Even dying is getting more expensive

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO)-- With inflation up 7% in the past year, and even more on items such as meat and eggs, it seems like the cost of everything is on the rise.

It turns out it's even getting more expensive to die, and by a significant amount.

Ultimately, it all comes down to supply and demand. Memorial companies say they're having issues getting the raw supplies they need. Items like granite and stencils. That in turn, means cemetery headstones have gone up a whopping 20 to 30 percent.

If you want a headstone from Tim Carr's shop, Rocky Mountain Memorials, it's going to take some time. His trademark rose design, and meticulous attention to detail make him popular with customers in the area.

Every detail in that carved flower matters to him, "I'm very proud," Carr says.

But before he can add his personal touch, he needs certain materials, such as good quality granite, and he's not getting it fast enough.

It used to take, three to five weeks, and now it's up to, in some cases, three to four or five months," Carr told KRDO

That means customers need to wait longer and need to be patient. It means death is even more expensive than it used to be.

Carr's and many other shops in Colorado Springs have had no choice but to raise prices, by about 20-30 percent across the board, he says.

"It's all going down to the customer in the end. You know, we have no control over what we're paying for the stuff, and everything is going up.

KRDO reached out to multiple headstone engravers, all of them saying the supply issues are making it tough on them.

From the granite to the glue, to the stencils, even just shipping the materials to Colorado Springs.

"The trucking is going up too," Carr said. "They don't have the truck drivers, and the granite is heavy. "

The stencils he needs can only be used one time, so the headstone business ends up going through a lot of them.

Carr ships in most of his granite from Georgia. That's delayed, but the stuff he gets from overseas is taking ages to come. He says he has fewer problems getting his hands on pink quartzite though, as it's easier to get locally.

Carr believes these issues began about six months after the start of the pandemic.

But supply and cost issues won't stop him and his team from making art and doing their part to bring a little beauty to families seeking closure.

"We try to do everything we can for people to keep them happy."