Life Insurance Solutions for Today

Do I need life insurance?

If something happens to you, your loved ones don’t just lose you—they also lose your income, on top of everything else you provide. If you provide financial or caregiving support to someone, it’s essential to make sure they would be taken care of if they lost you.

If you fall into one of these categories, you likely need life insurance:

Parents

According to the USDA, it costs about $234K to raise a child, without even considering college tuition. If you own life insurance at the time you pass, it can help ensure your children will have financial support to grow and live the life you want for them. Learn more about life insurance for parents.

Breadwinners

If you’re the primary earner for your family, a life insurance policy can provide income replacement should something happen to you. A term policy can be customized to give you coverage through your peak earning years.

Stay-at-home parents

Even if you don’t provide an income, you likely provide a measurable value to your family that they would have to replace if you passed away. Salary.com found that stay-at-home parents contribute the equivalent of a $162,000 annual salary to their families. A life insurance policy for you eases the financial burden for your partner.

Divorced parents

Life insurance can cover the support payments owed by a divorced parent. A term policy—which can be tailored to cover the years of owed child support—is a good option here.

Married couples

Make sure the person you share your life with would be taken care of if you passed unexpectedly. It’s recommended that both partners in a marriage should have a life insurance policy that factors in things like debt, expenses, or future financial plans. Find out what you need to know about life insurance when you’re getting married.

Homeowners

A mortgage will probably be the largest debt you ever take on, and you wouldn’t want to leave your cosigner or family members stuck with it. If you own a home, consider life insurance coverage that lasts at least as long as your mortgage. Here’s what else homeowners should know about life insurance.

Retirees

It’s natural to have concerns with covering your final expenses if you’re at or approaching retirement age. A whole life insurance policy can help cover these expenses, giving you and your loved ones valuable peace of mind.

Caretakers

If someone depends on you, like an elderly parent or family member with a disability, what would happen to them if you weren’t around? You may want to consider coverage to make sure they’d be taken care of.

Students

Unfortunately, your student debt might not disappear if you pass away. If you have a private student loan, your parents, cosigners, or other family members could be on the hook for your debt.

Business owners

You’ve put a lot of work into building your business. Life insurance coverage can help ensure that your business could continue operating if something happened to you. When should I get life insurance?

Because life insurance rates increase as you get older, applying sooner means you can lock in your lowest possible rate. With that said, there are several milestones in life when you should reevaluate the coverage you have—or get some for the first time—to make sure you’ve got everything covered. These milestones include:

• Getting married
• Having a child
• Buying a home
• Taking on debt, like student loans
• Starting a business
• Planning for retirement
• End of life planning

How much life insurance do I need?

Life insurance is not one-size-fits-all. It’s essential to consider your unique financial and personal situation (such as assets, debts, and future plans) when deciding how much life insurance you should have. Want to know how to calculate insurance needs? To make it easier, we created an online life insurance calculator you can use to help assess your individual needs. Calculate Coverage

Rules of thumb

There also are several guidelines you can follow to help you quickly come up with a number.

Calculating your coverage amount

Your life insurance needs are dependent on your personal and financial circumstances. You can either get a rough estimate or a more in-depth breakdown of the coverage you’ll need. 

To get a rough estimate, multiply your current annual income by ten. That figure represents a starting point for your total coverage. 

Looking for a more detailed breakdown? Use the DIME formula, adding the four areas below to determine your coverage amount.

• Debt: The total of your current debts (excluding your mortgage) plus your estimated final expenses (e.g., funeral arrangements)
• Income: Multiply your current income by the number of years that you estimate your family would need support
• Mortgage: The amount left on your mortgage
• Education: An estimate of the costs to send your kids to school and college

Choosing your coverage length

Evaluate how long you need coverage. If you’re looking for coverage that doesn’t expire for the duration of your life, whole life insurance is worth looking into. Term life insurance is an excellent option if you want coverage over a specific period, especially during a financially demanding time. To determine the correct term length for you, consider coverage that lasts until:

• You’ve paid off your mortgage
• Your children have finished school
• You’re retired
• You’ve reached your savings goal

Coverage options with Ethos

1. Term Life Insurance with Ethos(Recommended for most)

• For applicants age 20-65
• Coverage up to $2 million
• Choose between 10, 15, 20, and 30-year terms

2. Whole Life Insurance with Ethos

• For applicants age 66-85
• Coverage up to $30,000
• Good for the duration of your life

Selecting the right amount of coverage is important

If you were to pass away unexpectedly, ensuring you have adequate life insurance will ease your family’s burden during an already difficult time. Help your family cover major expenses such as a home mortgage, debt, lost wages, and college tuition. It’s important to carefully select the right coverage amount for your family’s future protection.

Lock in your lowest life insurance rate

The older you get, the more life insurance rates increase. The sooner you buy, the sooner you’ll lock in your lowest premium—and save the most money in the long run.

Reevaluate your coverage annually

As your family’s life and financial goals evolve, reevaluate your life insurance coverage annually to decide whether you have enough or should apply for additional coverage. Calculate coverage

Finding an Agent or Broker

For people who know what they want, an agent may not be necessary. Examples include buying mortgage insurance, final expense, or a large policy for family protection. Sometimes trying to set up a meeting can be difficult and troublesome.

For these people, use the link below.

If you like what you see, you can even apply with this link. This is a hassle-free way to protect the ones you love.

In some cases, you may want a little guidance.

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