How long do you own a grave for?
When you buy a burial plot, often what you’re actually doing is buying a Grant of Exclusive Right of Burial, which is the right to decide who is buried there for a set period of time (usually about 25–100 years).
Why do cemeteries charge so much?
So why do cemeteries charge people for things under the guise of “the law”? Because cemeteries are by and large private properties, so they can essentially make their own rules. No state law requires every body to be embalmed and, most of the time, refrigeration is enough to keep a body in good condition until burial.
What happens to a grave after 50 years?
What happens when the lease expires, on a new grave for 50 or 75 years? When you buy a grave you purchase the rights of burial in that grave for a set period of time. If the lease is not renewed, the burial rights will run out. No further internments may then be allowed in the grave.
Is it illegal to be buried without a coffin?
Caskets and The Law No state law requires use of a casket for burial or cremation. If a burial vault is being used, there is no inherent requirement to use a casket. A person can be directly interred in the earth, in a shroud, or in a vault without a casket.
How long does coffin last in the ground?
If the coffin is sealed in a very wet, heavy clay ground, the body tends to last longer because the air is not getting to the deceased. If the ground is light, dry soil, decomposition is quicker. Generally speaking, a body takes 10 or 15 years to decompose to a skeleton.
Do you stay in a grave forever?
Generally speaking, when you purchase a cemetery plot, it does not expire, and it will always be yours. However, there are a few things to keep in mind. While the cemetery retains ownership of the land, you are purchasing the right to use the land for a burial.
Can you build over a graveyard?
In the case of a cemetery foreclosure or complete abandonment, sometimes the local municipality will simply take over control and management of the land. If someone were to, for instance, buy the property and build a house or houses over the graveyard, that would potentially infringe upon that right.
Why is funeral expensive?
The bottom line: One reason funerals are so expensive is that many people make hasty decisions under pressure during an emotional time. Don’t be afraid to shop on price, and you can create a loving and respectful funeral at a meaningful savings.
Do caskets stay in the ground forever?
Nothing the traditional funeral industry sells will preserve the body forever. If there is a flood, however, such vaults have popped out of the ground and floated away.