Hi,

I've been trying to gather as much information as I could on life insurance and I'm still confused. I was hoping I can get some advice and information here. I apologize in advance if I'm asking the wrong questions or if it sounds weird. Here's the situation...

I'm 35 years old and will be getting married with 3 children who are not in college yet. I have a whole life insurance policy of $100k that my mom had bought I think over 15 years ago and paying $345 semi-annually. I've been reading that whole life insurance is a bad idea and I should be getting term life insurance to cover for the next 20 years to make sure the mortgage and kids to college are covered. Here's some questions I have...

Should I keep the whole life insurance policy?
Should I up the death value of the whole life insurance?
Should I cancel the whole life insurance?
Keep the whole life insurance and get a term life insurance also?
What other options do I have?


Thanks

$690 annually for only $100k in coverage sounds really high.

I doubt the whole life policy is optimal -- but it depends on your situation. If you have some major medical issue that has come up in the past few years or are overweight/obese you may not be able to find a reasonable term policy and you'll have to go through medical exams and such.

Considering you'll be getting some dependents you need to think of how things will be if there is no coverage. Will they be able to make it?

I'd switch to term and it will be better for you because there are no bells and whistles vs universal life/whole life. But I'd make sure the term policy is in effect before cancelling anything else -- just in case.

There are more factors to this, though. Income, child ages, do you AND your spouse work or will you be the sole breadwinner. There are a lot of factors to include that I can't even begin here...

Well, I have been diagnosed with diabetes and high blood pressure. With that info, should I continue with the whole life insurance?

I'm going to be the sole provider. My wife will not be working. My income alone is $90k a year. We have 3 children, ages 12, 13 and 16. We're also currently in the market for a new home so I'll have a mortgage. From the information I've gathered, I will probably need term insurance, but for how long should I get the insurance?

Is it a good idea to keep both whole life insurance and get a term insurance with it?


Thanks

Blood pressure is less an issue as long as it is maintained. I do not know the specifics.

If I were you I'd keep whatever you have now until you have new coverage -- then I'd cancel the whole life. Remember you are buying INSURANCE not INVESTING. A lot of salespeople will try to combine those two.

One of the biggest contributing factors to life insurance premiums is weight.

I'm shopping for life insurance too... Be advised there are a lot of people out there trying to sell BS insurance. I had it out with a salesperson who told me I was ineligible for term and would have to take an 'accidental death' policy. If I'm dead I'm dead. Say I have a stroke and that's it? or murder? Those really aren't 'accidents,' are they?

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag ... /index.htm

Gives an okay overview.

whether or not you have a mortgage is not a major factor, but that's my opinion. Insurance companies will try to mix it into coverage, but factor if you have a 20 year term and a 30 year mortgage by the time the term is up you'll only have 10 more years on the mortgage -- if you don't pay extra.

When you get the mortgage don't be afraid to pay extra, especially the first year. The earlier and bigger the principal payment the more return it gets... but that's a whole different story.

Brisk172 ,

What is your net worth ? That answer will have something to do whether you can the whole life policy or not .

**Marcopolo

If I were you I will discuss these with the company you have an existing Life insurance policy. Ask how can you upgrade now that you have kids and about to get married and what would be the best option for you. I have the same dillenma a few years back. I have USAA and they've been very good in explaining and accomodating all my questions. I would consider checking http://www.quotes-center.com/types-of-life-insurance-policies/to see what best fits you and your budget.

secure your term first, then get rid of that other thingy you have. I cannot stress this enough. USE term4sale.com. It sounds cheesy, somewhat looks cheesy but is the best website out there for term life insurance shopping. It generates unbiased quotes, which does not require ANY personal information to get some numbers. You can then CHOOSE a company you think you like and either contact them or the website will send an email with the quote you are seeing on term4sale. It will be difficult for you to gauge where you are medically, as some companies will ding you pretty hard and some companies won't seem to care much.

This is why you need a good agent you can trust and like. If you don't like them, tell them you think there may someone else out there that is a better fit and you'll contact them if you need anything. USING AN AGENT COSTS YOU NOTHING. My agent met me at my home, spoke to us about our needs, helped me fill out the paperwork, setup the medical exam etc. When there was a problem I had with my preferred company, he went out, shopped around and found a company acceptable to me with a more reasonable premium, all without having to take another physical. He then met me at my work, signed the final paperwork, delivered the contract etc. He also closely watches my disability policy, which is especially important in the first five years. And since I changed jobs, he is helping to get somethings changed on the disability policy without medical underwriting. Very helpful!

You'll need to know how much you want to insure yourself for. Term is so cheap, it always helps to throw an extra wad on top. As it does not adjust for inflation. Remember aunt Gertie who just landed that $30k benefit? Seems like a lot 25 years ago. Peanuts today.

my 3 cents.

Agreed on the fact that your target coverage and monthly payments seem a little on the steep side. Best thing about deciding which life insurance policy to go for is that with the help of the right agent and agency, you should be able to find a median on whether it's whole life insurance or term life insurance policy to help you out.

Here's a list of basic insurance quotes to help you decide, if you haven't already.

[spam removed by mod]

And there are many more insurance quotes/calculators to help you figure costs, and best of all, you can take all the facts and figures to an agent for even more advice.

There are lots of insurance companies online but be certain that the company that you are dealing with have a good reputation and ratings. And there are some insurance companies online that provides and gives you information and quotes from different companies in one place and time. Such as these sites [spam removed]