When someone you love dies it's never an enjoyable experience planning a service, deciding what to do with the body, picking out poems, memorial cards, deciding how many death certificates you need.... and it's never ever cheap. But... Direct funeral services makes it easy. They care. They are professional, but gentle. They are informative, but patient. And the price is unbeatable. They aren't in it for the money. And it shows. My experience here was really a good one... and I know where I'll come when death inevitably hits again. read more

This is now my 2nd time in 10 yrs using Direct Funeral. Libby was the director I worked with both times and she is pretty amazing at her job.. She made all the arrangements easy and had sugestions to things I was still undecided about. In this particular time in my life, she made it so easy for me. Saying thank you just isn't enough, but Thank you! read more

The death of a loved one, is never an easy thing. My sister and I recently had to deal with the aftermath of such a loss. After a sudden short illness, a sweet wonderful member of our family passed away. Although exhausted from hospital trips, overnight stays & all that comes with the terrible knowledge that a life is ending, arrangements must still be made. We were recommended Direct Funeral by a wonderful nurse at the hospital. We called and they were amazing. Robert was the gentleman who helped us. He listened respectfully to what we wanted. Answered our many questions and did not try to push us into things we didn't want. We chose something simple & were very satisfied with the service & price. We are very grateful for his help. I would absolutely recommend them to anyone. read more

If I could give a zero, I would. Direct came recommended to us from a few people, one of whom was a retired hospice coordinator personal friend. At the time that Ed and his partner arrived, I verified again our family's needs.Ed balked, said it wasn't possible. I had called the office the previous day to verify everything, which was confirmed. At the late night weekend arrival, that changed. Major red flags. I waved him off and sent him wherever he goes when not dictating what a family can and can't do. This is a retrieval and straight to cremation company. Make no mistake. Their website is inaccurate according to Ed. So from a family perspective, absolutely not. Dickering over what's possible at Ed's whim is not how a family should be engaged, and to say the least as the deceased is lying in the same room. I chose somewhere else, more professional, more empathetic. read more

Death is never an easy time for any family. So many unscrupulous funeral homes/directors will try to get as much money as they can out of grieving family members. May and June of 2009 were pretty hard months on my family. My grandfather, who was 2 weeks away from turning 105, passed away. Since we knew that he wanted to be cremated, my mother looked for an economical service, rather than go through a funeral home. She found Direct Funeral Services and they were amazing! They gave us excellent service at a deep discount, compared to funeral homes. They were very accommodating, especially since we had family coming from out of town and we had only paid for a shorter viewing. Less than a month after my grandfather passed, my grandmother decided to join him. We knew to go back to DFS and have them handle the arrangements for her remains, as well. Again, we were given excellent service for very reasonable prices. The company went out of its way to be accommodating. I can't say enough good things about them. I just hope that I won't have any reason to use their services anytime soon! July 2012, unfortunately, we had to use this service again. My father passed away after bravely fighting cancer. Again, we were given excellent service. We did notice, however, that the prayer cards that were printed had the wrong birth year. I called the office and they promised to print new ones to be picked up the next day. I appreciate that willingness to print new ones rather than just make excuses. read more

Did a seamless job of picking up my deceased from our home/hospice and then making her ashes available within 2 days. Death Certificates were ready within less than a week. Impressive service when you are grieving and just want the job done competently. read more

My father was a truck driver who got Covid and ended up in Albuquerque where he passed away far from home. Direct Funerals was so amazingly easy to work with from afar and did everything they said they would with excellent communication and great upfront and competitive pricing. I really appreciate them taking some of the stress out of this terrible situation. Thank you Liddy and the entire team! read more

I very much agree with many of the positive comments left by others. Liddy and staff at Direct Cremation services are outstanding. Very professional and caring. My brother passed and had very little to his name so my brother and sister and I knew we would need to cover the cost. We did a little searching and found Direct Service. I called an immediately had someone on the line. Very patient, very thoughtful but also understood the expense to us. They handled everything with the local authorities, filed all the needed paperwork, obtained the death certificates and handled the cremation for us. Very easy, low stress and very caring. When that time comes I would highly recommend them to handle this very delicate issue. read more

Weird to write a review about a cremation service, but here it is. One of my brothers died 2 weeks ago and he lived in Santa Fe. I live in Austin and the rest of the family is in Virginia. I had to do some price shopping on cremation services and getting his ashes sent back to Virginia. I called several funeral homes around Albuquerque, where the OMI was storing his body, and every one that I called tried to sell me additional services. Even when I stated that I just wanted him cremated and shipped, they were trying to sell me extra stuff that I had already stated that I didn't want or need. Then I called Direct Cremation. "What is it that you need done exactly?" I told him and he gave me a price...no sales pitch, no muss, no fuss. They were perfect. Thanks for making this part of the process as easy and trouble-free as possible. read more

I was scheduled to have major surgery on my head/brain in June of 2011 because I had been severely ill for five months. The day before my surgery my brother-in-law died due to complications of diabetes. I have the power of attorney for his mother who has Alzheimer's who was his next living relative so I had to deal with my brother-in-law's final affairs. The gentlemen at Direct Cremation were wonderful to deal with. As I was very ill, they had everything ready when I got there. I had surgery the next day, and two days after I left the hospital they had everything ready again so the amount of time I was in their office was minimal as I was still in a lot of pain and was weak. They were very kind and considerate as they kept my brother in law's remains longer than they normally do considering the situation that my family was in at the time. This type of service was greatly appreciated during this trying time. Funeral services are something that you don't want to consider as a 'use again' service. However, if situations require the use of funeral services for our immediate family, I would consider this company immediately. read more

We now have five family members that have used this service. All five were done correctly and efficiently.

Direct was great. We live on the East coast and took care of everything long distance. The chapel was beautiful and peaceful. read more

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I agree that it's weird to be writing a review on for a funeral home but honestly, I used these reviews when looking into services for my father. My father was put into hospice care and as he was getting close to the end, we were tasked with setting up services for him. Hospice had recommended Direct Funeral and I did my due diligence, googling cremation providers and found the reviews on Yelp. I called a few other places as well but when we sat down as a family to discuss which way to go, we were all comfortable with Direct Funeral. The reviews sounded like just what we needed, a no frills cremation without high pressure sales to tack on extra stuff and they treated families with respect and care. I used their website to submit the plan we selected and sent off to be contacted. I never heard back from them but nonetheless my father passed the next day. Hospice contacted Direct Funeral at our request and Ed, the owner, came down to the house along with Lee. This is where the issues started happening. We were interviewed by Ed regarding my father's details for the death certificate. He got stuck on a part of his paperwork, regarding what industry of work my father was in. This went on for several minutes with my stepmom getting so frustrated, she huffed off. I would assume someone who works in this industry would pick up on social cues and drop it, but I kindly asked him to move on which he reluctantly did. We asked about having my dad dressed in his traditional Scottish garb. Ed never heard of a kilt so we sent off a picture to him immediately for reference. Ed provided the wrong email address (we found out later), insisting the email listed on his business card was wrong. We were told they would look at their board when they returned to the office and let us know when we could have the viewing. We never received a follow up call. We waited until the next morning to call for an update. A man answered, took our information and placed us on hold while he checked. Diane then picked up the phone and asked if she could help us, to which we said we're waiting for info on Don. She replied well we have alot of Don's here so I'm going to need a last name. Keep in mind, we had just told the previous person the information. We gave her the info, she looked him up and said looks like we're waiting on a picture. I explained we emailed it while Ed was still at the residence, it should've been received. She again said they didn't have it. This added more frustration. I then began to voice my concerns with their organization. Diane wasn't listening to me as she immediately began to attempt to talk over me and proceeded to tell me I was welcome to take my dad somewhere else. I asked her to let me talk and she did. I went over my concerns and paused to allow her to respond (like a normal conversation). She continued to pause and responded with "Can I talk now?" I lost it. (Keep in mind I'm literally going through the worst moment of my life, I just lost my father.) I used my choice cuss words to which she replied I need to come get my father and hung up on me. My stepmom called back, smoothed things over with Robert who was professional and took care of everything. We went in and I was able to see my dad for the last time. When we were leaving, my uncle spoke to Ed about what happened. He said he had heard about it, was not happy and had "given Diane a hard time about it". Diane also spoke to my uncle and said "it slipped out". The funeral business is literally dealing with people at the worst moment of their lives. I think a certain level of customer service and sensitivity is expected. In addition, we were PAYING for their services. I should be able to voice my concerns without being brushed off and told to go somewhere else. As if it was so easy I could load him up in the car and take him somewhere else. I would also assume as a business owner that you would want your personnel to make things right rather than turning away your business. I didn't want to use them but it was either find somewhere else to take him with the added cost to transfer him and lose my last chance to see my dad one final time (I live in another state and had to go home) or deal with Direct Funeral. This was an unbelievably, helpless feeling. I never received an apology. I couldn't even write this review until we received his ashes back, for fear something else would happen. I wish from the bottom of my heart we went somewhere else and am sad that these are the people I entrusted with my amazing dad. He would've wanted better for us. read more

My mom passed away unexpectedly on May 3, 2017 and we did not know where to go for help on doing her cremation and the Presbyterian Hospital in Albuquerque had recommended Direct Cremation and Burial Service and right from the get go the staff was helpful. They helped us during our time of need. We really do not know what we would have done without them and i would recommend them to anyone. Thank you so much Direct Cremation & Burial Services.... read more

Liddy was my director. She was awesome to work with. Very compassionate and just an all around great person. As much as you don't want to be cheap with your loved ones last party-- everyone has a budget. I found their prices to be well below what I thought we'd spend. Which made this difficult time much easier. They don't offer flowers, however you can contract that on your own at save on flowers on candelabra which is wholesale prices. Liddy recommended them to me. I am very happy with everything they provided me and my dad . I can not say enough good things about them. Sadly, I know I will be a repeat customer when the time comes. read more

When my daughter passed away, French's kept my daughter in storage since we had not had any contact with her father in 27 years, and could not have him sign off on the cremation. But French's insisted I had to hire an attorney, have them file paperwork in both states, etc. When the story ran in the paper, Direct Cremations reached out to me offering to do the cremation. All I had to do was sign a waiver saying I took full responsibility. I was never offered that from French's. They kept my daughter in storage while I was going thru this. Thank you Direct for reaching out and taking care of my daughter! read more

I would not recommend this place for your loved one's funeral services. They are very expensive for cremation services and an hour viewing. I was quoted $2700, I was never given a price list with cost for each item from the beginning. The employee we had conversations with made me very uncomfortable with his pacing in and out of the room, no real direct eye contact, talks at you, and very little compassion towards the passing of our loved one. Please do your research and ask for a price list or go on their website and compare with what they tell you in person. Also, look up the Federal Trade Commission Funeral Rule. I recommend Affordable Cremation and Burial Services Mortuary, if you're looking for professionalism, compassionate, and affordable funeral services. read more

To grieving families who have lost a loved one and are looking for funeral or cremation services I strongly advise you to avoid Albuquerque's Direct Funeral Services. I dealt with them recently upon the death of my father and was shocked and appalled at their lack of compassion, courtesy, and sense of obligation. My father had preplanned his cremation and burial with Direct Funeral Services in 2002, but forms expressing his burial preferences were lost. The employees, (I spoke to Mr. Hatton and another gentleman whose name was never offered), were incredibly rude. They expected my family to be familiar with their policies and procedures although we had never dealt with them before. Our questions were met with disdain, raised voices, sarcasm, untruths, and just plain rudeness. Again, I strongly urge anyone out there looking for a funeral business that upholds standards such as integrity, compassion, respect, civility, and fairness to skip Direct Funeral Services and look elsewhere. read more

We recently had to make funeral arrangements from California for a loved one who lived in the Albuquerque area. The process of working with Direct Funeral Services was seamless and there prices were reasonable. I would highly recommend them for anyone in a similar situation. read more

In a time when you need all the support and understanding you can get, it is so much more important to find a company who provides respectful and caring service. When a close family member of mine passed away recently, I decided to try Direct services based on the otherreviews...and I did my homework just in case. I called around and asked questions, got prices, etc. What I found is that after all the calls I made and after recounting my situation numerous times, I chose to return here and I am still 1000% happy I went with Direct Cremation services. The woman who assisted me provided very personal attention, and gave me the most honest and upfront information. The other companies, it seemed on what questions you asked- what fees you were told about. Direct Cremation staff members were very easy to work with and reduced the stress as much as possible at this difficult time. I hope I will not have to be a return customer anytime soon, but they will be the only ones to get my business or reccomendation, if the need should arise. read more

I tryed to write a review have not seen it yet. My sister passed away in Jan 2017. When we went in to make the arrangements the older gentleman. Never told us we need to pay the the balance before the viewing,or else we would of had the money. He insisted he did , and that was policy, he did not! there was six of us in that room. Family and friends had to wait outside till I came back with the money. Then once in the viewing we were told we did not need to bring her clothes, because she would be exposed from her neck up. That was not the truth she was exposed to below her waist,and was wearing what she passed in . We would of brought her clothes if we knew that. It was sad and made us look bad. Very disappointing. Not what you want to go through in time of sorrow . :( read more

In 2012 I posted the following review on Yelp. Funny how it doesn't show up on Yelp reviews now in 2013. I'm guessing that if a company gets a poor review, they can always pay Yelp a few dollars to remove it. Is that how Yelp makes their money? I'm sure it won't be long before this review is also removed! Previous review: In May 2012 we were in a position to utilize the services of Direct Cremation and Burial Service. We looked at different options in the Albuquerque area and because the financial aspect can be expensive, we found this company to be the best priced. And although we used this company, we had the unpleasant experience of having the owner be rude and unsympathetic to our needs. Fortunately, we were mainly dealing with one of his employees named Mike Mahoney who really took care of us. The owner on the other hand made rude comments about our needs and even told us that we could go elsewhere for services. I wonder if he regularly bullies his customers because he knows his prices are much lower than his competition or if it was just a one time incident. Nonetheless, the price fit our needs, Mr. Mahoney was gracious and it all got worked out in the end. My advice: If you have to use this company, make sure you don't deal directly with the owner. He is an unsympathetic jerk. The family saved over $1,000 but at the expense of being somewhat insulted. read more

I tried to post but first post did not take. These people failed to properly give us notice/explanation that a service was set up at Santa Fe National Cemetery. My brother took the urn with ashes up because he was told that was all we were allowed to do. I did not go with him since he had other business in Santa Fe and we thought he was only handing over the urn. Turns out I get this call at 10:30 from the cemetery wondering where we were for the service. I'm sorry for the language but WTF??? My poor brother walked in to the cemetery office with the urn at 10:45 (a time he had been told to bring the ashes) while they were still on the phone with me (in Albuquerque) explaining they were waiting on us for the "service"???. I missed being there as a result. My brother had to endure this process without me to support him. This is inexcusable and unforgivable with lifetime impact. When I called the Direct Funeral Services office to tell them what happened, the employee said they would call back. At the end of the day that had not even bothered to call back to acknowledge the problem. How disrespectful can you be?? If you don't like the person you are trusting to their end life care, then by all means use them, but if it is someone you love, don't even think about it. Go somewhere else. read more