The LAST THING you want to do

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Alas, the benefits of a quick, low budget cremation may be offset by a regrettable tendency to procrastinate when it comes to dealing with ash disposal. Did the deceased forget to leave instructions? Is the family itself scattered around the countryside, unable to gather for a timely sprinkling ceremony? Showing me around his funeral parlor, one undertaker opened the door into a room full of blue cardboard boxes - unclaimed ashes. If you don't want to wind up a trapped spirit in cosmic limbo, warn your family that you'll come back to haunt them if they ignore your wishes.

In fact, whatever your plans, a family discussion is essential. One bromide of the funeral trade still holds true: funerals are for the living. No sense inflicting unnecessary pain on the survivors.

Considering that funeral expenses average $6,000 in the United States, not including cemetery and monument costs and that many funerals are unplanned, there's plenty of opportunity for savings.

The $1,500 Bouquet

Though the actual costs of a funeral vary widely depending on where the services are pur chased, average funeral costs break down this way (and, like a wedding, can easily get way out of hand):
Casket: $2,000
Vault: $1,000.
Small Burial Plot: $1,000
Headstone: $1,000
Embalming: $500
Cremation: $1,000
Urn: $500
Church or Synagogue Honorarium:
$50-$500
Flowers: $500 (country) $1,500 (city)

AVERAGE COST $7,050-$9,000

If you do choose a whole body funeral, you're probably going to need the services of a funeral home. The body is usually transported from the place of death to the funeral establishment, where it is prepared for burial. However, unless the body can be buried within a few days, it may need to be embalmed. If a memorial service is planned with the deceased present, the body is placed in a coffin and transported to the church or synagogue. It's also usually possible to have a memo rial service at the funeral home itself. Burial customarily follows the service.

If ever there were a time for planning, this is it. People are often so grief-stricken when relative dies that rational choices are impossible, and some undertakers cash in on this pain. But remember, plan ahead doesn't mean pay ahead. Many undertakers will try to coax potential clients into signing up for a fixed fee funeral "whenever the time comes."

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