Life Insurance Cost: Why You Can’t Afford to Not Be Covered

A recent survey by Bankrate found that while six out of every ten people may carry life insurance, almost half of them lack sufficient coverage to protect and provide for their family.

When considering whether or not to purchase life insurance, or when deciding how much coverage to get, too many Americans consider only the life insurance cost. They ignore the costs that arise with not having coverage or not having sufficient coverage.

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The True Life Insurance Cost

Life insurance helps to cover both the expected expenses and the unexpected ones that arise after a policyholder has passed away.

It protects your family in the event of your death. It allows them to continue to live with the same financial stability that they had before. There are countless reasons to invest in life insurance.

Despite this, there are a number of reasons why people still choose not to purchase life insurance.

Some believe that the life insurance cost is more than they can afford. In reality, life insurance is affordable for most Americans with a steady income.

Depending upon a person’s finances and needs, life insurance can cost as little as, or sometimes less than, $1 a day. For less than the cost of a cup of coffee, you could be protecting and providing for your family’s future. (For more information, read our “Life Insurance and More: The 10 Financial Goals Everyone Needs to Have”)

People in their twenties, or sometimes even those in their thirties or forties, feel that they are too young to need life insurance.

But young adults need life insurance just as much now as they will later in life. For many people, their twenties are a time for taking out college loans. It’s a time to think about marriage, and even having their first child.

Without life insurance, your parents, spouse, or cosigner would be left to pay your college loans. You’d be burdening your new spouse with the loss of your income. There’s also the cost of a funeral. You may have to consider the expense of raising a child as a single parent.

Life insurance is an essential investment for everyone, even those in their twenties.

The true life insurance cost appears both in the short term after a person’s death, and later down the road. It can leave their parents, spouse, or loved ones burdened with a number of considerable expenses.

 

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The Immediate Costs

There are many costs that arise immediately after a person’s death. These can put a significant strain on their loved ones’ finances.

The most immediate cost is the funeral. The average funeral costs nearly seven thousand dollars. This can quickly consume a large portion of a family’s savings if the deceased did not have life insurance. This total doesn’t even include things like cemetery fees or additional costs like headstones or grave markers and flowers.

But while many people realize that a funeral will be costly, few think about the many other costs that come shortly after that.

To start, the family must continue to pay for their day-to-day and month-to-month expenses, even while they are planning the funeral. This includes rent or mortgage payments, utilities, food, school costs or loan payments, and more.

Families without life insurance will end up using up their savings very quickly after the death of a spouse.

Many people assume that because one spouse is a stay-at-home parent, that there is no need for them to have life insurance.

But if that spouse passes away, the other may be left having to pay for daycare or other childcare services. These can add up quickly. Some may choose to take over some of those responsibilities themselves.

This often comes with a drop in pay, and even more stress on the family’s finances.

 

The Long-Term Costs

Besides the initial costs of not having life insurance, there are a number of long-term true life insurance costs that can add up over time. These can have a serious effect on a family’s financial standing.

If a family has children and one of the parents passes on, this may affect the children’s ability to go to college.

The cost of college (which is already high) is expected to continue to increase in the coming decades.

In fact, experts predict that by 2030, a college that today costs around forty thousand dollars a year to attend will cost more than ninety thousand dollars a year.

If children are already attending, or plan to attend, private grade schools or a private high school, a lack of a parent’s life insurance could prevent this.

It could also affect their ability to participate in extracurriculars, like sports, class trips, and other expensive activities.

If unexpected expenses arise while a family is still learning to live without the income of a deceased parent or spouse, they may be forced to take out loans or else neglect repairs.

What if a vehicle dies or a roof needs to be replaced? Your surviving spouse may struggle to make ends meet without your added income.

The effects on a family’s finances can be even more extreme is the spouse earning the primary or only income for a family does not have life insurance and passes away.

The surviving spouse may be forced to take a job.  They may even be forced to move out of your family home.

 

Determining What Kind of Coverage is Right for You and Your Family

When it comes to life insurance cost, there’s no such thing as one-size-fits-all coverage. But many people don’t understand the true life insurance cost. They don’t plan for the correct amount of coverage.

To ensure that your family is properly protected, determine what your real financial needs are. Depending upon your needs, there are a number of types of coverage that you can choose from.

You can go online and request a life insurance quote. This will help you find the right coverage for you at the best possible price.

The true life insurance cost makes it essential for all individuals, regardless of age or financial situation, to invest in life insurance.

You need to find the correct coverage for yourself and your family.

Looking to compare life insurance policies? We can help. Enter your ZIP code to get free quotes from multiple insurers.

Your one-stop online guide for life insurance quotes. Get free quotes now!

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