Over Age 50 Life Insurance Choices
Do people over 50 years old have any choices if they want to buy life insurance? Today, insurers consider older people a big market, and they do provide many different products. Because people are actually living longer and more productive lives today, rates may be actually be affordable too. It is certainly possible for baby boomers and seniors to find a policy if they want it.
Why would people over 50 even want to buy a policy? When we were younger, we probably purchased term because it was cheaper. We were told that at the end of 20 or 30 years we would not need coverage any more because our savings would cover us. We thought our kids would be on their own, and our mortgage would be paid off. At 30, those 2 or 3 decades of term coverage seem life forever.
This was all a nice thought. But in fact, that did not work out well for many of us. Those kids are still not taking care of themselves. It is very common for grown kids to come home, and sometimes they come with their own kids. That mortgage we planned to pay off may have been for a home we don’t even live in now. Or because of financial problems, we may have needed to take out a second mortgage. We are happy to have outived the term of our policy, but we find that we did not outlive our need for a policy.
So, why don’t we have life insurance? Well, that term policy only lasted for 20 or 30 years. Thankfully, we outlived it. Or we had group coverage at work, but we are not at that job any more. We are older now, but we do not have any coverage.
Who buys life insuramce after 50? People have different reasons for wanting a policy. You must understand your options, what different insurance can do for you, and then you will be able to buy the right coverage for you.
For pure insurance, consider term again. Since term premiums will be lower, it will be possible to purchase a higher death benefit. People at 50, or sometimes even up to their 70s, can still find these policies if they are in reasonably good health. The lower cost is not trivial either.
If you are sure you want term now, you may look for a policy you can convert to whole life later. This gives you the benefit of buying lower priced coverage today, but also being able to change your mind in a few years if things change. You should not have to answer more health questions to convert the policy. Since none of us are totally sure how things will be in 10 or 20 years, this is a good feature to have.
If you want to use your policy to build an asset for yourself, or for your family, you probably want to consider whole life. After time, it can build a cash value which can be handy. You could use it to borrow against, cash in, or in a life settlement transaction. In any case, you will have lifetime coverage.
How much will this cost you. Premiums will vary by many factors. These include the size of the death benefit, the type of insurance, your age, and your general health. An experienced insurance agent should be able to help you explore your options. Just be careful if they seem too concentrated on one type of policy.
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