This Morbid Tax Move Sounds Clever — But Experts Say NEVER Do It
Laying a loved one to rest comes with a host of uncomfortable but necessary questions that need answering. Topping that list is the topic of burial specifications. If the person doesn't wish to be cremated, the alternative is generally to be buried in a cemetery or a mausoleum. But what if there were another option closer to home—much, much closer? And said option would also score you a tax break?
There's a rumor circulating on social media that if you bury a loved one in your backyard, your home is zoned as a cemetery. Makes sense, right? But there's more: Allegedly, if your home is zoned as a cemetery, you no longer owe property taxes. A bittersweet perk, but a perk nonetheless. If you, like us, were wondering if this so-called cemetery tax break is real, let's just say convincing family members to change their wills would be for naught.
Are Home Burials Legal?
According to the Green Burial Council, home burials are technically legal in 47 states. It is considered illegal to bury a loved one in your backyard in the states of California, Indiana, and Washington. It is also illegal in the federal District of Columbia (Washington D.C.). But just because these are the only areas in the United States with hard-and-fast rules regarding home burials doesn't mean the remaining states make it easy to arrange. In an interview with How Stuff Works, Lee Webster, president of the National Home Funeral Alliance, explained that there are also zoning laws in every state that make home burials challenging, regardless of their legality.
'Some states and individual counties have rules about the minimum distance that a burial plot needs to be from bodies of water, electrical lines, other buildings, and roads,' Webster told the publication. These restrictions make it almost impossible to bury someone in a suburban backyard, Webster adds, clarifying, 'There simply isn't enough space on most properties to manage the setback restrictions, plus you're going to freak out the neighbors.'
In addition to zoning laws, some states, like New York and Louisiana, require a funeral director to oversee almost everything concerning the body and funeral. Other states require families to undergo specific preservation methods, and if you do not hire a funeral director, it is your responsibility to fill out and file the death certificate. In other words, home burials require you to jump through a lot of hoops, all while grieving your loved one in the process.
Does A Home Burial Make Your Property A Cemetery?
In a word, yes. If you bury a body in your backyard, your home becomes a cemetery. You don't need to create an official cemetery. 'It works in reverse,' Webster said. You don't need a cemetery to bury a body; there needs to be a body buried on a piece of property to be considered a cemetery.
Are Home Cemeteries Eligible For A Tax Break?
Although burying a loved one in your backyard does make your home a zoned cemetery, if your home wasn't designed as an exclusive burial site, you likely still have to pay property taxes. However, according to Intuit TurboTax, you can get tax deductions for funeral expenses if said expenses are paid using estate funds. It is also more budget-friendly to bury a loved one in your backyard versus using a funeral home (whose services, such as viewings, embalmings, staff and facility costs, add up) and burning them in a cemetery or a mausoleum.
Is a Backyard Burial a Good Idea?
While it's widely considered legal to bury your loved one in a backyard, and it can be comforting to keep your loved one close, from a financial standpoint, it's not necessarily a lucrative alternative. You also have to weigh the pros and cons of home burials, because while the sentiment may feel more personal, it's a big undertaking, with a lot of details and moving parts to keep track of (all while in the thick of grief). Abide by your family's wishes, but make sure you are taking care of yourself in this difficult time, too.
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