Life insurance. It’s not a fun topic to talk about for a variety of different reasons, but it can’t be ignored. The truth is, if you have anyone in your life who depends on you and your income, life insurance is something that you should consider taking care of now.
It doesn’t matter whether you are fresh out of college or thinking about retirement, you need life insurance. Luckily, you can buy life insurance without searching for an insurance agent or listening to any sales pitches.
There’s an easy way to take care of all of your life insurance needs virtually with Bestow, an online life insurance company. It won’t cost you an arm and a leg and no medical exam is necessary.
What Is Life Insurance Coverage and Why Do You Need It?
A life insurance policy is a financial product that you purchase, usually by paying a monthly premium. Upon your death, your life insurance policy will give your dependents a cash payout.
The money can come in a lump sum or in the form of payments. But the purpose of life insurance is to make sure your loved ones who depend on you are financially taken care of if you are no longer there to provide.
The amount of money your dependents receive depends on the type of insurance and level of coverage that you buy. The two main types of life insurance are whole life policies and term policies.
Types of Life Insurance: Whole Life Insurance vs. Term Life Insurance
Whole life insurance policies—sometimes called cash value insurance—are usually more expensive than term life insurance policies. And there are a couple of reasons why. Whole life coverage lasts your entire life, and it’s designed to build cash value over time. This might sound like a good option. But, it can be expensive and you must stay current on your payments.
As an investment, permanent life insurance doesn’t really offer the best returns. And, the products associated with permanent life insurance can be extremely hard to understand. I don’t like spending money on things that don’t make sense to me, which is why I started looking at term life insurance.
Term life insurance policies—which is what Bestow offers—run for a fixed period of time, aka the “term” of the policy. These terms vary, but Bestow offers a range of term lengths, including 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30-year policies. A term life insurance policy only pays out if you die during the term of the policy. There is no lump sum that’s paid out at the end of the policy term.
Life Insurance Cost Comparisons
Figuring out the cost, amount of coverage, and death benefits can be a chore. So, let’s have some fun with numbers for just a minute. Imagine you are in your 30s and you have $100 available in your monthly budget for life insurance.
After shopping around and hearing a few sales pitches, you discover that you can buy $125,000 in coverage for your family with a whole life policy. Not only will you get that coverage, but that $100 will also build up savings for retirement. Sounds like a good deal, right?
Not so fast. If you buy 20-year term life insurance at Bestow with $500,000 in coverage, it will probably cost you around $20 per month. Maybe even less.
Why the difference in price and payout? Well, the majority of that hefty $100 monthly whole life premium for just $125,000 in coverage will disappear during the first three years because it will most likely go to commissions and expenses.
Only a portion of a whole life premium is actually paying for your life insurance coverage. That extra $80 per month is going toward the cash value or “investment” portion of the policy, with a relatively low return.
It should be noted that you have to withdraw and spend that cash value when you are alive if you want to use it. Your dependents do not get that money if you die suddenly without cashing it out and spending it. So the only benefit to your family, ultimately, is that $125,000 payout upon your death.
But if you take that $100 you have in your budget and spend $20 on term life with Bestow and invest that other $80 for 20 years in good growth stock mutual funds, market history shows that you can expect a 10 percent rate of return.
That means you can turn that $80 a month into thousands. After 20 years of investing $80 per month, you will have some decent savings that your family can access if you die unexpectedly.
You won’t be pressured into spending it when you’re alive like you would with a whole life policy. Plus, the returns from investing that money wisely instead of paying for a whole life policy are much bigger.
How to Apply for Life Insurance With Bestow
Getting term life insurance through Bestow begins with an online quote. Simply enter your gender, birthdate, height, weight, and zip code. The interface also asks if you use nicotine products.
That’s all the information you have to give in order to get your term life insurance quote for both 10 and 20-year terms. You can also see what your premiums will be based on coverage from $50,000 up to $1 million.
The next step is to create an account, then you will answer seven questions about your health. These questions are about rapid weight loss, HIV status, disability payments, and depression. Your answers will help determine if you have any health conditions that could affect you long term.
There will also be 10 lifestyle questions which will cover US citizenship, where you were born, international travel, employment and income, and driver’s license information. The last step will be to provide your social security number and a digital signature.
Once you review your application, you can submit it for approval and verify your ID. This will begin the underwriting process for approval. You don’t have to undergo a medical exam of any kind. But, your physical and mental health history may affect the rate that Bestow offers, and that price could be more than your quote.
Oola’s Takeaway
Term life insurance is something that you can’t ignore when there are people in your life who depend on you. Bestow is a good option for purchasing term life insurance because it’s easy and convenient, they offer both 10 and 20-year terms, and the rates easily fit any budget.
Term life insurance coverage at Bestow will be hard to beat. Just make sure that the life insurance coverage you choose works best for your needs.
Buying life insurance can be a daunting task involving meetings and high-pressure sales. Bestow removes the middle man to make it easy to buy life insurance. Get your hassle-free life insurance quote today!
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