Once you reach a certain age, the value of life insurance becomes abundantly clear–it’s something that is necessary, not optional. What isn’t as clear is exactly how much life insurance one should have. There are formulas that some financial experts suggest, such as two or three years salary, or some percentage of your net worth, or the total amount of your debt plus a certain amount. The bottom line, though, is that it is a personal decision for each person, and you need to carefully look at your goals to find how much life insurance you need.

At one end of the spectrum are people who just want to pay their funeral expenses. This is often the case of someone who is single with no children who simply doesn’t want to burden his extended family. In this case, a relatively small policy is all you would need, depending on the type of final wishes you have. With cremation and a small service, the amount is really small–as low as $1,000, but with a casket and a large service, that number can easily climb closer to 15 or 20 thousand.

The other end of the spectrum is the person who has a lot of shared debt–mortgage, car loans, etc. and perhaps shared future expenses like putting kids through college. In this case, you would likely want enough money on your life insurance to cover all of those debts and your aforementioned final expenses, leaving your partner or family with no financial worries. One nice trick to use is to have multiple term policies, with one expiring about the time you expect your shared debt to be paid off and the other lasting longer to cover other expenses. For more information and t find out what coverage is right for you, call Old Pueblo Insurance, serving Oro Valley, AZ,  today.