Granted, life insurance is not one of the most exciting products you can buy. That may be why millions of Americans are uninsured or underinsured, and don't even know it.
Which is unfortunate, because life insurance premiums have dropped by 50% over the last 10 years. In fact, life insurance is more affordable now than at any other time in history. If you're somewhat healthy, you can buy a lot of insurance without spending a lot of money. That's partly because people are living longer; those savings are passed back to you in the form of
lower payments.
The most inexpensive form of life insurance, and the kind that generally gives you the most value for your dollar, is term insurance. With this type of policy, you pay a premium each month for a certain number of years (usually 15, 20, or 30). If you live beyond that term, your coverage is ended (although you may extend under certain circumstances); if not, your beneficiaries
receive the face amount of the insurance policy.
How much insurance do you need? As a rule of thumb, experts say you should have between 7 to 10 times the amount of your annual salary. And you shouldn't rely on your employer's life insurance benefits only; typically their value is much less than what you need, and is not portable should you change jobs. SmartMoney
offers an easy-to-use worksheet to calculate how much life insurance you need, which you can access here.
There are a variety of factors to consider when looking for a life insurance. Some of these include:
• Cost. Life insurance rates are very competitive. You don't want to overpay for the coverage you need.
• Insurer. You want to be sure that you're buying life insurance from a quality company that will be around for the next 30 years.
• Convenience. How complicated is the process to apply? Do they offer a variety of payment options? Do they give you multiple ways to contact them?
We hope you find this information valuable in finding the best life insurance policy for you!
