Your rights
How to buy a grave marker without going through the funeral home
By SoCal Monuments and Engraving · June 12, 2026 · 5 min read
At the arrangement conference, somewhere between the casket catalog and the service planning, a binder of grave markers usually appears. Many families assume that binder is the only door. It isn't — and in California, the law goes out of its way to keep other doors open.
Your right to buy from anyone
California public cemetery districts are prohibited from selling markers and monuments — the Murrieta Valley Cemetery District says so on its own FAQ, citing the Health and Safety Code. Temecula's marker policy states markers may be purchased from any private vendor that meets specifications. Even private community cemeteries have moved this way: Fallbrook Masonic Cemetery no longer sells headstones and refers families to outside vendors.
Put simply: the cemetery's job is to publish the rules and set the stone. Where you buy the stone is entirely your choice, and a cemetery must accept any marker that meets its published requirements.
The actual process, step by step
1. Find out your plot's section and the cemetery's marker rules. Every district publishes at least the basics; we keep current pages for Temecula, Lake Elsinore, Murrieta, San Jacinto, and Fallbrook.
2. Design the marker and get a written proof. Nothing should be engraved until you've approved the exact layout — every name, date, and emblem. Our designer renders the inscription on the actual granite as you type, and a person reviews every design before stone is cut.
3. Your marker company confirms specs with the cemetery and delivers the finished stone. Districts install markers themselves — Elsinore Valley by appointment with a delivery receipt, typically setting stones within 7–10 working days.
4. Pay the district's setting fee — the one cost that always belongs to the cemetery, whoever made the marker ($112 at Elsinore Valley, $370 at Temecula, per current schedules).
What to watch for
Get the all-in price in writing — design, engraving, emblems, proofs, and delivery included — before you commit. Ask who handles the cemetery paperwork; if the answer is "you do," keep shopping. Make sure the company knows your specific district's specs (a 16″ × 28″ stone is perfect for Lake Elsinore and won't be accepted at San Jacinto). And never let anyone rush you: districts don't run out of granite, and a design that waits a month costs the same as one ordered today.
There's no deadline on remembering someone well. When you're ready, the designer is here — and so is a person at (951) 234-0199 who will walk through all of it with you.
Common questions
Can the funeral home or cemetery charge me extra for using an outside marker company?
Public cemetery districts charge the same setting fee no matter who made the marker, and they can't sell markers at all. If anyone suggests a surcharge or 'inspection fee' specifically for outside markers, ask for it in writing and ask what rule authorizes it — and call us; we've seen the district fee schedules.
How long does the whole process take?
With us: design at your own pace, proof within 2–3 days of submission, engraving 3–4 weeks, then the district sets the stone on its schedule (Elsinore Valley quotes 7–10 working days, for example). Comfortably inside Temecula's 90-day placement window, with time to spare.
What if my cemetery isn't one of the five you list?
We work with cemeteries across Riverside and San Diego counties — the five pages are just where we're asked most often. Call (951) 234-0199 with your cemetery's name and we'll confirm its requirements the same way.