Did you know that AARP says that end-of-life costs, including funerals, are typically a consumer’s third largest lifetime expense, behind a home and a car? I know this well, having lost my mother at a very young age, then my stepmother. 

After my stepmother’s passing, my father looked at my sister and I and said that he wanted to make sure that we were prepared if something were to happen to him.

In 2013, he was in a freak accident and unfortunately, didn’t make it through. But, his pre-planning saved us more than $10,000 in actual costs, not to mention saving us a lifetime of burden from knowing how to carry out his wishes in that moment and not having to live with the question of whether we made the right decisions.

And, the time we saved was invaluable! In fact, Caring.com says that wrapping up affairs after a death can take an enormous amount of time, often between six months and two years. Having quick access to his information made this task so much easier.

As we told our friends about what my dad had done, it was clear that most people haven’t prepared their loved ones enough for issues that arise due to aging (dementia, Alzheimer’s, etc.), medical issues and accidents that result in mental incapacitation or death- whether expected from a sickness or unexpected, like was the case of our father.

That’s why, as a noted business and financial expert, I decided to take this gift that my father gave to us and create a product, Future File (www.FutureFile.com) to help other people and their loved ones.

The Future File system is the most comprehensive, yet easy-to-use, legacy and wishes planning system on the market. It works is by providing you and your loved ones two “roadmaps” for legacy planning and affairs. The first helps you to organize your wishes and important information for your loved ones. The second helps your loved ones know what to do when, plus gives them access to that information.

By doing this, each user has a Future File system that: (i) walks loved ones through exactly what needs to be done in case of an incapacitation or death; (ii) clearly explains wishes; (iii) gives them immediate access to pertinent information and (iv) helps them to locate other information, documents and assets that they will need.

This includes making sure that your loved ones don’t incur extra costs because you and your family haven’t taken the time to preplan. In our case, as I noted above, doing this alone saved us more than $10,000.

So, here are some steps that you can take to make sure that your family minimizes the costs.

Pre-Plan: While it may not be fun to think about today, when your family is faced with the burdens of losing a loved one, they will likely not make cost-effective decisions. This means not only deciding on the aspects of body disposal (like cremation or burial), but the costs that go with it. For the latter, burial plots, caskets and more are quite costly. Also, think through what type of services and events are desired, where they will be held and the total costs involved. You can talk to a funeral director and use a system like Future File to walk through what you may need to incur and research the associated costs.

Get Insurance: Take out a policy now that covers as many of the end-of life costs that you can, so it doesn’t become a burden for your loved ones. Talk to your insurance broker or financial planner.

Involve Your Loved Ones: The more clearly they understand the issues associated with passing, the more clearly they will able to make decisions that are based in logic instead of emotion and are financially savvy.

For more information on planning, to take a preparedness quiz or to get a Future File system to help you prepare, visit, www.FutureFile.com.

Carol Roth is a national media personality, "recovering" investment banker, dealmaker, investor, speaker and author of the New York Times bestselling book, The Entrepreneur Equation.