Jeesh Louise!! Have you any idea what funerals cost?

That's crazy. My Mum's lovely funeral last year cost about $8000 AUD all up including coffin, cremation, funeral home fees, lots of flowers, newspaper notice etc.

Seriously? you own a piece of land that is 39 inches by 39 inches. I'm totally gobsmacked that the land registry would register a piece of land that size.

My dad's funeral was around 5k. We had a nondenominational service at the funeral home and a lovely luncheon for about 35 people. We didn't have a wake and he was cremated.

Cremation is far cheaper. My dh and I had discussed what he wanted long before his death, thankfully. 

He was cremated and we had a ‘celebration of life’ at the funeral home for 4+ hours. It was just like a wake except his remains were there and not his body. It cost a bit over $5000 including the obituary in the local paper. Flowers were separate. 

It can be done far cheaper. My dad's youngest brother died and left instructions that my dad handle the arrangements. My uncle had no money. I knew it was coming, so I planned it out ahead of time. We had uncle cremated and held a small memorial at my church. I bought deli trays, buns, and a cake. Friends at church made coffee and lemonade. All in, it was about $1000.

That’s hilarious that you own ‘land’ in Scotland! Whereabouts in the country is it? Do they tell you the exact location? Maybe one of us could go and take a photograph of it for you! And if it’s at the bottom of my garden, then it’s high time you got those weeds under control. 😄

OMG Lesley - that would totally be hilarious!! The kids bought DH one for Father's Day. Buying a "plot" was a huge thing circulating here at Christmas time. It was normally $200, but there was a Father's Day sale so the girls picked it up for $50 lol. If we get coordinates I'm totally sending them to you ha ha.

The official paperwork we printed off for the certificate does say "The Lord hereby covenants with Established Titles that the dedication agreed upon in this Proclamation is for the Lord and their successors in title only and that they and any of their successors shall not sell the dedication of plot number XXXXXXX more specifically not in such a way that it could be registered or owned in separate titles or in separate ownerships.

My nephew owns a plot of land in Scotland and he is a Lord. His is in or near Glencoe at Highland Titles Nature Reserve. He has the coordinates and when we were travelling in Scotland a few years ago we went there and took photos for him. It’s a lovely spot with a stream close by. He’s a mad fisherman so was happy about that, but was disappointed that there was a “No Fishing” sign so he can’t even fish from his own “land”.

I’m wondering what the plots are for if you’re being cremated?

Four years ago I paid $650.00 for my mother's cremation. She was in a nursing home and all assets were liquidated prior to her placement in the facility. So, she was on medicare and medicaid and that is what I paid. No funeral, she was almost 100 so no friends and no family except me and I did not need an event. I keep her and my father's ashes in my closet.

Unless everyone for generations plans on keeping them on the mantle or you have a specific place you want them spread (and there are laws about that) they have to end up someplace.

We’ll be having this discussion with FIL soon because I don’t think his new wife enjoys having my MIL’s ashes prominently displayed on their bookshelf.

The ashes and any thing remaining is sorted through. Any 'new' body parts (hips, screws, etc) is tossed. The remaining bones are put through a hammer mill to pulverize, then it is sealed in a bag.

Most people I know have the urn interred at a cemetery with a head stone.

I know there is a lot of ash spreading done, without any real permission. It is not really a legal thing to do, but who is going to know.

I know of a few that split up the ashes, so family members can all have a little bit.

Funerals, even cremations, are shockingly expensive and real hardship for many. Just think about it, if rent and food are an issue every month - toss in a several thousand dollar funeral on that. I see a lot of Go Fund Me's for funerals. That is so sad.

One young gal lost her mom in a horrific car accident. It was so bad. But the local funeral director, who also had to collect the remains from the scene, really helped her out and was able to go through the Iowa Cremation Society for a very low cost service. But in Iowa, the lowest cost is just under $1000. Social Security will pay about $250 for death expense, if you qualify.

It's tough. When a loved one passes, you are under major stress. The though of doing the 'cheapest' option can be off-putting. To say the least. Immediate cremation is the cheapest, but as it says - it is immediate. It's hard to process that sometimes.

So do you family a favor. Express your wishes and have them in writing! That way they know. They can say "This is exactly what Mom wanted" .. it makes a difference. Spending 5K to 20K is just nuts.

direct cremation in my area is $1900 - no service, no wake, no urn (ashes returned in a cardboard box). And it needs to be paid up front if there isn't life insurance.

When my mum died in 2019 (not local to me) - we did direct cremation with a funeral home service and buried her ashes in her parents' plot, added her to the existing stone. It was about $6-7000.