FUNERAL,BURIAL COSTS

Saw a thread here about being prepared as one never knows...But, I have a question if anyone has gone thru this recently..What was the cost for the funeral home, coffin, and burial plot complete.. Would be nice to know,, as one never knows haha

 

Cost for mother in law about 6 or 8 years ago was about ₱250,000.oo PHPs about $4,000.oo USDs then. My Son in 2004 in the US nearly $7,000.oo. Dying is quite an expense on the living. So make a WILL and pay in advance for some of the death expenses. It will not hurt you but will be a great help for those love you leave behind.

 

We buried my wife's mother in Bayawan this past July, and I'm going to estimate it ran about $5,000 USD, not including a pre-paid package my wife had purchased which covered basic mortuary expenses, a beautiful casket and set up of a in-home viewing. I'll estimate that was about another $1000 which she had paid in installments. It was from St. Peter Chapels, which seems to be a national outfit with branches in almost every province. I thought they did a pretty good job for their part, might be worth looking into one of their plans.

Some expenses were due to the need to purchase of a cemetery plot (Bayawan Memorial Park, a private cemetery built by Philsouth), the long period (I think a month total) of before and after the funeral mourning where people come to the house and pray and you should provide some refreshments, some additional mortuary services because of the delay while we made arrangements to get there from the US, transfer of the remains of her father from a crypt in the public cemetery to the new plot, transportation for what seemed to be their whole outlying barangay to the town for the funeral, and a simple lunch for more than 200 people afterwards.

Definitely some expenses there that not everyone would need or choose to incur. But still far less than would have cost in the US.

 

Well, I'm with you there! But it seems to be only slowly becoming acceptable in the Philippines.

I have had discussions with my wife that if either of us dies in the States and she wants us to be buried in the Philippines, it will probably have to be cremation, so we can be hand-carried. Or in my case, maybe sent in a Balkbayan box

 

I know my mother had to wait an extra week (in Australia) for a custom made Coffin for my Father. What miffed me was she paid $5,500AUD for it when he was Cremated! They do NOT cremate you in a Coffin! Your body is placed into a cardboard box then pushed into the oven! The Funeral Home basically ripped her for an unnecessary $5,500!!

I am not sure of the Laws here, but I have told my Wife to either cremate me and then throw me into the Ocean for all I care, or bury me before sunset the same day I expire, minus a Coffin if so, but she is dead set against that idea, like everything here, I am sure things will be done the way they things do regardless what I say, and when I am gone, I suspect I am not going to worry too much about what may be...

I would just like it not to end up being a financial burden on her, so I think the best plan is to have ready savings onhand for just such an occasion. I have friends back in Oz who paid into Funeral Funds for many years where the company has since shut up shop leaving them high and dry, that is what I suspect would happen here if I paid into one of those Funds. If we have the money in the Bank then that will go a long way towards lightening the load. Now just like all my other ideas, all I need to do is live long enough to try and see that plan through!

 

Many years ago I decided I want to be burned and my ashes scattered in the ocean. I have had a few friends who died here in the Philippines. Together with other friends, we said one last goodbye at the hospital in a room where the store dead people, not nice for sure. Believe me, I saw how the threw around with the dead bodies like it was a sack of rice. After 2-3 days a dead person starts to look like something else, than that person you know before, of course, no aircon or cooling. My gf has order to burn me immediately and throw my ash in the sea. I hear a lot of different prices for a funeral. It is generally known that St. Peters Chapel give commission to the hospital if they recommend their company, cool business

 

What is the cost for cremation? Complete package and who does it ?? Have you checked??

 

Lenny; Try the following Link mate.
https://www.stpeter.com.ph/cremation

It quotes St. James (Cremation before Viewing) and St. Jude (Cremation After Viewing) Prices. (I am not sure if the Packages are called St. James & St. Jude to differentiate between the two options, but assume that might be the case...) The Cremation BEFORE Viewing Option has my mind working overtime as to what your loved ones will be viewing or if it is simply a poor choice of words...

There is also a Cremation Plan fully explained here;
https://www.stpeter.com.ph/pdf/St_Peter_Cremation_Plan__1_.pdf

 

It looks like cremation after viewing has a coffin for the corpse to be on display for a few days.
Cremation before viewing has the corpse getting cremated and then people can come look at the fancy urn.
My wife and I have a basic St Peters burial plan. It cost about 6000 pesos per year for 5 years. I think it includes inbalming, coffin, transport from hospital to mortuary to house, church and cemetery. Some candle sticks etc.
I'm told if you walk in off the street without a plan you would pay 75000 pesos.
The plan is transferrable if it's fully paid up.