Every September we celebrate Life Insurance Awareness Month. This is designed to educate consumers about the importance of life insurance and the role it plays in protecting families’ financial security. Which is one of our main goals. As we celebrate Life Insurance Awareness month, we asked our clients to reflect on how their family would be impacted by their untimely death. As we get that’s not a fun exercise, we thought we’d share the fun with you. To that end, we asked Associate Wealth Advisor, Paige VanDusseldorp to provide insight into her own thoughts on this question. Here is how she responded:
I am young, healthy, and able. I am not going anywhere; I have plenty of time left. I will be able to watch my daughter grow up, get married and have kids of her own one day. I do not need to “waste” money on something that I will not even use. Yet, accidents happen every day- what if something happens to me? Who will take care of my family? How are they going to cover the financial gap created when I am gone? How are they going to pay the bills and continue their standard of living? Most people think that insurance can be expensive, but the average healthy 30-year-old is able to get term life insurance for only $1701 a year. The younger (and healthier) you are, the cheaper it can be. Buying a policy with a term of 30 years, when you are 25, 30 or even 35 years old, sets you and your loved ones up for financial security, while still paying the same amount as when you bought your policy. This is great for families that have young kids, like me.
I know from experience that kids can be expensive, which is exactly why I and my spouse have life insurance. If one of us passes, we know how the other spouse can continue to support our family financially. Ends will be met, college will be paid for, and the final expenses will not crush our family’s financial future.
There are many kinds of life insurance, and navigating the question of what type and how much can be paralyzing, especially if you do not know where to start. In fact, 54% of uninsured Americans say that they don’t know what to buy or how much they need1. There are many rules of thumb that can be utilized, and we can help you walk through this analysis. At the end of the day, the right amount and type of coverage is the amount you can afford that allows you to know your loved ones are protected from financial hardship if something happens to you.
We can help. Check back in to our blog throughout September to find out more about life insurance and how it helps you. Contact us to schedule an appointment to review your family protection planning.