Do I need Life Insurance?


I would answer that question with an automatic yes for almost all of us. The fact is that in today’s world, most couples rely on two incomes to provide for their family’s needs and wants. If one of those incomes is lost due to death, the only thing that can replace it is Life Insurance. I have met too many couples that thought that they would be “ok” financially if one or the other of them passed away. That makes no sense if you depend on both incomes or if one spouse stays at home raising the family. You would have to replace that income, or hire a nanny or full-time day care, which is very expensive. Most families have a mortgage, vehicle loans, credit cards debt, and other bills to pay. Even if you don’t there are energy, fuel, and tax bills, just to name a few, that will always be there. Every situation is truly unique when it comes to Life Insurance, but not complicated. You need enough to pay off any bills you have, including the mortgage and all other revolving debt, if you have children I would always recommend enough Life Insurance coverage to leave a college fund behind as well. Because it is extremely unlikely that something will happen to us while we’re raising a family I always recommend Term Life Insurance, normally a 20yr Level Term Life Insurance policy is adequate for most families. Think about this, if you own a home, and are raising children, in 20 years your life situation will be entirely different than it is today. Kids will be grown, and hopefully self sufficient, your home and other debts will either be paid for or close to it, and during those 20 years your retirement and other savings will be growing. With that combination at the end of the 20 year term you probably won’t need Life Insurance anymore. Every situation is unique, and I recommend that we review your insurance needs regularly, and you can always update your coverage’s as life situations change. Naturally we don’t want to think about the need for Life Insurance, but it’s irresponsible not to, and since it’s less expensive than ever, Term Life Insurance just makes sense to protect your family.

Doug Heimer V.P.

Heimer Insurance Services Inc.

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