Cemetery plot ownership laws in Pennsylvania work differently from ordinary real estate: when you buy a plot, you are buying the right to be buried in a specific location, not the land itself. Pennsylvania’s Burial Grounds Act defines a burial plot as real property where an individual has the right to be interred, but where legal title to the land has not been conveyed by the landowner.1Pennsylvania General Assembly. Act 2017-64 Amending Title 9 (Burial Grounds) What you actually hold is an interment right, documented by a certificate the cemetery issues, not a deed recorded at the county recorder’s office.
What You Own When You Buy a Plot
This distinction drives almost everything else. Because you own a right rather than land, you cannot build on the plot, fence it off, or use it for any purpose other than burial. The cemetery keeps ownership of the ground and controls access, maintenance, and the rules that apply on site. And because your ownership lives in the cemetery’s records rather than a county deed, transfers and inheritance follow a different path than a house or vacant lot would.
One practical consequence: if you cannot find your original certificate, the cemetery’s records are the authoritative source. Recorder of deeds searches will not turn up your plot.
Buying From a Legitimate Cemetery
Every cemetery company in Pennsylvania must hold a current registration certificate from the State Real Estate Commission before it can sell any lot or conduct cemetery business.2Justia. Pennsylvania Code Title 9 – Burial Grounds Chapter 3 – Regulation of Cemetery Companies If a seller cannot show current registration, treat that as a warning sign and walk away.
Nonsectarian cemeteries that serve the general public are public accommodations under Pennsylvania’s Human Relations Act and cannot discriminate based on race, color, religious creed, ancestry, age, sex, national origin, familial status, or disability.3Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Human Relations Act Private or sectarian religious cemeteries fall outside that definition and can limit plots to members of their congregation or faith community.
Expect the plot price to be only part of the total. Cemeteries charge opening and closing fees each time a grave is used, and contracts may include charges for setting a headstone, seasonal decorations, or vault installation. If the cemetery sells both goods and services, the Federal Trade Commission’s Funeral Rule requires it to provide a written general price list with itemized costs and disclosures about what you are and are not legally required to buy.4Federal Trade Commission. Complying with the Funeral Rule Ask for that list before signing.
Part of the purchase price also funds long-term maintenance. Pennsylvania law requires every cemetery company to deposit at least 15% of the gross sales amount from each lot sale, or $1 per square foot of the lot sold, whichever is greater, into a permanent lot care fund.5Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Title 9 Chapter 3 – Regulation of Cemetery Companies That contribution is built into the price rather than shown as a separate line item.
Transferring a Plot to Someone Else
Pennsylvania does not set a uniform statewide procedure for transferring interment rights. Each cemetery writes its own rules. Most transfers share the same basic elements: the current owner signs a written assignment of interment rights, the document is notarized, the cemetery updates its records, and the new owner signs an agreement to follow cemetery regulations.
Read the original purchase contract before you plan a transfer. Many cemeteries include a right of first refusal, meaning you must offer the plot back to the cemetery before selling to a third party. Some prohibit private resales entirely and require sales back to the cemetery at a set price. Those restrictions are enforceable when they appear in the original agreement.
Plan on an administrative fee, typically between $75 and $300 depending on the cemetery. Pennsylvania notaries can charge up to $5 per signature for notarizing the assignment.6Pennsylvania Government. Notary Public Fees If you skip the cemetery’s formal process, the cemetery has no obligation to recognize the new owner, and the transfer can be challenged by other family members or by the cemetery itself.
Who Inherits a Plot
When a plot owner dies, the starting point is always the original purchase agreement and any assignment documents on file with the cemetery. If the owner filed a written assignment during their lifetime naming a beneficiary, the cemetery will recognize that person as the new owner. A will that specifically mentions the burial plot can also direct the transfer, and most cemeteries will honor it.
The harder cases arise when no assignment exists and no will mentions the plot. In that situation, Pennsylvania’s intestate succession rules govern, prioritizing the surviving spouse first, then children, then other close relatives. Courts handling these disputes generally favor keeping interment rights within the immediate family and give preference to the closest living relative who actually intends to use the plot for burial.
Unmarried partners face a real risk here. Pennsylvania’s intestate succession laws do not recognize unmarried domestic partners, regardless of how long the relationship lasted. If a plot owner dies without a will or a written assignment naming their partner, that partner has no legal claim to the plot under intestate succession. The reliable fix is to file a written assignment with the cemetery during the owner’s lifetime, or to name the partner explicitly in a will.
When multiple heirs have equal standing and cannot agree, families sometimes reach a written agreement or use mediation. If that fails, a court can decide. These disputes are more common than people expect, especially with plots that have been in a family for generations and where record-keeping has lapsed.
Moving Remains After Burial
Owning a plot does not include a free hand to relocate someone buried in it. No remains can be removed from their place of burial in Pennsylvania unless a disinterment permit is first obtained from the local registrar.7Legal Information Institute. 28 Pennsylvania Code 1.25 – Disinterment of Dead Human Bodies
To get the permit, the funeral director or cemetery official handling the request must give the registrar the deceased person’s name, date of death, and cause of death, along with written consent from the next of kin. If the family cannot agree or if next-of-kin consent is unavailable, a court order from a court of competent jurisdiction can substitute for consent.7Legal Information Institute. 28 Pennsylvania Code 1.25 – Disinterment of Dead Human Bodies Once issued, a disinterment permit is valid for only 72 hours, and no disinterment can take place between sunset and sunrise.
If the remains are being reburied at another Pennsylvania cemetery, a separate burial or removal permit is also required. All costs fall on the family requesting the move, including the funeral director’s fees, recasketing, and charges from both the origin and destination cemeteries. A new plot at the destination, with its own opening and closing fees, is often part of the bill.
When Families Disagree
Pennsylvania cemetery disputes tend to fall into predictable categories: family members fighting over who controls a plot, cemeteries refusing to honor a transfer or burial request, or allegations that a cemetery misrepresented what it sold. Most can be resolved without court, but when they cannot, the process is slow and emotionally taxing.
Start with the cemetery’s internal procedures. Most cemeteries have a process for handling ownership disputes, and many will work with families toward a resolution. If that fails, mediation through a neutral third party is usually faster and cheaper than litigation.
Pennsylvania courts have jurisdiction over interment rights disputes when it comes to that. A claimant can file a civil action, and equity courts can issue injunctions to block unauthorized burials or improper transfers. Courts weigh documented ownership records, the terms of the original purchase agreement, and the intent of the original buyer. They strongly favor preserving burial site integrity, so orders for disinterment or reassignment happen only under compelling circumstances.
If a cemetery has engaged in fraud or misrepresentation, Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law provides additional remedies. A court can order the cemetery to restore money or property acquired through deceptive conduct, and the Attorney General can pursue enforcement actions that include mandatory restitution to affected buyers.8Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law
If the Cemetery Is Abandoned
Interment rights depend on the cemetery continuing to operate. If a cemetery company becomes insolvent or a religious organization with a burial ground closes, the plots do not disappear, but maintenance and access can. Pennsylvania township supervisors have authority to order cleanup of a neglected cemetery, and if the responsible party fails to act within 30 days, the township can hire workers to do the job and assess the costs against the cemetery owner.
Municipalities can end up as the owner of last resort. That role can require registering with the State Real Estate Commission as a cemetery company, which carries financial and administrative obligations. Religious and fraternal organizations are exempt from that registration requirement, but municipalities are not.
If you own a plot in a cemetery that looks neglected, contacting your township supervisor’s office is the most direct way to trigger municipal involvement and get maintenance restored.