Handing money to a funeral home in West Grove, PA, for a service that will happen on a yet-to-be-determined date may seem absurd on the surface. However, if you’re thinking about your final days, it is one of the smartest moves you can make. 

First, know that you are not handing out cash literally. The payment is made to an insurance entity that will only release the money to the funeral home for the specified purpose. 

Second, these benefits are worth it. Below are five of them. 

1. You Decide How Your Family Will Honor 

If you’ve given thought to how you wish to be remembered, preplanning is the only way to guarantee your vision is executed to the letter. Even if you write a step-by-step guide in your will for family members to follow, circumstances may force them to make changes. 

However, preplanning locks everything in place. Do you want donations in your memory to a local charity? Cremation instead of a burial? Preplanning ensures both your loved ones and the funeral home know precisely how to celebrate your life and memory. 

2. You (or your family) are Protected Against Price Increases 

Prices increase, either through inflation or market forces. But you can protect yourself against the inevitable rise in cost by preplanning and prepaying. You will lock in current prices, and the payment method is more flexible. 

Instead of a huge one-time payment, you can pay a fraction every month over a period. 

Aside from that, at-need plans are usually costlier than pre-need. Funeral homes are more likely to give generous discounts if you don’t require their services immediately. 

3. Preplanning Empowers your Family to Make the Right Choices 

Another practical reason to preplan a funeral is to give your family a clear roadmap. Not every family feels comfortable talking about death and its implications. 

And while we encourage you to have those conversations anyway, a preplan allows you to achieve the same effect without necessarily having “the talk.” 

Your family does not have to wonder how you wish to be remembered. They only have to follow the plan you’ve laid out for them. 

4. It Makes Life Easier for your Family 

A lot goes into planning a funeral. In the first 24 hours of death, there are over 70 details that need attending to. That’s a lot of responsibility to shoulder while confronting the loss of a loved one. 

But you can spare your family this stress and the conflict that may ensue from trying to make these decisions. Instead of figuring out what to do and running errands, they can focus on supporting each other in a time of unimaginable grief. 

5. Preplanning can Help You Smoothen Strained Relationships

Lastly, preplanning a funeral has the knock-on effect of helping you smoothen strained relationships. 

Few things put things in perspective than the possibility of death. Talking about your choices with family members during preplanning reminds everyone of what’s truly important and resolves long-standing differences. 

So, there you have it. Any of these benefits is a worthwhile reason to preplan a funeral. And when you put them together, preplanning is undoubtedly a smart move. 

If you have additional questions or are ready to set an appointment with our West Grove, PA, funeral home director, give us a call or visit us here.