Funeral-related expenses have tripled over the past 25 years to upwards of $6,000 per ceremony, leaving many families struggling to afford the cost of burying a loved one. Here is what the average family spends on a funeral:
Graveside catering: $3,000
Rights to Psalm 118: $75
Urn with “#1 Dad” engraved on side: $400
Embalming: $99 per limb
Fee for nurse to perform last minute pulse check before sealing casket lid: $5
Brother’s speaking fee: $400
Electric anti-gopher fence: $699
Extra-brawny pallbearers capable of lifting 310-pound corpse: $15 per hour
Paying off the mistress: $10,000
Closure: $2,482.30
