Why Plan Ahead

Frequently Asked Questions

• Pre-planning versus pre-funding? what is the difference?
  When someone Pre Plans their funeral, they decide what type of funeral service they would like and make selections on all of the items/merchandise. We keep their selections on file at the funeral home. Nothing is paid for. When someone Pre funds their funeral, they also decide what funeral service they want and make selections and either pay for it completely or make arrangements for payments.
• What are the options to pre fund your funeral?
  You have various options: 
  - INSURANCE: You can purchase insurance to cover the cost of your funeral.  A form of whole life insurance; you would purchase a specialized insurance policy  that has growth value, meaning that the face amount or death benefit will increase over time by interest paid on that amount, it is this interest that helps to  defray the cost of inflation to pay for funeral costs at the time of death. Pre need insurance may be paid either by  a one-time cash premium with no further premiums due for the term of the contract, or by installment payments. If you decide to make installment payments, you would  make a down payment, be in $100 or more to initiate the contract and then you can decide how much you want the payments to be and how often,  monthly, quarterly, annually etc.. There is no service charge for selecting a payment option. Policy growth and the payout amount are not taxable to the purchaser.
  - LIFE INSURANCE POLICY: If you have an existing life insurance policy, upon your death,  whom you designate as the beneficiary of the policy, can assign the policy to the funeral home and the funeral bill will be paid with the insurance money. The beneficiary of the insurance policy will then receive the remainder of the money from the policy. This is known as an insurance assignment to the funeral home. Also, in Illinois you are allowed, before your death,  to assign the benefits of an existing life insurance policy to the funeral home in order to cover your funeral expenses.
  - SAVINGS ACCOUNTS:  are existing assets that may be earmarked in advance for funeral costs. However it is important the you ensure that your family and attorney have been informed and that provisions are made to access the funds upon your death.
• When you prefund your arrangements, is your money secure?
  We entrust your money to our preneed insurance provider, Homesteaders Life Company. It is a national leader in providing pre-need insurance for hundreds of thousands of people. Please click on Homesteaders Life Company to learn more about the company.
• Are pre funded arrangement accepted at any funeral home?
  Should you move out of state or the area or decide you want to  use another funeral home, all funeral pre arrangements are transferable to any funeral home in any state, with no penalty to you.
• What is the advantage of preplanning if someone goes into a nursing home?
  Many times when people will need to go into a nursing home for care, upon admission they will be told by the nursing home staff to prearrange their funeral so that all their wishes are known and the cost is established.  The reason for this is: if a person has their prearrangements completed and marked as irrevocable, the expenses for their funeral are not considered part of their estate and therefore is exempt from the requirements for spend down. Please click here to see what the requirements for spending down your estate are before one (a single person) can be eligible for Medicaid. If you are married, there are certain requirements that will need to be followed that will impact your and your spouse's estate. Please click here for information regarding the requirements.