Planning a funeral before it is needed can feel uncomfortable, but it can spare loved ones from making difficult emotional, financial, and practical decisions during grief. In the recent episode of The Iowa Conversation, host Mike Downer speaks with Rick Ramsey, a licensed funeral director at Celebrate Life Iowa, about should I pre plan my funeral. Their key takeaway is clear: planning ahead documents your wishes, reduces family conflict, creates financial predictability, and leaves room for future changes.
One of the greatest benefits of pre-planning is the relief it can give your family. After a death, people may experience sadness, anger, guilt, numbness, or confusion. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explains that grief can also affect a person’s mood, sleep, appetite, and energy.
That makes the days following a death a difficult time to compare prices, select services, and settle disagreements.
Rick explains that pre-planning allows those decisions to be made while everyone can think more clearly. Rather than wondering whether Mom wanted cremation, burial, visitation, or a traditional funeral, loved ones can follow the preferences she already documented.
“Pre-planning takes the guesswork out of the equation,” Rick says. It also reduces the possibility of siblings, spouses, or adult children arguing because they remember different conversations.
Conversations with family members are helpful, but a written plan gives everyone a reliable reference. Preferences may change, and different relatives may remember different versions of what was said.
A written plan can cover the preferred type of service, burial or cremation, visitation, music, readings, obituary details, and what should happen with cremated remains. It may also clarify which choices the family can adjust.
The National Institute on Aging encourages families to discuss future decisions and put important preferences in writing. Although funeral plans are different from medical advance directives, both reduce uncertainty by communicating personal wishes before a crisis.
The goal is not necessarily to control every detail. It is to give loved ones meaningful direction when they may be emotionally unprepared to make complicated choices.
Pre-planning may provide greater financial predictability, particularly when a funded agreement guarantees selected prices. In the episode, Rick explains that Celebrate Life Iowa’s direct cremation package begins at $1,295 and that funding a pre-need arrangement can lock in the package price.
This may protect families from future price increases on guaranteed services. It also prevents relatives from having to establish a budget immediately after a death.
Consumers should still review exactly what the agreement guarantees, which charges may change, and whether third-party expenses are included.
Under the Federal Trade Commission’s Funeral Rule, consumers have the right to receive an itemized General Price List and purchase only the funeral goods and services they want. Reviewing these prices in advance makes it easier to compare choices without time pressure.
Iowa regulates pre-need funeral agreements under state law. Rick explains that arrangements made through Celebrate Life Iowa are funded through Homesteaders and placed into an account intended to keep the money available when it is needed.
Before signing an agreement, ask how the money is held, whether the plan is insurance-funded or trust-funded, what happens if the provider closes, and whether the agreement can be transferred or canceled.
Families should also review refund provisions carefully. Rick notes that plans through Celebrate Life Iowa remain flexible, and available funds can be applied toward different services if the individual’s preferences change.
Pre-planning does not permanently lock you into every decision. Plans can be revised as finances, relationships, or personal preferences change.
Someone might initially select direct cremation and later decide to add a visitation or traditional service. The money already paid may be applied toward the new arrangements, with the individual or family covering any additional cost.
Reviewing a plan periodically helps ensure that the instructions, contact information, service preferences, and funding still reflect what the person wants.
Adult children usually want to honor a parent correctly, but without instructions, they may worry that they are making the wrong choice. One child may want a traditional funeral, while another believes direct cremation is more appropriate.
Pre-planning gives them an answer. Instead of debating what a parent “would have wanted,” they can focus on supporting one another and carrying out that parent’s documented wishes.
Planning can also benefit single adults who do not want distant relatives or other people deciding for them. A written plan gives whoever handles the arrangements a clear starting point.
Asking should I pre plan my funeral is not about expecting death. It is about protecting the people who may otherwise be left with difficult decisions. Even an unfunded, no-pressure pre-arrangement meeting can help you understand your choices and record what matters to you.
No. You can document your wishes without funding the arrangements. Paying in advance may provide price guarantees, depending on the agreement.
Yes. A visitation or traditional funeral service can take place before cremation.
Yes. Your plan can generally be reviewed and changed when your preferences or financial circumstances change.
It cannot guarantee complete agreement, but written instructions can greatly reduce uncertainty and conflicting interpretations.
Ask about prices, guarantees, funding protections, refunds, cancellation terms, transferability, and expenses that may change.
No. Adults of any age can document their wishes and reduce the decisions their families may face later.
Mike: Hi, everybody. I’m your host, Mike Downer. Welcome to The Iowa Conversation. Today we are joined by the ever-so-handsome Rick Ramsey, licensed funeral director at Celebrate Life Iowa. How are we doing today, Rick?
Rick: I’m doing well, Mike. Thank you. I’m taking Ryan’s place today, and I’m sure I’ll hit it out of the park.
Mike: Today, Rick, what we’re talking about—and what I’m curious about—is: Should I pre-plan my funeral or cremation?
We’ll be covering the financial, emotional, and practical benefits of pre-planning, and how it protects your family from high-pressure decisions during grief.
So, how does pre-planning reduce the emotional burden on your family during grief?
Rick: I’m glad you started with the emotional side of it, Mike, because I believe that’s the most important part.
When you come in at need to make arrangements, not everyone handles grief the same way. Some people hit the denial stage. Some people hit the anger stage.
What the pre-need side does is take that out of the equation. You can come in before the death happens, when you’re thinking more clearly, and make those decisions.
Did Mom want cremation? Did Mom want a full traditional service? It takes the emotional side out of the decision-making process.
It also helps because not everyone is going to be on the same page. There may be siblings or a spouse who have different opinions about cremation or a traditional service. That’s where Celebrate Life can sit down, guide the family, and help them understand that you can have both—a cremation that follows a traditional service.
Mike: That makes complete sense. Ryan and I have had several discussions, as you know. I can tell you that just from discussing things with my family—because I’m 58 and I’m kind of an old, fat guy, so I’m not going to be around forever. Actually, none of us are.
But just talking to my family, they have seen the benefit of thinking logically. They ask, “What do you want, Dad?” or “What do you want, honey?” when talking to my wife.
They do see that because, if they had to make the decisions, there would be three different people involved in the main things, and there would be three different opinions. They’ve already told me, “I would have wanted this,” “I would have wanted that,” and “I would have wanted this.”
And you know what? I didn’t want any of it.
So I do see the logical side of it. Once a loved one passes, I can see where emotions would kick in, which could lead to circumstances that are not ideal. Am I even close on that one?
Rick: Absolutely. I don’t know how many times I’ve sat across the table from a family at need while they’re experiencing grief. It’s the worst time in their lives.
Most families are only going to sit down and make funeral arrangements two or three times during their lifetime. At that at-need point, not everybody is going to be on the same page, and certainly not everybody is going to be thinking clearly. They’re experiencing grief.
Pre-need planning takes that emotional decision-making out of it, whether it’s anger or guilt. It gives everybody the opportunity to discuss, with a clear mind, what they feel will be the best services going forward.
Mike: I agree. Now let’s get into the financial side of it.
How can pre-planning a funeral or cremation save your family money over time?
Rick: The first thing it does is lock in the price. Inflation in funeral service is typically anywhere between two and five percent.
Our direct cremation packages start at $1,295. If you were to come in and set up a pre-need plan for direct cremation with Celebrate Life, that $1,295 is never going to go up. It locks you in financially as far as savings go.
It also locks in your decision going forward. If something should ever happen where, instead of cremation, you wanted a full traditional service, that money can be applied to any type of service. That money is also always 100% refundable.
Mike: That’s really great peace of mind for any family to have, especially during one of the most difficult times in life.
So how does putting funeral wishes in writing help prevent family disagreements?
Rick: It makes sure everybody is on the same page, and it takes out the guesswork.
Dad may have said, “I would like a traditional service with cremation to follow.” Then he may have told a sibling, spouse, or child something else at a different time in his life.
Putting it in writing ensures that we know what his or her wishes were.
Mike: That seems smart. And with technology today, it’s so easy. You can use voice-to-text and put it right there on the screen, or you can make a little video. It’s super easy now.
Those would be some of my suggestions. Do you agree with that?
Rick: I do. That’s really one of the main purposes of our funeral directors and pre-need counselors—to sit down and go over all the options that are available.
It’s more of a give-and-take. You’re going to have questions about cremation, pricing, what to do with remains, and whether a traditional service is an option. Sitting down and going over those questions really helps a lot. That’s one of the main purposes of the funeral director.
Mike: Let’s just say that you and I sit down, and I love everything you say. We get it all planned out—you, me, and my wife—and I write you a big check for my whole $1,295.
I’m just saying, you guys do have great pricing, which I love. But now I’ve given you my money. How are pre-planning funds protected in Iowa?
Rick: With us, they would go through Homesteaders and into an escrow account. One hundred percent of that funding would always be available, whether you change your mind or the time comes at need. That money is guaranteed to be available.
Mike: That’s great. That’s good peace of mind for everyone to have.
You were talking about changing your mind. What happens if you do change your mind after pre-planning your funeral or cremation?
Rick: That money can be applied to whatever service you choose.
For example, if Mom wanted a direct cremation, but the children or spouse thought about it and would like to have a traditional funeral service to give everyone a chance to say goodbye, that cremation can still happen.
It would be a little more than the $1,295 that was entrusted, but that $1,295 would go toward the total bill for things like a rental casket, traditional funeral service, and visitation.
Mike: Perfect. So that’s good to know. You have options and flexibility. It doesn’t lock you in.
I’m assuming that if you and I sat down and said I wanted X, Y, and Z, and then two years later something changed in my life and I said, “Now I want A, B, and C added or taken away,” you would have flexibility in changing those options?
Rick: Without question. We are here to make sure those options are available, that you know what those options are, and that whatever funding you have given to us can be applied to whatever your decision is.
Mike: Right. Every person’s financial situation is different.
Let’s say I went through the process and we came up with a price, but then things in my life changed and I had a little more money. Maybe a year down the road, I got an inheritance or a nice scratch ticket, and I wanted to add $3,000 worth of additional things that I couldn’t afford at the time.
Is that possible, too?
Rick: Without question. We can always add on in order to meet your wishes.
It may be that two years ago, a traditional funeral service wasn’t something you were looking for. But now that the time has come, you would like to give everyone—especially family and friends from out of town—a chance to say goodbye.
So you elect to have a full traditional service, and that money can be applied toward that service, even though we originally sat down and made plans for just a direct cremation.
Mike: That’s great to hear because flexibility, as you said, is super important when pre-planning. The fact that you guys are so flexible is a massive benefit to sitting down, talking with you, and choosing Celebrate Life Iowa.
Rick: Mike, I have to be honest. I don’t see a downside to coming in to select arrangements, whether or not you end up funding the pre-need plan.
If you do fund it, it locks in the price and takes emotional decision-making out when the at-need time comes. But even just coming in to sit down and go over options, always having that flexibility, and locking in the price of the cremation package itself—there’s just not a downside to it.
Mike: I don’t see one either.
Rick, let me ask you this: Are there potential tax or estate benefits to pre-planning funeral arrangements?
Rick: There can be benefits as far as probate goes. I’m not at a point where I can go over them in detail because I don’t have the education behind it. But I can tell you that, with probate, there is a benefit to locking in that price and paying for it.
Mike: Do you know the generalities? I know you can’t get into details, but in general, how does that save you money? What’s the overall big picture of how that saves money on your estate?
Rick: The overall big picture is that you’ve paid for it, locked in the price, and it’s one more expense the estate doesn’t have to worry about.
Mike: Perfect. There you go. I love it. Now you’re talking to me like I’m five, and that’s very smart because I’m not a real smart guy, Rick.
You’ve answered a lot of questions about pre-planning, and you and I both agree that there is zero downside to it.
We’ll start winding this up, and I’ll let you sum everything up.
Why does pre-planning give adult children greater peace of mind? My sons are 22 and 24. Let’s just say the unforeseen happens, and I have everything planned out right now, and tomorrow I pass. How does that give them peace of mind?
Rick: It gives them peace of mind knowing they are following your wishes.
It also gives them peace of mind because they don’t have to worry about conflict between the two siblings. One may be thinking, “I’d like to have a traditional funeral service. I want that opportunity to say goodbye to Dad.” The other may be thinking, “I don’t need that opportunity. I was able to speak with him before he passed.”
The last thing anyone wants is conflict during a time when you’re dealing with grief. Not everyone is going to deal with grief the same way. It’s one less problem and one less concern to worry about.
Mike: I understand that, and I totally agree with you.
I’m going to throw one last little question in there. For people who are single, they can get things done without outsiders coming in and making decisions.
Aren’t you recently single, Rick?
Rick: I certainly am.
Mike: So if you go in and pre-plan—which I’m sure you have—then you don’t have to worry about other people making decisions for you as well.
Rick: No, you really don’t. You know your wishes are going to be followed.
It also helps with that discussion and takes away the fear of, “We want to know what Dad wanted, and we want to follow those wishes.”
Everybody wants to do right by their family member at need. They want to follow what they feel that person would have wanted. Pre-planning takes the guesswork out of the equation.
Mike: Perfect. You’ve done a great job of answering all the questions and addressing the fears anyone might have about pre-planning.
This way, you know what you’re going to get, you know what your wishes are when you pass, your money is safe, and you have options to change your mind. Your family also has some options after your passing if they need to add a little bit or take a little away.
At Celebrate Life Iowa, they’re always going to help you through it. These guys provide total peace of mind in pre-planning.
Rick: I agree, Mike. That initial pre-arrangement conference is completely no stress. It’s more or less answering questions and seeing what the best fit is going to be for you.
Mike: You bet. Just from talking to you and Ryan, I’m sure it’s a very no-pressure situation. You just want to help families, and I love that about your company.
Rick: Very good. Thank you, Mike.
Mike: Thanks a lot, Rick. We’ll see you on the next episode.
Rick: That sounds great. Thanks again.
Mike: All right, buddy. Take care. Bye-bye.
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