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| | When purchasing life insurance, you first need to determine what kind of insurance you will buy (term life or cash value) and the amount of coverage you need. Term life - which has a certain coverage for a defined term of time without any "cash value" that builds up over time - is the most straightforward kind and is generally substantially less expensive. If you choose a cash value life insurance policy, it's especially important to choose a carrier that is financially sound and stable. If you use an insurance aggregator such as Intelliquote, they will display the Standard and Poor's, Moody's, and other ratings. The California Department of Insurance has a helpful Consumer's Guide to life insurance. | | |
| Typical costs: | - Using Intelliquote, we tested several different scenarios for a fit male in California who has never smoked and is seeking a 20 Year, $500,000 term life insurance policy. For a 30 year old, the monthly premium would be $24-$31 a month, for a 40 year old, the monthly premium would be $31-$40 a month, and for a 50 year old, the monthly premium would be $83-$92 a month.
- Using Intelliquote, we tested several different scenarios for an obese male in Illinois who smokes a pack of cigarettes a day and is seeking a 20 year, $500,000 term life insurance policy. For a 30 year old, the monthly premium would be $95-$177 a month, for a 40 year old, the monthly premium would be $195-$243 a month, and for a 50 year old, the monthly premium would be $471-$541 a month.
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| Shopping for life insurance: | - Nation-wide online life insurance aggregators include IntelliQuote and ReliaQuote, which will provide a quick overview of possible rates.
- Once you've gotten ballpark estimates of what kind of policy you want and what kind of companies you're interested in, you may want to talk to a life insurance agent to pick a specific policy. Be aware, though, that insurance agents can have financial incentives to encourage to you to pick particular plans.
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Article updated November 2006 |
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