Skip to content
Journal

Funeral preplanning

Federal rights at a funeral home, what a preplan should settle first, and veteran burial benefits.

What is the FTC Funeral Rule?The federal rights you have at a funeral home, the four places the rule does not reach, including cemeteries, and why no funeral home has to post a price online.Twelve minutesHow to preplan a funeralThe decisions that cost nothing, the itemized list federal law entitles you to, and why the money question comes last.Six minutesHow to write down your funeral wishesPutting them in the will is the common mistake, because the will is usually read after the funeral. What to write, who to name, and the formalities that give the document force.Five minutesHow to write an obituaryA fill-in structure, the facts to gather first, what print actually costs by the line, and who decides the "survived by" list when the family disagrees.Six minutesVeteran burial benefitsWhat a VA national cemetery provides at no cost, what the burial allowance actually reimburses, and the filing deadline that has two exceptions worth knowing.Four minutes

Other topics

Advance directive and healthcare proxyPower of attorneyAfter a death checklistCremation costs and planningAging parents and caregivingWills and estate planningCemetery plots and burialDigital legacy and emergency planning

Reading is not the work. Writing it down is.

Get the 72-Hour File, $37