Before beginning, browse the rest of the Cemlist resources for buying, selling, and transfer guidance.
Resale is allowed, but the cemetery has to execute it
Florida Statutes Section 497.273 gives a cemetery company the exclusive right to make the initial sale of interment or burial rights, but it specifically protects the right of an owner to resell those rights to a third party afterward. The condition is that the resale is "subject to the transfer of title by the cemetery company" - the cemetery still has to process and execute that title transfer for the sale to be complete. A private handshake deal or bill of sale between buyer and seller isn't the finish line; the cemetery's own transfer is.
The cemetery can charge a transfer fee
Section 497.277 separately allows a cemetery company to charge for "transferring burial rights from one purchaser to another." Florida doesn't cap this fee, but it does require the cemetery to disclose it and include it on its standard printed price list along with its other charges. Ask the cemetery office for its current transfer fee and any required paperwork before you set your asking price - see what is a transfer fee? for how this kind of fee typically works.
If you own a plot in Florida
Contact the cemetery office before you list. Confirm the current transfer fee, what paperwork they need, and how long the title transfer typically takes once you have a buyer. Building that timeline and cost into your price avoids a surprise at the end of the sale. For the full process, see how to sell a cemetery plot.
If you are buying in Florida
Don't treat a private agreement with the seller as a completed purchase. Confirm with the cemetery that the seller is the recorded holder of the interment right, and don't consider the plot yours until the cemetery has actually executed the title transfer in its own records. For the full process, see how to buy a cemetery plot.
Questions to ask the cemetery office
Whether you are buying or selling in Florida, get these answers before you commit:
- Is the seller the recorded holder of the interment or burial rights on file?
- What is the current transfer fee, and is it listed on your standard printed price list as Section 497.277 requires?
- What paperwork and identification do you need from both parties to execute the title transfer?
- How long does the title transfer typically take once you receive a complete request?
- When will your records show the new owner, and can I get that confirmation in writing?
For how transfers generally work outside Florida's specific rules, see cemetery plot transfer rules.