M U E L L E R - B I E S F U N E R A L H O M E
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HOW MUCH DOES A FUNERAL COST ?
We are frequently asked the question.... "How much does a funeral cost?" In order to provide the answer to this question, Mueller-Bies Funeral Home has developed this planner to provide you with information that may be useful in planning funeral services or comparing our charges with other funeral establishments.
Funeral costs consist of three types of charges –
1. SERVICES - Services, facilities and transportation by the funeral home
2. MERCHANDISE - Casket, outer burial container, urn, clothing, etc.
3. CASH ADVANCES - Items that are purchased outside the funeral home such as obituary notices, flowers, police escort, clergy honorarium, music, cemetery charges, etc.
SERVICES
What type of funeral do I want ?
Funeral homes provide many options today. Services range from immediate disposition services such as immediate cremation or immediate burial with no rites or ceremonies to complete traditional funerals with visitation and funeral rites. The cost of the funeral services is determined by the level of service which you wish the funeral home to provide.
The following list provides the cost for various types of funeral services:
Complete, traditional funeral with visitation.........................................................................$4195.00
Traditional funeral with visitation one hour only prior to service.......................................3800.00
Funeral and visitation with no embalming and no viewing..................................................3620.00
Funeral only with no embalming and no viewing..................................................................3225.00
Immediate burial with graveside service.................................................................................2390.00
Immediate burial with no attendant rites or ceremonies.......................................................2195.00
Immediate cremation with memorial service and visitation at the funeral home.............3285.00
Immediate cremation with memorial service only at the funeral home..............................2890.00
Immediate cremation with no attendant rites or ceremonies................................................2295.00
Please see the GENERAL PRICE LIST for itemization of the above services.
MERCHANDISE
Do I need a casket ?
Services with the body present for reviewal or services that involve burial usually require that a casket be purchased. A rental casket can be used if cremation follows the visitation or funeral. A rental casket is available in solid oak with a cremation liner for $1195.00. A casket is not necessary if immediate cremation is desired.
Our casket prices range from $990.00 to $3990.00. The following list provides the cost of the caskets.
CASKET PRICE
Solid Mahogany................................... 3730.00
Solid Cherry.......................................... 3285.00
Solid Maple.......................................... 2715.00
Solid Oak............................................... 2755.00
16 Gauge Steel...................................... 2800.00
Stainless Steel....................................... 2800.00
Solid Cedar........................................... 2410.00
Solid Poplar.......................................... 2395.00
Solid Oak w/Veneer........................... 2195.00
18 Gauge Steel...................................... 1855.00, 1880.00, 1950.00, 1995.00, 2145.00,
2195.00, 2235.00, 2305.00, 2360.00
Solid Pine............................................. 2065.00
Solid Poplar w/Veneer..................... 1615.00, 2070.00
Solid Ash w/Veneer.......................... 1990.00, 2395.00
20 Gauge Steel..................................... 1220.00, 1450.00, 1475.00, 1605.00, 1830.00
Cloth Covered Particle Board........... 995.00
Casket selection - The casket you select can be a major portion of the overall funeral expense. We feel it is important to offer you a wide selection of caskets in an affordable range. We offer 13 caskets priced under $2000.00 and 6 caskets priced under $1800.00. Many of these caskets are available in two or three different colors which further increase your selection options.
Our casket display room has 30 different caskets and 10 different outer burial containers (vaults) to select from, all clearly marked with the price. It has always been our policy at Mueller-Bies Funeral Home to allow the family to make these selections in private. After a brief explanation of the caskets and vaults is given by the funeral director, the family can then discuss and select the casket and vault of their choice in private. We respect your privacy and will not follow you around as you discuss a very personal decision with your family members.
Do I need a vault ?
Most cemeteries require an outer burial container or vault for burial. If you own above ground crypt space a vault is not needed. Some cemetery grave spaces called lawn crypts have pre-installed outer burial containers which are purchased with the grave. Fort Snelling National Cemetery will provide a grave liner for veterans and their dependents, or you may purchase the outer burial container of your choice.
The following list provides the cost and descriptions of the outer burial containers:
GRAVE LINER
Concrete Two-Piece Maintenance Shell.....................................................$ 1095.00
SINGLE REINFORCED BURIAL VAULTS
Concrete Construction, Plastic Liner, Sealed............................................$ 1360.00
Painted with Nameplate & Emblem
Heavy Concrete Construction in Base & Cover, Plastic Liner, Sealed..$ 1560.00
Two-Tone paint with Nameplate & Emblem
Heavy Concrete Construction in Base & Cover, ABS Liner, Sealed......$ 1875.00
Two-Tone paint with Nameplate, ABS Cover
DOUBLE REINFORCED BURIAL VAULTS
Extra Heavy Concrete Construction in Base & Cover, ABS Inner Liner...... $ 2390.00
Metal liner of Stainless Steel over ABS, Choice of Cover Design
Extra Heavy Concrete Construction in Base & Cover, ABS Inner Liner...... $ 2720.00
Metal liner of Copper over ABS
Extra Heavy Concrete Construction in Base & Cover, ABS Inner Liner...... $ 2990.00
Metal liner of Bronze over ABS
Prices of Outer Burial Containers & Vaults INCLUDE Delivery, Installation & Lowering Device charges imposed by the suppliers of these units. Some cemeteries install these units themselves and will impose an additional charge.
CASH ADVANCE ITEMS
Cash advance items are goods and services that are purchased from sources other than the funeral home. Funeral homes cannot mark up nor increase these charges to you in any way. For your convenience, we will purchase and or arrange for these items and pay the individual vendors involved. However, we do ask for payment of these items by the day of the services. The following is a list of common cash advance items.
Certified copies of a death certificate -
In Minnesota, these copies cost 13.00 for the first copy and $6.00 each for each copy thereafter. They are purchased from the Clerk of Court and are needed for insurance, title transfers and other financial transactions.
Cemetery charges -
Costs vary among cemeteries. Grave costs will vary in price, depending on the cemetery and location. Interment fees (the charge by the cemetery to open and close the grave) generally range from $800.00 to $1200.00. Fort Snelling National Cemetery will provide graves, interment and markers free of charge to eligible veterans and their dependents.
Crematory charge -
The cremation charge is currently $250.00 (included with charge for immediate cremation). Cremation graves range from $450.00 to $800.00. Interment of cremated remains ranges from $450.00 to $1000.00.
Clergy Honorarium -
It is customary to offer the clergy or church that is conducting the funeral service an honorarium. This is customarily about $200.00.
Music Honorarium -
If there are musicians involved in the service, their fees average $125.00 each.
Obituary Notices -
Obituary notices are billed directly to the family by the newspaper. The funeral director will write the notice with you and place it into whichever newspapers you wish. The St. Paul paper charges $10.65 per line per day. Photographs cost $113. The Minneapolis paper charges $9.95 per line per day.
Flowers -
Flower costs vary among florists. Family bouquets usually cost $75.00 to $200.00 per arrangement.
Motorcycle escort -
If a funeral procession is planned, an escort is necessary to control traffic. The charge is $195.00.
County Medical Examiner Cremation Fee -
If cremation is desired as the type of final disposition, the cremation MUST be approved by the medical examiner which has jurisdiction over the county in which the death occurred. Many medical examiners charge for this approval process and the fees range from $25.00 to $100.
What about all these "extra costs" I hear about?
One hour visitation prior to funeral or memorial service - there is no charge for visitation if the family chooses to have visitation for 1 hour prior to funeral or memorial service.
Register book, memorial folders, acknowledgement cards, and cross or crucifix - no charge if funeral or memorial service is selected. These items combined at other funeral homes usually cost in excess of $75.00 and can cost hundreds more in quantities over 100.
Tent at cemetery - included with vault purchase. Many funeral homes will charge this as a cash advance item and charge you $50.00 to $100.00 for the tent. NOTE: Some cemeteries do not allow a tent installed by the vault company and will charge you directly for their cemetery tent.
Long distance phone calls or faxes - if long distance services are necessary to complete funeral arrangements, we do not charge these to the family.
Weekend or holiday services - no charge. Some funeral homes charge overtime for visitations or funeral services scheduled on weekends or holidays.
No interest charged for 60 days.
Guarantee for pre-paid funeral expenses - if Total Funeral Home charges are paid in advance, it will never cost the family any more, no matter how much prices might rise in the future. (No guarantee for cash advanced items)
