Definitions

A "cemetery operator" sells the cemetery lot, opens and closes it to allow for interment, may require you to purchase a cement liner to protect the casket if necessary and typically arranges for the installation of the marker.

A "memorial dealer" sells memorial markers, such as headstones, tombstones, monuments and plaques.

A "columbarium" is an above-ground structure, usually in a cemetery, where boxes or urns containing cremated remains are placed in many small compartments or niches.

A "mausoleum" is an above-ground structure in a cemetery where caskets containing human remains are placed in specially constructed compartments called "crypts."

Costs

As with funeral services, the costs for cemetery lots, goods and services can vary widely.

The price of memorial markers headstones, tombstones, plaques or monuments can vary widely. Before purchasing a marker, make sure it meets the standards of the cemetery you have selected. Most memorial dealers can tell you what is acceptable in any of the cemeteries in their service area.

When you purchase a lot, crypt or niche in a commercial or municipal cemetery, the cemetery operator must, by law, invest a portion of the purchase price in a care fund for the perpetual maintenance of the cemetery.

A care fund is held in trust and administered by a savings institution in British Columbia in accordance with a written care fund trust agreement between the savings institution and the operator. The capital from the care fund cannot be removed, but the interest generated is used to offset maintenance costs.

A portion of the fee for memorial markers must also be placed into the perpetual care fund.

Most small cemeteries, such as church cemeteries, do not have perpetual care funds; they are maintained by volunteers or through donations.

Cremated remains may be buried in a small cemetery lot, placed in a columbarium, scattered in an authorized place or given to the next of kin.

You should request the owner’s permission before scattering cremated remains on private land.