Grave situation for NYC's funeral homes as death rate drops and customs change. Once seen as recession-proof, the funeral industry is in a death spiral—except for owners willing to adapt to a new generation of the dead.

Crain's New York reports:

When he took office in 1990, the organization’s directory listed 841 funeral homes. Last year, his mailing list was down to 473, a 44% drop.

Ruggiero’s numbers reflect the city’s: Just 475 licensed funeral parlors were operating here in 2015, according to the state’s Department of Health.

Funeral homes are no longer recession-proof. The new challenge for funeral directors is figuring out how to serve changing customer needs and still make money.

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