Funeral Pre-Planning

Estate Lawyers: What to Expect

June 13th, 2011

Estate lawyers, also known as probate lawyers or attorneys, are responsible for taking the personal representative/executor of a will through the estate planning process. Which means that they are trained to walk you through every step of your estate planning.

Estate Lawyers are equipped to offer legal and educational support helping you to organize and legalize your estate distribution.

Why hire an estate attorney?

If you have a complex estate or family situation that requires detailed planning, hiring an estate attorney to help you is a good idea. A good estate lawyer can build your estate plan, as well as minimize potential taxes and fees, and set up a contingency plan to make sure that your assets are distributed to the correct beneficiaries.

Examples of complex estates and complicated family situations

  • Own your own business
  • Your estate is worth more than 1 million dollars
  • Have a special needs child

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What to Expect From Your Funeral Director

May 18th, 2011

Planning a funeral during a time of grief can be a complicated and frustrating process. The family is left to make many decisions and arrangements for the services that will honor their loved one. Choosing a Funeral Home for the service to take place is the first step.
When choosing a Funeral Home there are several different factors to take into consideration, including:

  1. Funeral Costs
  2. Location
  3. Family and Religious Traditions
  4. Type of Funeral

Funeral Services are influenced by religious, cultural and family traditions along with costs and personal preferences. Every family has their own vision and expectation as to how to honor their loved one. These preferences will help to determine whether the funeral will be religious or secular, public or private, simple or elaborate, open or closed casket and whether the remains will be cremated or buried.

Funeral Director and Grieving CoupleFuneral Directors can help make the process less complicated and more relaxing during this time of healing and closure.

What Does a Funeral Director Do?

  • Provides transportation of the deceased to the funeral home from – the hospital, nursing home, hospice house, residence, etc
  • Helps notify proper authorities, family and relatives
  • Secures necessary permits and death certificates that your town or state requires
  • Gathers information and preparing death certificate
  • Prepares and submits obituary to local newspapers
  • Works with Insurance agents, Social Security or Veteran’s Administrators
  • Prepares the body for burial or cremation
  • Assists the family with funeral arrangements and purchase of the casket/urn, sympathy flowers arrangements, burial vault and cemetery plot and other aspects of the funeral service
  • Schedules the funeral service and the opening and closing of the grave with the cemetery personnel
  • Coordinates all the details with clergy including readings and music
  • Arranges police escort and transportation to the cemetery for the family prior to, during, and after the funeral
  • Works with the family to create personal and creative elements in the ceremony to both honor and celebrate the your loved one’s life.
  • Provides Grief assistance and counseling for the family

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Funeral Pre-Planning

October 28th, 2009

Funeral pre-planning or “pre-need” funeral planning gives you the ability to arrange your funeral in advance without the added burden of urgency during a time of great stress and grief. With funeral pre-planning, you will be able to make your wishes known to your family and relieve them from the burden of arranging your funeral service and burial.

There are three major elements involved in pre-planning a funeral: financing, the funeral service and the burial location. When pre-planning, you can focus on one element, all the elements, or parts of any of the elements.

Financing

Determining how to pay for your funeral is the most significant aspect of a funeral. Many families choose to pre-fund their funerals

Pre-funding is arranged by purchasing or instituting one of the following:

  • Burial Insurance
  • Final Life Insurance
  • Pre-need Insurance
  • Annuities
  • Funeral Saving Accounts
  • Life Insurance
  • Trust Funds

Each of these options has its advantages and disadvantages. Before deciding which option suits your situation best, talk with a financial planner or funeral director to obtain all the facts including tax-liability and risk.

Funeral Services

Pre-planning the funeral service involves deciding several of the funeral service details such as the following:

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