Life insurance is a gift of love for the people you leave behind. When you’re no longer around to provide for your family, life insurance can help ease the financial burden.

You choose an amount, pay the premium and do the medicals; then you’ve got life insurance. Sounds easy right? Well… for a lot of people it’s not. No one likes to think about their own demise. And, when you finally work yourself up to it, the challenge is determining, how much life insurance do I need? There’s no out-of-the-box formula for calculating how much you need. You must determine why you’re getting life insurance in the first place. Let’s consider some options. And remember, you can always talk to one of our financial advisors to help with your decision.

Care for Loved Ones 

One of the most common reasons for getting life insurance is to take care of your loved ones. This type of life insurance is calculated in different ways, but your annual income or potential earning power is often considered. Life insurance should usually represent ten to fifteen times your annual income or potential earning power.

You can also conduct a needs analysis approach. You analyse the needs of your family and other dependents and determine which needs would be unfulfilled if you passed away. Maybe you care for your children. Maybe your aging parents live with you. Whatever your circumstances, there’s a life insurance plan that can help provide for your family.

Debt

Your debt should die when you do. Your loved ones will already have to deal with the grief of losing you, they shouldn’t also have to consider how they’re going to repay debts. Calculate your debt – factor in smaller loans as well as more substantial payments like a mortgage – and you can purchase life insurance to expunge these costs.

 Pay Last Expenses

Many people never consider the cost of a funeral until they have to. But let’s think about it – there’s the funeral home, cremation or burial, headstone, casket, transport as well as other costs like flowers or even catering for the wake. Your life insurance can cover these costs to ease the strain on your family at a difficult time.

Secure a Line of Credit

A common misconception is that life insurance is for old people. We know, you’re young, healthy, you’ve got many years left. But you may need life insurance to prove that you can pay off an outstanding debt should you pass away. For example, you’ll certainly need life insurance to secure a mortgage.

Protect Your Business

If you’re a small business owner, your employees and your family depend on you. They may not be equipped to take over the business if you die unexpectedly nor may they be able to sell it right away. Maybe you’ve invested your family’s savings in your company or taken loans to get the business off the ground. The last thing you’ll want is to leave loved ones with your company expenses. Life insurance will help protect your business as well as your family and employees.

You may not be able to buy all the life insurance you need at once. But you can decide where you want to start. As your income increases, you can revise your insurance portfolio accordingly. There are a myriad of reasons why people buy life insurance. Hopefully, this list has helped you to consider which reasons speak to you.