Basically, the ownership of the cemetery always remained with the cemetery owner, while it would be possible to sell freehold title the size of individual plots, that was never done…
Worse, its not like strata/condo style title, the right to the plot is simply ended, no compensation due… that means the land owner can sell it for a development, and not have to split the proceeds among the people with right to the plots… the rights are not title or ownership, they are not subject to compensation if unavailable.
For example, if the cemetery becomes full, and you miss out, your bad luck for not making use of your right earlier…
At the other end, yes cemeteries are routinely built on.
Also, many burials have occurred ad hoc, eg on farm or even suburban land;
children buried in backyards for example. There’s no guarantee that someone is not buried in the ground below you, the gov can only say “no record of that!”.
Same here. I love those little graveyards - they have so much more character than the vast fields full of flat markers and plastic flowers.
My great-grandfather was buried in such a family plot, and when my father and his brother sold their mother’s farm in eastern North Carolina, Dad and my uncle went up to supervise the exhumation and re-interment of their grandfather, his wife, and an infant, the existence of whom was until then unknown. I believe the buyer had to pay for the exhumation.
not sure what you mean… generally AFAIK, you buy the exclusive “rights” to a specific plot or plots (i.e. one for each spouse, or a family plan…) so it’s not going to be “full before you use it”.
I haven’t head that there’s a monthly charge or anything, so I assume the cemetery corporation should have put together a trust fund during the sale of the plots to take care of managing the graveyard for the foreseeable future - which I assume are rules buried somewhere in the local licensing.
If they sold freehold, IANAL, but then there’s the issue of public right of way access etc. Plus, any decent sized municipality tends to have rules on subdividing lots.
of course very old cemeteries, private small ones or churchyards, probably don’t have this sophisticated level of management and things could get interesting; but states tend to have laws on disposing and relocation of human remains, so you can’t just plow Uncle Joe into a corner with the bulldozer and put up a Walmart.
Actually, there’s a tiny family plot that existed on the land where the subdivision I grew up in was built. The developers just built a standard height wood fence around it with a gate and houses went up around it. It’s still like that 40 years later. Us kids snuck in there a time or two for a look. Just a handful of headstones and lots of weeds and stickers. I would imagine the immediate neighboring property values are slightly lower, but honestly if you just drive by, you wouldn’t even know it’s there. But bargain or not, I would be slightly creeped.
Here in New England there are literally thousands of family cemeteries that have been abandoned over time. In early days when you croaked, you were buried in the family cemetery in the back yard. As the descendants moved west to better farmland and less snow, the plots were neglected. Stones were stolen to build rubble foundations for the next farmhouse. Nowadays those graves are usually discovered when a road or foundation is being put in. My little Town of 4,000 has 30 or so family cemeteries identified and fenced in. Maine Law says as long as they are properly marked and recorded in Registry of Deeds, they can never be built on. Law also requires that flags be placed on every grave of a veteran on Memorial Day. Our oldest veteran is from the American Revolution.
The Town, township or city in which the grave is located. Don’t know the sanction offhand but it’s generally observed by all and generates bad publicity for the Town if they skip it. Govt usually has help from DAV or American Legion or various community groups.
Also interesting; Maine is one of the few states that still allows you to be buried in your backyard! There are a few rules; can’t be too close to the well, location must be recorded, etc.