Keohane Funeral Home

Featured FAQ: Why Do People Pre-plan Funerals?

November 15, 2018

The number one reason people plan in advance for a funeral is peace of mind. Those who preplan achieve this knowing that they will not be a burden to their families; that their arrangements take into accord their own wishes as well as their family’s needs; that it fits into their estate plan, and that they can realize financial savings.

“We receive inquires on a daily basis. For years, families called because they have heard that Medicaid allows you to prepay funeral arrangements, but more and more people are calling now because of the other benefits of advance planning. Many of these people have experienced the loss of a family member who did their own advance planning and now, having experienced the benefits of it, want to do so for themselves,” said Joe Reardon, Vice President for Community Development and Advance Planning.

Pre-planning is a safe way to protect one’s family from the emotional and financial burden of having to make funeral arrangements after someone has died. For those who aren’t ready to make a financial commitment, advance funeral planning is still helpful because they are able to gather information and make important decisions in a less stressful environment.

“While setting aside financial resources to relieve family members of the burden of paying for funeral expenses and protecting assets for Medicaid eligibility are great benefits of advance funeral planning, the greatest benefit of advance funeral planning is peace of mind. I often share with families the experience my family had when my mother-in-law died. While the financial benefits of advance planning were helpful, the fact that the “business” side of the arrangements were complete gave us the peace of mind we needed to focus solely on how we could enjoy the support of our family and friends in creating truly personal and meaningful ceremonies. This made all the difference in the world for our family,” said Joe.

What Do I Need to Know About Pre-Planning?

Keohane has been on the forefront of the advance planning movement for many years. We are fortunate to be the only funeral home on the South Shore offering a full time Certified Preplanning Consultant who has extensive experience with long term care and Medicaid issues. Advance planning can save money through our cost protection program and through the irrevocability option protecting the funds from the high costs of long term healthcare.

“Whenever I meet with a family considering advance planning, I always lay out all of the options and benefits of pre-payment. Since Massachusetts has very strict regulations about paying for funerals in advance, any funds used for advance planning must be deposited in trust with a third party which provides a huge level of comfort for families knowing that if they moved or if the funeral home went out of business, they could transfer their money to another funeral home,” said Joe.

Our hope is to be able to provide as much information as people need to make the best decisions for their families. Discussing funeral arrangements may be difficult, but we believe that those who do are helping themselves and their families.

For more information on pre-planning a funeral or to request a copy of our funeral planning guide, please contact Joe Reardon at 1-800-Keohane (800-536-4263).