If you set up an irrevocable, would you suggest doing a pre-paid funeral or would it be better to fund the funeral with the trust money?

I would think that funding the funeral now is better than later. It probably will be cheaper, makes it easier on the survivors, and who knows what will be left in the trust anyhow.

Unless it's against your religion, cremation is the way to go. Much cheaper than embalming and all that, and far less creepy than being laid out like a waxworks figure for your loved ones to gape at.

You also might want to check out something called green funerals. Far less expensive than paying for a fancy casket and kind to the earth! It's also fun to read Jessica Mitford's "The American Way of Death" to get an idea of what the funeral industry is all about. Legislation changed some of their greedy ways as a result of the book, but some funeral directors still prey on the grieving in all sorts of sneaky ways.

Of course, some older people insist on having a traditional funeral with all the trimmings because it's what they're used to. I like the idea of explaining all the options to them and letting them decide. Sometimes, when they find out how much traditional funerals cost today, they change their minds.

I just checked University of Michigan on this and it's not encouraging. med.umich.edu/anatomy/donors/faq.html They're very tentative about whether they will take anatomical donations and all the speedy transportation by a licensed funeral home and risk of paying if rejected fall upon the estate. This still sounds as if it is best to have funeral plans pre-arranged, esp. when it comes to Medicaid limiting your resources.

Oh yes, but in 1960 $700 was about $10,000 to us who know what it was like. Did you know you can order a casket online at a discount? You don't have to have the most expensive model, and/or one can be cremated. I am donating my body to medical science, especially my brain, and they will cremate me for free so there will be no cost at all. Check out the different research entities where you live or if you reside in AZ, there are seven Alzheimer's hospitals, research banks you can use. Mine is Sun Health Research Institute in Sun City, AZ, Mayo Clinic, Banner Research, Barrow's Neurological Institute, Banner Good Samaritan, and I forgot the other two.

Wow you are going to do an irrevocable Trust? I have not seen a lot of people who do that....the majority are Revocable. I don't know that it makes a huge difference other than the fact that if you are a certain religion and you want to make sure your funeral is done in a certain fashion, then I would undoubtedly do a prepaid funeral. The other thing is that it is better for your family not to have to make these decisions especially when just suffering a loss, so as a "gift" to them setting it up would make things a lot easier. Lastly, costs are rising each and every day and if you pre purchase your funeral now, it will most likely be cheaper than when you pass away, thereby saving money.

My parents purchased their plots in 1960 for something like $700 or so dollars, those same plots today, cost in excess of $25,000 each. If they had pre purchased their entire funeral package it may have cost them an additional $700 back then, a mere pittance of what we paid for my father's funeral.

Go pre paid it is better all around.

Assuming you are referring to a irrevocable Trust, you also need a Will, and the details about paying for the funeral can be in the Will. Your Trust will avoid Probate, and pre-paying a funeral is usually more expensive, but I don't know what your loved one wants, where you live, etc. You may purchase "My Attorney" cd at any Office Depot for $29.95 and all the legal information will be explained in layman's terms. Good Luck!