the funeral expense.
A casket can range in cost from about $500 to about $10,000 depending on material. Urns range from about $150 to upward of $1,800. Wooden caskets, because of the labor involved in their manufacture, are actually pricier than some metal models, funeral service providers said.
However, high-end metal caskets, such as polished brass caskets, are some of the most expensive models. Urns have a large range in price because they can be made from a wide range of materials from wood, metal to materials not used for caskets such as marble or other stone. However, urns generally cost less than a casket.
Burial of an urn also costs less. Opening and closing a grave for an urn costs about $400 at Waterloo Memorial Park Cemetery.
It costs about $600 to open and close a grave for a casket, said Angela Crawford, administrative assistant at the cemetery.
However, other societal factors are more likely the driving factor in the rise in cremations, said Overton.
"It's a personal preference," he said "Cost is not the primary reason."
The trend also reflects other national trends, Locke added.
"A big part of it is because society is more mobile," Locke said. Generations ago, a person was more likely to be born, work and die in the same area. Today, people aren't as likely to have as deep roots in one area, he said.
Cremations in Iowa are on pace to equal traditional burials by 2020, Overton added. Cremation also gives families a chance to delay burial, Crawford said. Multiple mourners can also have a memento with the deceased's ashes if families opt for cremation.
Like other costs, interring the deceased in the ground can vary. The time of the week, time of the year, can affect the cost to open and close a grave. Beginning in November, most cemeteries add an extra fee because cutting through the frosted ground takes more effort and special tools.
After closing the grave, closing accounts and settling the estate can take legal fees. At the very least, survivors will have to produce a few certified death certificates.
"You really need a certified copy for each place you're going to send it," said Fred Love, an attorney with Iowa Legal Aid. "You can't just Xerox it."
To help prepare for these varying costs, Locke recommends pre-planning a funeral. Talking about our own mortality can be difficult, but it is becoming more socially acceptable, he said.
"Talking about that stuff is by far the most beneficial thing you can do."
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