Legal and Regulatory Foundations
To open a cemetery requires legal counsel familiar with the death industry. Consider location. Make it stand out. Go green. Invest for 10 years minimum. Figure out capacity. Have a plan once full.
State and local regulations must be navigated when opening a new cemetery. Contact state organizations regulating cemeteries or funeral operations for information on cemetery law and regulations.
File an exempt plat outlining the family cemetery for future buyers. Make sure to determine locations of all grave sites, pathways, roads.
Expansion and Relocation
Cemeteries purchase and annex nearby land to expand when landlocked, full and there is demand. They also "build upward" with mausolea and towers. Most will be cremated, a trend becoming the norm. Green burial is also rising; there is ample space for full-body burial in North America.
Cemetery relocations are common since developers need to clear graveyards from valuable land. Procedures vary by state but most require careful planning and historical study. Descendants must be contacted for permission to dig up identified graves.
Personal Cemetery Considerations
Can I turn my yard into a cemetery? To create a family cemetery, assess your yard’s potential, considering sunlight, drainage, space. Follow state regulations for creating a cemetery. Outline locations of grave sites, roads. Manage tall pines and falling limbs. Honor graves with care. Millie Arthur Creighton Crooks Foster was buried here in 1883, wife of a civil war general.
In Aleppo, almost every public garden has turned into a cemetery. There are no more restaurants, no leisurely distractions, no happiness. You hear planes passing overhead. You are never safe. Working in a town turned into a cemetery.
To transform your yard, plan your garden design, consider sunlight, drainage, foot traffic and hardiness zone. Cut grass short, cover with cardboard or newspaper, add thick mulch. Add shade with trees, pergolas or umbrellas. Install a pool.
Cemetery Profitability
Are private cemeteries profitable? To create a cemetery requires investment. Maintain it eternally. Sell goods like plots, services like digging. Partner a cemetery and funeral home. Have staff work both. Customers expect well-kept grounds.
Cemeteries make money selling burial plots or spaces. They sell at time of death or plan ahead. To be buried together, arrange in advance. Plots go fast. You buy right of interment. Fee is higher on weekends.
Private family cemeteries charge more than public ones. Provide more goods and services too. Like monuments and planning. Owned and reserved for family members. Can be sold but still private.