If you are planning on having children, then you may want to look into term life insurance before you start your family. Children are extremely expensive, as any prospective parent knows, and this expense will not go away if something should happen to you or your spouse. In fact, if something does happen to either one of you, child care costs may actually rise because you are dealing with the added trouble of trying to do the job of two parents in one with little time for anything else.
If something happens to either parent, income is compromised, and the remaining parent may have to take a second job. This leads to time away from home, which may lead to the necessity of a babysitter. The cost problem can spiral, leading to a lot of financial and emotional trouble, especially after the death of someone you love, not to mention the added trauma of not being able to spend time with your child because you are working so hard.
This kind of sad situation is preventable with the use of term life insurance, but not all families have this essential protection. Term life insurance should be a standard purchase for anyone considering a family. The protection that life insurance affords is something that is priceless to many families when tragedy strikes. It is terrible when you lose a loved one, but it is even worse when that loss is literally the end of your way of life for you.
The alternative is to have term life insurance. Term life insurance should be bought as soon as you or your spouse becomes pregnant, as you will be busy with many other things when the big day gets closer. Look for a plan that will last at least until your last child is 18, which may be 18 years, or it may be longer if you plan on having a large family. You can buy term life insurance for up to 30 years at a time, making it good for people who want to stretch their families out a little. If you plan on stretching your family out more, you can buy a second, smaller policy to overlap the first.
The amount of term life insurance that you get depends on where and how you live, but you should plan on covering your spouse’s annual salary for at least a few years. Choose the amount that covers the spouse that earns the most. If you have a spouse that stays home with the kids, consider the costs of things like a house cleaner, a babysitter, and maybe private school later. Stay at home moms may not be wage earners, but they contribute a great deal to the household.
If you ever think that you can not afford term life insurance, or that you will put it off for just a little longer, consider what will happen to you or to your spouse and to your family should one of you die. At that point you can ask yourself if you can afford not to have it; the answer is probably “no”.
