Well cremation's not much cheaper. My mother requested cremation...I think she did so because she wanted to spare us some expense. She and my dad had been very ill for a long time and no longer had insurance. I paid nearly $8000 for the viewing and funeral because I wanted a real viewing and the body present at the funeral. That required embalming. I also paid about 700 dollars to rent a casket for the viewing and the funeral. The Columbarium cost me $1749.00.
The cremation itself was only $1000 but all in all, it's no bargain. The best idea is to prepay as much as you can. When my mother in law died she had pre planned and pre payed for everything...right down to the music at her funeral. It was a great relief to my wife and brother in law to not have to make a lot of decisions wondering 'what would mother want me to do?'
My grandfather passed away in May of 2005, he had preplanned everything years earlier. It made things so much easier on my mom and her brother. He did not preplan his funeral Mass (he converted in 1989 at the age of 69), but my mom handled that without too much trouble. BTW, he chose a lovely casket with 4 small Pieta statues on the corners. They were removable, so my mom, my uncle, my brother, and I each got one (mine sits in the living room in front of the family Bible). It was quite a surprise to all of us that he chose such an elaborate casket, as Papa was a very simple man.
This is a great idea!