When I left my full-time job to stay home with Blaire and Ben, I had been working in life insurance for three years. Up until I started there, I knew nothing about life insurance. I knew I had a life insurance policy through my employer and I just hoped it was something I would not have to spend any more time thinking about. As I dove deeper into the different types of life insurance, my eyes were opened to the peace of mind life insurance can bring to a family.
Disclaimer: I was not an insurance agent. I worked on the web team. I had to take some “basic education” type classes when I was hired. This is just my personal experience with life insurance and why I think it’s so important for my family.
Many people think of life insurance as something that pays for your funeral, but it’s so much more than that! Life insurance can help your family supplement lost income. The income that would have been spent on daily living expenses, college tuition, retirement, etc. All of the things your income would have been providing for your spouse and children.
Some things I didn’t know about life insurance:
- Most people expect life insurance to cost 3x what it actually does.
- The younger you purchase life insurance, the better, as life insurance prices tend to rise as you age.
- There are different types of life insurance policies, some may even grow in value over time.
I’ve rounded up some of the other things I have never thought about before when it came to life insurance. I hope this information helps you to feel more comfortable reaching out to Nationwide to receive more information on the various types of life insurance available for your family.
I’m a stay at home mom… do I really need life insurance?
The daily work of a SAHM is more than you might think. In 2018, Salary.com set the median annual salary of a mother at $162,581. Of course you don’t actually see that in your bank account each year, but should your spouse need to pay someone to handle what you do each day, that’s what they’d need. Your spouse would need to cover child care, housework, etc. Life insurance would help to cover those expenses. So while you may not have an “income” to replace, you certainly have a value to the work you do every day.
I have life insurance through my employer… isn’t that enough?
Employer policies typically only cover one or two times your annual salary. For most people, that isn’t enough to cover their needs. And when you leave jobs, your policy won’t move with you. Investing in the proper amount of coverage at a younger age can help to make sure you get the best rates possible, even if you end up changing jobs in the future.
When do I need to reevaluate my life insurance?
Whenever we have a life event/milestone, we contact our insurance agent. After the birth of each child, when we have bought a new house, etc. Talking with a professional, we are able to gauge what our new and future life expenses will be for our new situation. Then we can adjust our coverage.
Do kids really need life insurance?
Remember when I said life insurance rates typically rise as you get older? Typically, the better your health, the better your rate. Some health conditions may make it difficult to get life insurance coverage as you get older. Buying life insurance for your children may mean they can add additional coverage (at a low rate) when they’re older. There are different types of life insurance, including policies that build cash value over time. Talking to a life insurance professional allows you to learn what type(s) of policy would be most beneficial for each member of your family.
Nationwide can help you protect the people you love. Life insurance may seem complicated, but Nationwide is there to work with you one-on-one to answer your questions. They will analyze your needs and can help you select an insurance policy that is best for you and your family.
Working with the right company can help you to feel less nervous and panicked about the sensitive topics being discussed. Talking about life insurance certainly isn’t exciting or happy, but it makes us feel comfortable knowing our family will be protected on what would be the worst day of our lives.