Where to buy cemetery plots

Although the thought of purchasing a cemetery plot for yourself can seem a little macabre, it can lessen the burden on your loved ones later on.

Tt may be wise to pre-purchase a burial plot, especially if you wish to be buried in a specific cemetery. As an example, Ed Koch, a former mayor of New York City, pre-purchased a grave for himself at the Trinity Church Cemetery in Manhattan as prices for plots are on the rise due to the shrinking amount of available space. In the United States, once you have purchased a burial site it is yours indefinitely. However, the laws for each state and jurisdiction can vary.

As an example, a Florida statute states that if the owner of a burial site which would be the remaining family fails to provide the cemetery with a current residence address for a period of 50 consecutive years, and the cemetery is unable to contact the burial site owner s by certified letter mail, then they can begin the legal process of reclaiming the site.

Awareness of the costs associated with burial will help you and your family prepare for the future. Lisa is an experienced writer interested in technology and law. She's been writing for LawDepot since Family Personal. How to Purchase a Cemetery Plot Did you know that cemetery plots can vary in cost from hundreds to thousands of dollars, depending on the type of burial container like a crypt, mausoleum, or columbarium you choose for your remains?

Lisa Hoffart on January 30, The costs for a burial plot can vary enormously from area to area, and even within a cemetery. In order to secure plots, many families buy cemetery plots well in advance to plan ahead for funeral arrangements and guarantee family burial plots. Over the last few decades, when we traditionally buried our dead, many families planned ahead and purchased cemetery plots to ensure they had reserved space to secure their family heritage in the designated cemetery of their choice.

Over the last few years the funeral industry has changed significantly, and cremation is fast-becoming the preferred disposition choice. As the nation shifts towards cremation as an alternative to burial, this presents changes and new challenges for the cemetery industry.

Some cemeteries have adapted by adding memorial scattering gardens within their grounds or adding new sections including cremation niches or a columbarium to their existing portfolio. This is a fundamental shift for the cemetery industry. Full-size burial plots cost more than a small cremation niche, and therefore there is a decline in revenue for cemeteries as we convert to cremation.

In many cases, a family inherits cemetery plots that are no longer required and wish to sell their burial sites. As the price of some burial plots can amount to thousands of dollars, selling an unwanted cemetery plot or mausoleum, has proved a significant way to release family equity.

Likewise, for those undergoing the unfortunate process of burying a loved one, purchasing a cemetery plot for resale from a private individual, can prove a significant way to lower the total expenditure. Purchasing a cemetery plot for sale can prove a lot less costly than purchasing directly from the cemetery. There is an abundance of cemetery plots now coming onto the market for sale. We follow a strict editorial process to provide you with the best content possible.

We also may earn commission from purchases made through affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Learn more in our affiliate disclosure. Funeral costs, memorial costs, caskets, space, and cremation can all add up. Thinking about all of this on top of a cemetery plot can become quite onerous, especially if your family is doing so after your death. However, many people consider buying a cemetery plot ahead of time as a personal preference or religious beliefs.

Anything pre-planned can help your loved ones during one of the most difficult and heartbreaking times of their lives. You have decisions to make, like where you want to bury your body, for how long, and in what kind of state. Below are the kind of questions you may want to ask yourself before selecting where you want to spend forever — or at least as close to forever you can get. This is a grave decision—pardon the pu n — that should be taken to heart.

You may already have a cemetery or memorial park in mind. Perhaps you like more than one location and need to choose between them.

One thing to consider is where your family members are buried or will be. For example, you may want to be buried in one cemetery, but your parents have already bought their grave plots in another one.

You want to be buried next to them, but you like the other cemetery better. What do you do? You may also want to be buried in another place entirely — like in another state. Say you grew up in Massachusetts but eventually relocated to California.