Term Life Insurance

Wern422 · July 2013

So, I'm listening to Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover & I'm sold on the notion that I need more life insurance, and that I should purchase term rather than whole. Since I'm kind of a financial dummy (I'm learning, anyway), I really have no idea where to research term life insurance policies (companies, rates, coverage, etc.). Does anyone have any suggestions on where to start?

Thanks.

wife07mom09 · July 2013

dave has some recommneded agents on his website.

we actually just signed up with our insurance aganet who handled our home and car insurance,

term for sure.

whole is a poor investment. get large term policies while you are young think 500k-1mil. it wont be too much

dalm0m · July 2013

I don't believe in life insurance which is ironic because DH used to sell life insurance.

Anyway the point is to make sure that if one spouse dies, the other one has enough money to pay the mortgage & send the kids to college.

When you buy term life you are guarding against the idea that you will die during the term. If you live, you spent the money on the premiums but got nothing for your trouble. If you die, the policy pays out; the insurance company is betting that you won't die.

If you are getting coverage, talk to a reputable company. DH sold Prudential products. Make sure you go with somebody who will require a medical exam. that's the only way they can assess their risks. Other no physical required policies are too low or don't readily pay out.

brij2006 · July 2013

Check with a local agent. Otherwise, I have been very satisfied with New York Life. But we do most of our investments and life insurance through them.

MommyLiberty5013 · July 2013

If you or your DH or someone in your family is military (any branch) retired, active, reserve, honorably discharged, you can check out USAA...they typically have great products and rates. It's a company specifically for military families.

Also see if your employer offers group life insurance as one of your benefits.

You pay into it a little out of each paycheck (usually lower than if you just paid out on your own). If you go this route, be sure the policy is portable, meaning that if you ever left the company, you could keep the life insurance and just pay out of pocket to the life insurance company directly on a monthly or quarterly basis.

sparklerose · July 2013

dalm0m:

I don't believe in life insurance which is ironic because DH used to sell life insurance.

Anyway the point is to make sure that if one spouse dies, the other one has enough money to pay the mortgage & send the kids to college.

When you buy term life you are guarding against the idea that you will die during the term. If you live, you spent the money on the premiums but got nothing for your trouble. If you die, the policy pays out; the insurance company is betting that you won't die.

If you are getting coverage, talk to a reputable company. DH sold Prudential products. Make sure you go with somebody who will require a medical exam. that's the only way they can assess their risks. Other no physical required policies are too low or don't readily pay out.

How do you not believe in life insurance? It exists.... I'm just curious why you dont think its right? If I die tomorrow, which could easily happen (I drive a car, walk around, ride a bike....do stuff) and if I didn't have life insurance, my DH would not be able to afford to take any time off work, take care of our son, ever buy a house and would be totally screwed. I want to know he would be ok, people die all the time.

Do you just have a ton of money so you dont need it? I thought it was basic financial sense that life insurance is very needed. So I'm curious as to why you dont think its right?

smerka · July 2013

There are people from whom life insurance does not make sense. Like single people with no kids. Married couples where both spouses work and could afford the lifestyle without the spouse's income. Married couples with grown children who have enough in savings.

If you have kids, it is pretty important. I SAH so we have a policy on me to pay for childcare. My DHs policy covers his salary for 20 years or so.

MommyLiberty5013 · July 2013

smerka:
There are people from whom life insurance does not make sense. Like single people with no kids. Married couples where both spouses work and could afford the lifestyle without the spouse's income. Married couples with grown children who have enough in savings.
If you have kids, it is pretty important. I SAH so we have a policy on me to pay for childcare. My DHs policy covers his salary for 20 years or so.

This. Certain financial plans aren't for everyone. There isn't a one size fits all approach. Personally, this is my philosophy on LI. Better to have and not need than need and not have. And also there are benefits to buying it younger than waiting until you have a family...rates are lower and it's typically easier to get approved for it. Overall, it really is just a fancy, costly gamble with your life. By not having it, you are saying that A. If you die, your family can handle the financial burden and/or B. That you won't die young.

dalm0m · July 2013

It does make sense for people with kids if one spouse can't afford the house & the planned future alone.

I think it's pushed at people who don't need it -- like singles or folks who can otherwise afford the downside. I also think a lot of people buy it without understanding what it is or what it does. They just think they are "supposed" to have it.

For DH & I it doesn't make sense. We married later in life & don't have kids. The houses are fully paid for & there is money in the bank. If one of us died, the other could financially carry on without hesitation. What's the point of insurance?

If there is cash value at the end, that may be a different story but for us, there is nobody to whom we need to leave the money to.

Wern422 · July 2013

Thanks for all of the tips!

mbgreenwalt · July 2013

DH and I have term policies with State Farm. We each got a small policy when DD1 was born that would cover the mortgage if one of us died. We recently doubled our policies. It required a medical exam, but our rate only went up $1/month. I think I pay $26/month and DH's is $28/month. DH's employer also provides a policy that is double his annual salary, we don't pay for that, it's part of his benefit package. We also chose to have small universal policies on the girls if, God forbid, something happened to them it would cover funeral expenses and our OOP medical bills. They can either be cashed out when we choose to end them or the girls can choose to continue them when they are 18y or done with college.

vlagrl29 · July 2013

MommyLiberty5013:
smerka:
There are people from whom life insurance does not make sense. Like single people with no kids. Married couples where both spouses work and could afford the lifestyle without the spouse's income. Married couples with grown children who have enough in savings.
If you have kids, it is pretty important. I SAH so we have a policy on me to pay for childcare. My DHs policy covers his salary for 20 years or so.
This. Certain financial plans aren't for everyone. There isn't a one size fits all approach. Personally, this is my philosophy on LI. Better to have and not need than need and not have. And also there are benefits to buying it younger than waiting until you have a family...rates are lower and it's typically easier to get approved for it. Overall, it really is just a fancy, costly gamble with your life. By not having it, you are saying that A. If you die, your family can handle the financial burden and/or B. That you won't die young.

I feel this way about it as well. I couldn't even imagine not having LI. Been there before and definitely needed it.

orangehills · July 2013

We just signed our life insurance policies last night actually. We used an insurance broker- it was the easiest way to get a bunch of prices at once w/o doing all that work. Check out State Farm too. The younger you do it, the cheaper it is. DH is $50 a month for 500k term because he's over 30, but as he gets older it would just go up. I just got 200k for myself... maybe one day I'll increase it if I think I'd need to, we'll see. But it's definitely a good thing, and term for sure!

lbutmankiewicz · July 2013

Hi there to all of you on this thread. I follow the nest money matters board all the time! My husband and I own a life insurance and financial planning company. We are set up with several companies so we would be able to "shop around" and get you the coverage you want for the best price. We specialize in term and whole life insurance. We can do it all via email and fax as well so its not a big inconvenience for you. We live in Florida but are both licensed in over 30 states. You can feel free to email me if you'd like and i can get you some quotes and run through your options with you.

Lbutmankiewicz@financialguide.com

Laurel

CuriousKiddosMama · July 2013

Laurel, you have been reported for spamming this board- please go away.

OP- Dave recommends Xander insurance .com

They insurance shop for you, and will tell you who currently has the cheapest rate. We got 10x DH's income for a 20 year term to make sure if anything happens we would probably be able to replace his income while the kids are minors. I will be requesting a quote soon so we can get some for me now that I've had baby. It was a very uncomplicated process, and he was very happy with it. The company we ended up going with did require a physical, but they came to the house so DH could do that at our convenience.

lbutmankiewicz · July 2013

I wasn't spamming I was just offering to help her. I own a business that specializes in this and would be happy to help even just answering questions. I'm really shocked that you got so angry about that. Wow

Term Life Insurance

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