[talleyjm]

Originally Posted by Joe C.

When you sign up for cremation, the cost is known up front. Pay in full or pay monthly installments. Not expensive. And no, you aren't screwed if the company pulls goes away. The money is in escrow (state law). They give you a card to keep in your wallet. No matter where in the world you die....they take care of everything, and the ashes are delivered to the designated recipient. No hassle and no fuss. When you die, it's a stressful situation for the next of kin, and sometimes they aren't in a good mindset to make any decisions concerning you. (expensive caskets, big expensive funeral, expensive urn, etc.). This way, YOU make all the decisions before you die, saving your next of kin the stress and worry.
BTW, I went with Baldwin Brothers. I liked what they offered.

We went with Baldwin Brothers, too. Main reason for prepaid for us was out of consideration for our family members who live over a thousand miles away. We each pay $34 a month, for two years, interest free. Really painless. My mother’s prepaid and preplanned arrangements were a godsend to everyone in the family. She even wrote out a rough draft of her obit! We all lived out of state and were working with families to take care of so her thoughtfulness was greatly appreciated. One phone call and done. When my father died it was a totally different story as nothing had been preplanned. Fierce family arguments arose because my siblings wanted him buried at Arlington National Cemetery some 3 hours from my mother’s home and I wanted him buried at a small military cemetery 20 minutes from my mother’s home so she could visit his grave. My mother didn’t know what to do as he had never made clear if he wanted to be buried or cremated or where he wanted his remains to be. My mother ended up agreeing with me and was able to visit my father’s gravesite a couple of times a month. Hubby and I went to the one presentation and signed on the dotted line. We’re betting on Baldwin Brothers with a 40-year excellent reputation still being in business when we die❗️Do your family a favor and don’t burden them with all the decision making while they are grieving their loss.

[Villageswimmer]

Originally Posted by talleyjm

We went with Baldwin Brothers, too. Main reason for prepaid for us was out of consideration for our family members who live over a thousand miles away. We each pay $34 a month, for two years, interest free. Really painless. My mother’s prepaid and preplanned arrangements were a godsend to everyone in the family. She even wrote out a rough draft of her obit! We all lived out of state and were working with families to take care of so her thoughtfulness was greatly appreciated. One phone call and done. When my father died it was a totally different story as nothing had been preplanned. Fierce family arguments arose because my siblings wanted him buried at Arlington National Cemetery some 3 hours from my mother’s home and I wanted him buried at a small military cemetery 20 minutes from my mother’s home so she could visit his grave. My mother didn’t know what to do as he had never made clear if he wanted to be buried or cremated or where he wanted his remains to be. My mother ended up agreeing with me and was able to visit my father’s gravesite a couple of times a month. Hubby and I went to the one presentation and signed on the dotted line. We’re betting on Baldwin Brothers with a 40-year excellent reputation still being in business when we die❗️Do your family a favor and don’t burden them with all the decision making while they are grieving their loss.

Thanks for a heartfelt post.

[Villagesgal]

Prior to Covid I did a lot of world travel and hope to again someday. My children are all over this country. I went with Baldwin, they offered the best package for my needs. Don't put this off, it gives me peace of mind and my children peace of mind, all for a relatively small price. Go to the seminars, ask questions, go home and think about it all, then sign with one of the companies and move on and enjoy the rest of your life knowing you never have to give it a second thought.

[flflowers]

Originally Posted by retiredguy123

In my opinion, paying for a cremation or funeral before you are dead makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.

I did this with my mother as she was in my care last 7 years of her life....she signed and prepaid...she made the decisions of what SHE wanted so family not worry, prepaid so not an additional burden...and most important to us was the signing years before held the cost at time of signing....when it came cremation costs, they had risen significantly !!! It was all so good to pre plan and pay

[LianneMigiano]

Cremation: The only way I'll ever have a smokin' hot body!

[brfree1411@aol.com]

Thank you, what a great summary!

[EdFNJ]

My father had a "prepaid funeral" purchased about 25 years previous to his passing (not cremation) including free transportation in coach 3 years ago. He lived in Ft Lauderdale and cemetery was in NJ. Turns out the "free transportation" cost us $1200 and the "pre-paid" funeral cost us $3700 which was still better than $12,000 but read the fine print VERY carefully before signing anything. I guess a cremation wouldn't have too much transportation expense since you can send a bag of ashes USPS Priority Express for about $45. True story: I managed a "The UPS Store" for a number of years and UPS, FEDEX etc do not allow ashes to be sent although it is very easy to get around it. We had to fight with lots of people who brought in ashes and wanted them packed and shipped by UPS when we told them we couldn't but only could by USPS. One guy want next day UPS and came back in after packing them himself and when we asked "what's in the box" he said "sneakers" which was true according to him.