Why Buy Life Insurance In Mar 2024? 15 Reasons + Tips!

By Licensed Agent Sa El

Edited & Expert Reviewed by Sa El

Updated: February 22, 2023

Passing up the "buy life insurance" item on your to-do can be very easy.

In fact, most people would actually prefer to do their own taxes than purchase a life insurance policy.

But what if I told you:

why buy life insurance

There are a ton of reasons why you need buy life insurance and that the longer you wait the higher the financial risk for your family

In this post today I will go over a detailed list of why you need to buy life insurance and why you should stop procrastinating about protecting your family's future.

Why Buy Life Insurance?

I have learned that life insurance isn't for yourself, it is for the people you leave behind, this has inspired my list of 15 reasons why you need life insurance.

1. To Protect A Special Needs Child

I have a brother and sister that are both autistic and even though they are currently teenagers, they still require a ton of supervision and attention.

I love them with all of my heart but I know that when my father passes away they would be in a very bad position if he didn’t have life insurance.

They have to go to special schools and take extra classes and really need someone that can take responsibility for them around the clock.

I don’t know if we consider this enough but according to care.com a nanny that has a focus on special needs children could cost up to $20.00 per hour.

The math on this type of care for 1 year can bankrupt the average family if they needed full-time care.

To watch my brother and sister for let’s say 6 hours per day would cost:

  • $600 Per Week
  • $2,400 Per Month
  • $28,000 Per Year

If you are the person primarily responsible for any special needs child, not having life insurance is irresponsible at best.

Leaving kids without any financial support that can’t fend for themselves is just wrong.

I made sure my brother and sister were covered if something happens to my father.

2. Paying Final Expenses

When you pass away there are going to be several final expenses that need to be paid. 

The one that of course stands out the most is your burial.  

While the SSA will pay out a $255 death benefit, it is about $9,700 short of what the average cost of a burial is in the U.S.

Below is a list of things that will need to be covered for your funeral:

  • embalming: $500
  • the funeral director's services: $1,500
  • cost for using the funeral home: $500
  • Cost Of A Grave Site: $1,000
  • cost to dig the grave: $600
  • cost of a headstone: $1,500
  • cost of a grave liner: $1,000

As you can easily tell, this list starts to add up very fast and if you don't have life insurance your family might be having to run a GoFundMe campaign which isn't life insurance.

3. Cover Children’s Expenses - Day Care

According to Very Well Family the average cost of center-based daycare in the United States is $11,666 per year ($972 a month), but prices range from $3,582 to $18,773 a year ($300 to $1,564 monthly).

Paying upwards of $18,000 a year is extremely expensive and if you have more than one child the price doubles or triples.

It is important to make sure that you have enough life insurance in place if you have small children to make sure you can take care of their daycare expenses.

If you had to keep your child in day care until they were old enough to go to pre-school - usually around age 3, that would be anywhere from $10,000 up to $56,000 over that time span.

4. To Replace Your Spouse’s Income

One of the largest reasons to purchase life insurance is income replacement. 

I usually suggest that families get at least 15 to 20X(times) their annual income in life insurance to make sure there is enough money to replace the lost income.

If your family is used to living on $75,000 and and that income goes away how long do you think they will be able to survive.

They could lose the home, have to move and change the kids schools, a ton of things can happen when income goes to $0.00 no matter what lifestyle you have.

It is essential to make sure you have enough coverage to replace your spouses income for a long period of time.

5. Cover Real Estate Investments

If you have real estate investments that your family is supported by, they will need life insurance to keep things running.

Imagine having multiple properties and they are unable to keep them up to code or pay the correct management company to keep the business going.

You could have several rents that are due on a monthly basis, maintenance fees, paying any employees and keeping landlord insurance policies active. 

Having cash on hand to handle any unexpected issue with your real estate investments is smart and there is no better protection than life insurance.

THE SIMPLY INSURANCE WAY

Life Insurance made easy.

Agents not required.

Get quotes and sign up online without talking to an agent. But, we are here if you need us. 

Unbiased, expert advice.

Get unbiased insurance education from licensed experts and also avoid dodgy sales calls.

Coverage in minutes.

You can get life insurance coverage within minutes of getting your quotes and applying.

6. Pay Off Debts

If you are married or live in a community property state, your spouse is probably going to be responsible for your debt if you pass away.

Credit card bills, auto loans, the mortgage, business loans, you name it.

For this reason alone you need to have life insurance for yourself and your spouse.

Life insurance can quickly get rid of the debt and allow you to start over on a new financial journey.

7. It Can Be A Forced Savings Account - Return of Premium

The return of premium term life insurance policy gives you the best of both worlds. 

It acts as both a life insurance policy and a savings account and while the premiums can be more expensive than your average term policy, they are much more affordable than whole life.

The way a return of premium policy works is that if you outlive your term policy it will pay back to you all the premiums you paid into the policy in a lump sum check.

If you pass away before the term ends, it will pay out 100% of the life insurance proceeds to your beneficiaries.

In essence, think of this as a forced savings account with a free life insurance policy attached.

8. To Buy a Business Partner’s Shares

Another solid reason to have life insurance is if you are a partner or key-person inside of a business. 

You might not understand all the ways of financing or funding a business and if they pass away you want to be able to purchase their shares from the family members that might not want to be part of the business.

If you don't have those funds you would be stuck with partners that really can't help the business grow.

Also, if you invested into a small business with someone and they were the primary employee that would make everything run, you probably want coverage on them.

It's best to protect yourself and your business.

9. Because "People" Kill People

I am sure you have heard the old saying, "Guns don't kill people, people kill people." 

Well that couldn't be more true now than ever, I just read a story that really upset me - I was really pissed.

An unknown group of cowards did a drive by shooting into the house of a single father who is raising 7 kids.

The shooting killed an 11 year old boy while he slept in his room with his other siblings.

It's some of the worst news I have heard this week so far, but there is probably worse news to come.

Unfortunately we live in a world where people can't seem to stop killing.

It's important to have coverage on everyone in your family.

10. College Planning

According to College Data the average cost of college is - $34,740 at private colleges, $9,970 for state residents at public colleges, and $25,620 for out-of-state residents attending public universities.

No matter what way your kids plan to go to college it will be a hefty cost behind it and if you want them in the best schools, they will need money available to attend college.

Having enough life insurance to cover a few years of college tuition for your kids is an essential part of planning out how much life insurance you need.

Why put your kids in a position of hoping to get scholarships or having to work through college to pay for school.

And we definately don't want them getting student loans.

11. To Get A Small Business Loan

If you want a small business loan one of the main requirements the SBA has is that you will need to get a life insurance policy before the fund the loan.

This is to make sure that if you pass away during the term of the loan they will be able to recover any loans they gave to you.

That is also why it is essential to purchase life insurance as a young adult because the older you get the more expensive it becomes and the harder it becomes to qualify for coverage.

According to JRC Insurance group - Under SBA SOP 50 10 5 (B), any SBA loan for a business that “is tied to an individual or individuals” requires life insurance to protect the lender and the owner's family. Life insurance policies purchased for SBA loans must be for the full amount of the SBA loan, with your lender named as primary beneficiary.

12. Coverage is More Affordable Than You Think

Below are quick sample rates for both men and women non-tobacco users with preferred health.

Best Term Rates for Men

Age

$500,000

$19.75

30 Years Old

$20.17

35 Years Old

$21.00

40 Years Old

$30.58

45 Years Old

$49.33

50 Years Old

$76.00

Best term rates for women

Age

$500,000

$16.83

30 Years Old

$17.25

35 Years Old

$18.50

40 Years Old

$25.58

45 Years Old

$38.92

50 Years Old

$58.08

I am sure you are shocked at just how affordable these rates are, another reason you should get covered today.

INSURANCE WHERE YOU LIVE

Life insurance by state.

AlabamaALAlaskaAKArizonaAZArkansasARCaliforniaCAColoradoCOConnecticutDelawareFloridaFLGeorgiaGAIdahoIDIllinoisILIndianaINIowaIAKansasKSKentuckyKYLouisianaLAMaineMEMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMIMinnesotaMNMississippiMSMissouriMOMontanaMTNebraskaNENevadaNVNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNMNew YorkNYNorth CarolinaNCNorth DakotaNDOhioOHOklahomaOKOregonORPennsylvaniaPARhode IslandSouth CarolinaSCSouth DakotaSDTennesseeTNTexasTXUtahUTVermontVirginiaVAWAWest VirginiaWVWisconsinWIWyomingWYVermontVTNew HampshireNHMassachusettsMAConnecticutCTNew JerseyNJMarylandMDHawaiiHIRhode IslandRIDelawareDE
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13. Peace of Mind

Knowing that my family will be fine if something happens to me always keeps me in a good mood and with a peace of mind.

It will make you feel great knowing that if you are gone, your family will be in good mental and financial shape once they get over your passing.

Having that talk with your spouse and everyone being on the same page makes things in the house go much smoother as well.

14. To Protect Your Pet(s)

If you are a pet-parent then the last thing you would want to have happen is for you to pass away and there is no one there to care for them. 

Leaving some life insurance to them or to someone that will take care of them if yo pass away is essential.

Taking care of a pet is expensive and there is no reason to leave this debt on anyone who was kind enough to take your furbabie in.

15. So Your Family Won’t Hate You

I was very serious with my parents when I explained to them that if they didn’t have life insurance I would not be part of the financial responsibility of burying them.

I wasn’t trying to be mean or anything but my father loves to play the lotto and my mother likes to throw parties.

I am 100% fine with them doing whatever they desire, but they can’t have all that fun and leave me and my 4 brothers and 4 sisters with the bill.  

On top of that, as I stated earlier, that would have a very bad effect on my younger brother and sister.

No one might say it out loud, but if you die without life insurance and could have easily afforded it, your family will probably hate you after they mourn for you.

THE SIMPLY INSURANCE WAY

Life Insurance made easy.

Agents not required.

Get quotes and sign up online without talking to an agent. But, we are here if you need us. 

Unbiased, expert advice.

Get unbiased insurance education from licensed experts and also avoid dodgy sales calls.

Coverage in minutes.

You can get life insurance coverage within minutes of getting your quotes and applying.

How Much Coverage Should You Buy?

The average insurance agent will tell you that you want to have 10X (times) your annual income.

However, in my mind that means you will only have enough coverage to protect your family for 10 years.

So, I usually recommend between 15 and 20 times your annual income.

If you make $50,000 per year, would you want to leave your family with a $500,000 life insurance policy or a $1,000,000 life insurance policy?

The way it works is that most insurance companies allow you to purchase up to 30(X) times your annual income.

It doesn't go past that because life insurance wasn't created to make people rich, only to supplement a lost income.

Also, once you go past $2 Million in coverage life insurance companies may start to do financial underwriting to make sure you have the assets and can afford the policy.

Exam or No Exam Life Insurance?

You have two primary ways to apply for life insurance and that is with an exam or without an exam.

Both options have their advantages and disadvantages but it is going to come down to what option is the most convenient and affordable to you.

A no exam policy is going to cost a bit more per month than a policy without an exam; however, going the traditional route with an exam is going to cost you more time.

Exam Life Insurance


  • Up To 3 Weeks For Approval
  • Medical Records Requested
  • Medical Exam Required
  • Can Have Lower Rates

No Exam


  • Instant or Next Day Approval
  • No Medical Records Requested
  • No Medical Exam Required
  • A Bit More expensive

As you can see, these products are almost evenly matched so do you want your coverage faster or do you want to save a few bucks?

Whole Life or Term Life

The two primary types of life insurance you can purchase is permanent life and term life insurance.  

The most common type of permanent life insurance is whole life insurance.

Whole life insurance is much more expensive than term life insurance.

reasons to buy life insurance

Term life insurance is not only the most affordable option between the two but it is also much easier to understand.

Whole life builds cash value over time that can be borrowed against but it isn't something I ever recommend doing.

Whole Life


  • Builds Cash Value
  • Last Your Entire Life
  • Up to 30 times more expensive
  • more complicated product

Term Life


  • Much More Affordable
  • Last For A Specific Term Length
  • Doesn't Build Cash Value
  • easy to understand

You don't have to take my word for it either, we asked over 40 personal finance experts which option is best and almost all of them chose term life over whole life.

Best Place To Buy Life Insurance?

The best place to buy your life insurance is going to be online. 

We do a quick review of one of the best companies for term life insurance below:

bestow logo

Available For Ages:

18 to 60 Years Old

Coverage Amounts:

$50,000 to $1,500,000

20 Year $250,000 Quote:
$17.50/month

Check out our Bestow life review

haven life logo large

Available For Ages:

18 to 65 Years Old

Coverage Amounts:

$50,000 to $3,000,000

20 Year $250,000 Quote:

$18.90/month

Check out our Haven life review

fabric life new logo

Available For Ages:

21 to 60 Years Old

Coverage Amounts:

$100,000 to $1,000,000

20 Year $250,000 Quote:

$20.39/month

Check out our Fabric life review

Taking Action

Hopefully, this list has helped you realize why you should have life insurance and what it will mean to your family if you don’t have coverage.

Feel free to click here, use our quoter, or the button above to get some quick quotes and get covered today.


EXPERT EDITOR & REVIEWER

Sa El

Licensed & Certified Insurance Agent

Sa El is the Founder of Simply Insurance and a licensed Insurance Agent with over 15 years of experience in the industry.  He specializes in Life & Health Insurance and is certified in Long Term Care Insurance in the state of Georgia. a licensed real estate agent in the state of Georgia (License #382602), an entrepreneur, insurance educator, and freelance writer.