Q:  How much life insurance protection does a family need?

A:  The amount of protection needed depends on many factors, some of which are unpredictable such as how long you may live.  One approach is to plan for the worse case scenario and decide how much money surviving family or loved ones will need to pay off debts and handle expenses such as:

• Funeral Costs and Final Expenses
• Debts including Mortgage
• Estate Taxes
• College Expenses for Children
• Survivor Living Expenses

Q:  Will my life insurance policy expire before I do?

A:  you may have a term life policy that will eventually reach the end of its term.  Whole life and universal life policies issued 10 or 20 years ago were based on higher projected interest rates than we have experienced and are now being credited the individual policie’s guaranteed minimum interest rate.  In many cases, today’s life insurance policies have a lower premium and many providers offer “bundles” with other benefits such as long term care.

Q: What are the risks of needing long-term care compared to other types of risks?

A:  The risk of having a fire that causes major damage to your home is about 1 in 1200.  The risk of having an accident that will totally destroy your care is about 1 in 240.  Yet the risk of being confined in a nursing home is a staggering 1 in 3!