Life insurance is something that everyone should be able to leave behind for their loved ones. After all, if you pass away, you want to make sure the people you care about are taken care of.
Many people think that it gets harder to get quality life insurance as you get older. On one hand, this is true. However, no matter what your age, life insurance is still very much attainable, and you can make an investment in quality term life insurance even as a senior citizen. Let’s take a closer look.
What Is Term? Life Insurance?
A term life policy is among the most affordable and easily attainable types of life insurance on the market. It is usually much more affordable than whole life and universal life insurance, and it’s also offers a more simplified application process. However, it only lasts for a certain number of years. As long as you die during the term of the policy, your plan will pay a death benefit.
For senior citizens, term life insurance often creates a win-win scenario. Not only might seniors on a fixed income be better able to afford term life policies, but they might also not have to undergo as extensive of a medical exam in order to qualify for coverage. Given that seniors might suffer from health conditions that would make their risk significantly high to insurers, they might not qualify for certain policies. However, they might find a term policy something they can easily enroll in.
Keep in mind however, that since term life policies are not permanent, you will have to reapply for an entirely new policy if the plan expires before your death.
Decide How Much Insurance You Need
If you are considering investing in term life insurance, then you should think carefully about precisely what you want the end goal of your benefits to be. In general, it is a good idea to buy a term life insurance policy with a death benefit that is at least 10 times your current salary. Your dependents should be able to comfortably live off the death benefit for about a decade. However, this is simply a guideline, not a hard-and-fast rule.
Additionally, when selecting the term for your policy, consider what you want to use the money for. For example, if you only want the policy to be used for one particular expense that will eventually go away (like a mortgage) then you can choose a policy term that will accurately reflect the date that you will clear that debt.
For more information about how to buy term life insurance for seniors, don’t hesitate to reach out to us.