How much am I worth?

Mominator · March 2009

DH and I are looking into getting life insurance policies. I have to figure out how much I am "worth" so that if god forbid something were to happen for me I'd have a big enough policy to cover the expenses of things like daycare/nanny, housekeeper, etc so that DH could concentrate on the kids and work. Is there a website or anything out there to help me figure this out?

newportbride715 · March 2009

Maybe try to price nannies, housekeepers, etc in your area..?

RoxyLynn · March 2009

One of the factors in deciding life insurance for us was to have enough to pay off the house and let the surviving partner not work for a few months. DH's mother and stepfather lived a beautiful love story and, when he died of cancer, she truly could not function for a few months. To go through longterm caregiving and a death is incredibly exhausting, so we included enough $ to account for a necessary period of respite.

ncsubride · March 2009

SAHMs are priceless, is that an option?

Mominator · March 2009

ncsubride:
SAHMs are priceless, is that an option?

It may be an option, but I'm not sure if I could afford the premium Wink

lucylea · March 2009

We took out $20,000 for me. That would cover a standard funeral and about two years of daycare. As we have more children we will readjust this and then again when all children are in school possibly.

DevonPow · March 2009

I have quite a bit of life insurance. It is enough to cover our mortgage and pay for a nanny until DS goes to school (DH works long hours - daycare would not be an option) plus extra.

mandymack · March 2009

Hi there!!

Well, according to our life insurance agent who helped us get policies appropriate for OUR situation, it's important to first decide what financial hardship your DH *might* incurr in the event of your death:

* Funeral costs (we burried three relatives in the last 5 years and each very CHEAP, barebones funeral cost us over $15K!!!)

* Paying off any debt, like your car, your student loans, your credit cards, etc. so you don't leave him with extra hardship

* Putting your child/children in daycare FULL-TIME (assuming you pass while he/she is still young) as this is your current full-time job

Assuming you both are living off his salary 100% (meaning you aren't contributing financially in any way so, even if you die, he can continue to pay all the bills), these are the barebones, necessary concerns you have to worry about as far as financial hardship for him. Like most surviving spouses and single parents, he will have to cook, clean the house and shuttle the kids around and he will figure it out!

It's a personal preference if you want additional funds for your husband to hire a housekeeper, a gardener and a regular babysitter to shuttle the kids around, as well as if you want to set aside funds to pay off your house (in theory, he could continue to make the mortgage payments!), put your kids through college, etc., etc. You have to make that decision with your husband and what makes HIM most comfortable in the event of your death. Is he confident he can pick back up and go back to work, raising your children? Is he in fear of losing his job at any point in time where he would want a "cushion" to live on? Would he want to have a college fund for your kids or money to pay for a wedding should you not be there? You can really do as little or as much as YOU want but you should have something!

Term Life Insurance for anyone under age 35 that doesn't smoke is really really cheap, like $15/month and once you pass that medical exam, you can never be denied that amount (called your "death benefit") when it comes time for you to renew, even if you have some life-threatening illness. HUGE advantage to get insured when you are young and healthy!!! You can get quotes from just about any carrier (we use State Farm) with just 1 simple appointment to assess your needs.

Very best of luck!

aka.melisha · March 2009

We took out a policy on me for $300,000. Sounds like a lot, I know, but our reasoning was that if that money were put into some kind of investment (say, growth stock mutual funds) and earned 10% a year, that would mean he would have $30,000 per year to hire child care, housekeeping help, etc. If that's all he used, he'd never "wear down" the balance, but just live on the interest. Then he could use the balance for other expenses, like helping the kids through college or something.

What it essentially came down to, though, is how much of a monthly premium we could afford. The premium on my policy is $33 per month.

Hope that helps! And many, many kudos to you for thinking about this. It's tough to consider yourself not around, but this is the smartest way to tell your family "I love you".

cherokee6 · March 2009

aka.melisha:
What it essentially came down to, though, is how much of a monthly premium we could afford.? The premium on my policy is $33 per month.

Wow, what company is your life insurance with??

mjonette@gmail.com · March 2009

I have a policy for half a million, DH has one for 750,000. We figured that my policy would pay off the house and pay for daycare/nanny until our kids are in school. His policy would pay off the house, and either provide enough for us to live on until all the kids are in school and I could go back to work, or pay for a nanny until the kids are in school and I can go back to work. They would also pay for the funerals. It sounds like a ton of money, but in the grand scheme of things, it makes a lot of sense. I think we only pay about $30/$40 per month for both our premiums.

Switzerland · March 2009

The way life insurance works is there is a maximum you can get based on your debts & liabilities and current household income. You may think you are worth $1 million policy but if you only have $200k house debt and your household income is only $65k a year than you most likely will not be able to get that large of a policy. Good luck in whatever you decide.

How much am I worth?

Re: How much am I worth?

eclaire 9.10.06 diggy 6.2.11

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