When a loved one passes away and you are responsible for planning the funeral, you may encounter problems if the person did not have money set aside for this purpose. The average cost for a traditional type of funeral today is $7,000 to $10,000, which could be a huge financial burden for your family. If you want to have a nice funeral for your relative, but do not have enough money, consider using these three tips to help you cut the costs.

Build Your Own Casket

Funeral-Tips.com reports that the average cost for a casket is $2,300. If your relative desired to be buried after death, you cannot skimp by choosing cremation instead, but you could reduce the expenses by making a casket yourself.

A casket is simply a box that is placed in the ground, and there are no federal regulations that prevent people from making their own. If you, or another family member, are good at woodworking, you could easily construct a casket to use for the funeral. The only costs you would be for the wood, screws, and hinges.

Host Viewing and Funeral The Same Day

While planning an unexpected funeral can be demanding because of the time constraints, you should take the time to call several funeral homes to ask for quotes. When you ask for quotes, you may find that many funeral homes will offer lower prices when families decide to have the viewings and funerals on the same day.

By doing this, the funeral director and workers will work less, and you may be able to save money because you are only using the funeral home for one day instead of two.

Have The Funeral Somewhere Else

Another great way to save money on a funeral home is to bypass using the funeral home. While you will need to get the body prepared for burial, you are not required to have the funeral and showing at the funeral home.

Instead, you could hold the event at your loved one's church, or you could host it outside at a park. With this option, you will reduce your expenses if you can find a place to use that will not charge you for this.

Planning a funeral is a big job, and it can be very difficult when funds are limited. To learn more about other ways to save money, contact a funeral home like Suess Bernard Funeral Home Inc. in your area.