Learn how pre-arranged funeral plans work, step by step. Protect your family from tough decisions and lock in today’s prices. Devlin Funeral Home, Pittsburgh.
Most people don’t want to think about their own funeral. That’s completely understandable. But here’s the thing: pre-arranged funeral plans aren’t really about death. They’re about making things easier for the people you love when they’re already going through something hard.
If you’ve been putting this off, you’re in good company. This guide breaks it down plainly so you can actually decide if it’s right for you.
What Are Pre-Arranged Funeral Plans?
Put simply, it’s when you sit down while you’re healthy and thinking clearly and decide what you want your funeral to look like. Some people pay for everything upfront. Others just write it all down. Either way, your wishes are documented before they’re needed.
You’ll hear it called funeral preplanning, advance funeral planning, or pre-need funeral plans depending on who you’re talking to. Same general idea, just different names.
The real point is this: when someone dies, their family is grieving. The last thing they need is to spend three days making decisions they don’t feel qualified to make. Preplanning takes that weight off them.
Why Do People Actually Do This?
Most families walk into Devlin Funeral Home thinking they’ll just ask a few questions and leave. Then they start hearing from families who preplanned and they get it.
Here’s what tends to push people toward preplanned funeral arrangements:
- They don’t want their family guessing. Did Mom want to be buried or cremated? Did she want hymns or something else? These conversations don’t always happen ahead of time. A prearranged plan answers them.
- Funeral costs keep going up. Prices in 2030 won’t look like prices today. If you prepay now, you pay today’s rate. Full stop. That’s a real protection, not just a sales pitch.
- They have specific wishes. Some people want a small graveside service. Some want a celebration of life with their favorite music. Some don’t want flowers and would rather donations go to a cause they cared about. None of that happens automatically. You have to say so.
- Medicaid planning. In some situations, prepaid funeral expenses aren’t counted as assets for Medicaid eligibility. If you or a spouse might need nursing home care down the road, this is worth a conversation with an elder law attorney.
Step-by-Step: How Funeral Preplanning Actually Works
Step 1: Have a Conversation First
Nothing is signed on day one. The first step is just talking with a funeral director, without any pressure to decide anything. At Devlin Funeral Home, that initial preplanning conversation is free and carries no obligation.
Most people walk out saying it wasn’t nearly as uncomfortable as they expected. That’s almost always the case.
Step 2: Decide on the Type of Service
This is the big one. Do you want a traditional burial with a visitation and funeral service? Cremation with a memorial gathering? A graveside service only? Or a simple direct cremation with no formal service at all?
There’s no correct answer. It’s entirely personal. Your funeral director can explain what each option typically involves so you can make a real comparison.
Step 3: Get Into the Details
Once the general direction is set, advance funeral planning gets specific. Things like:
- What music do you want played?
- Any particular readings, religious or otherwise?
- Flowers, or would you prefer a donation request?
- Who should speak, if anyone?
- Casket or urn preferences
- Open or closed casket
These feel like small decisions, but they’re the ones that make a service feel like you rather than a generic ceremony. And they’re also the ones your family would have the hardest time guessing correctly.
Step 4: Go Through Pricing
Your funeral director will go through costs with you, line by line. A solid funeral planning guide from the home will show itemized pricing so nothing is buried in the fine print.
Worth knowing: under the FTC Funeral Rule, every funeral home is legally required to give you an itemized price list. You can pick and choose exactly what you want. You’re never forced into a package.
Step 5: Figure Out the Payment Side
Two main options here:
Pay now (pre-need contract). You pay upfront, either all at once or in installments. The money goes into a regulated trust or insurance policy. It’s set aside specifically for your funeral and can’t be touched for anything else. This locks in today’s prices.
Document only, pay later. You record all your wishes now, but your family handles payment when the time comes. You don’t lock in prices, but you still spare your family from having to figure out what you wanted. That’s still enormously valuable.
Which is better depends on your finances and your situation. There’s no universal right answer.
Step 6: Sign and Put It Somewhere Findable
After everything is confirmed, you’ll sign the agreement. Keep a copy at home somewhere your family will actually find it, not buried under old tax returns. Give a copy to your attorney, or attach it to your will.
Devlin Funeral Home keeps your plan on file. When the time comes, your family calls, and the staff already has everything they need.
What Your Family Experiences When the Time Comes
The family calls the funeral home. The staff pulls up the pre-need funeral plan, goes over it with the family, and follows what was documented. If everything was prepaid, the financial piece is mostly done. If it wasn’t prepaid, the family at least knows exactly what was wanted, and that matters more than people realize.
There’s no scrambling. No debating between siblings about what their parents would have wanted. No making decisions at 9pm the night before a service.
Talking to Devlin Funeral Home
Devlin Funeral Home has been part of the Pittsburgh community for a long time. The preplanning conversations they have aren’t sales meetings. They’re genuinely just conversations. Families ask questions, get honest answers, and leave with a clearer picture of what they actually want to do.
If you’re somewhere near the North Hills area and you’ve been thinking about this, or even just thinking about thinking about it, reaching out for a first conversation costs nothing.
Most people say the hardest part was just picking up the phone. After that, it gets easier.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is a pre-arranged funeral plan?
It’s an agreement you put in place ahead of time that spells out exactly what you want for your funeral service and sometimes pays for it in advance. It keeps your family from having to make those calls while they’re grieving.
Q: How much does funeral preplanning cost?
Depends entirely on what you choose. A direct cremation runs significantly less than a traditional burial with visitation. Devlin Funeral Home will walk you through itemized options so you can see real numbers before committing to anything.
Q: Is a preplanned funeral legally binding in Pennsylvania?
Yes. A signed pre-need contract is a legal document regulated by Pennsylvania state law. Funds must be held in trust, which adds both legal and financial protection.
Q: Can my family change things after I’m gone?
They can sometimes add things like a reception or extra flowers, but they generally can’t remove or significantly alter services that were already paid for. That’s actually the point. Which is why it helps to talk with your family about your plan while you’re still here to explain it.
