HOW TO AFFORD A COLUMBARIUM
By Paul Pinigis, Architarium, COO
October 16, 2008

I was the chair of my church’s financial committee for a number of years. The questions asked at most meetings are:

• What methods exist to raise money?
• How much money do we need?

A columbarium, seen as a capital expenditure, can actually generate enough income to fund and support itself. With a basic columbarium insert, a basic masonry wall and a low niche price point of $1,000+, you may be able to achieve a 100% return on cash outlay, approximately. Let’s look at this more closely:

• Architarium’s basic columbarium insert is flat. Architarium also offers convex and concave configurations which require more engineering, thus more money.
• A basic masonry wall estimate is $250 per linear ft. But there are many factors that may affect the price; ex. material, contractor expertise, complexity, and even geographical location.
• The average price range for a niche that accommodates two urns is $1,000 to $2,000. But we have seen outliers as high as $10,000 per niche in urban areas with high demand.

The initial cash outlay can be funded with pre-sales and donations. Donations may range from a single, large benefactor from smaller amounts resulting from fundraising activities and events. Donations may also come in the form of gifts of materials and labor from your community.

Once the columbarium is operational, additional related potential sources of income include:

• Urns: most families will appreciate this convenience
• Commemorative items: families may want something to leave in the niche or to take home
• Services: niche sales usually do not include a viewing or a funeral service
• Stipends for annual remembrance of the interred.

Of course, an operational memorial garden will incur on-going costs such as engraving, administration and maintenance. Most of the maintenance cost pertains to landscaping, since Architarium's columbarium system is low-maintenance.

Regardless, with careful budgeting, income from the columbarium can sustain the memorial garden. Additional income from the columbarium can be used to expand the columbarium to offer memorial services to more members.

Please contact me personally to discuss how a columbarium can work for your financial committee to make a profit for your community’s other needs.

More Columbarium Cost Articles

Columbarium Budget Guide
Columbarium Cost vs. Value
Columbarium Fundraising Primer
Start Columbarium Fundraising Today