Sometimes people purchase burial plots as a couple or as a family years before they are ever needed.      They do this for various reasons – to give their family one less  decision that has to be made, to rest easier in eternity by having their loved ones next to them or just to get a good deal on the real estate.

As time goes by, it is natural to change your mind on this and decide all-together.  I have had this happen with a couple of different clients.    They bought burial plots and then changed their minds to favor cremation instead of burial.    This is becoming more of a mainstream idea since traditional burials are not a “green, good for the environment” practice.    So what can you do with a burial plot when you are not going to need it?     Can you sell it?      The answer is yes in most cases.        I became curious about his concept so I did a little research.  There are websites built just for this purpose.        I was shocked to see how many websites are the “Craigslist” of burial plots.    Here are a few that I found:

These are just a few of the sites I found dealing with the sale and purchase of burial plots and there are an endless stream of these around.    I did a little testing to see what burial plots go for.  First, from my small home town in NM.    There was one for $49.       I went to New Orleans, LA and found some over $100,000.        California boasted a few pricey ones also with a lot of them averaging  $8000 or so.       As for Austin, TX?    I found them anywhere from a $1000 to $9000 for a double occupancy grave.      I found this little cottage industry fascinating!   I had no idea there were so many businesses that help you “list” and “locate” your burial plots!

One of the better resources I stumbled across is the website:    Funeral Planning 101     This is an interesting site with lots of information and of course some “built in advertising.”    None-the-less, it’s a pretty easy to read site of information.

Since most people find this subject hard to discuss and may find themselves holding a valuable piece of property, I thought this would be worth exploring – if only for exposing the issue.