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Your premium depends on personal factors, such as your age, health and habits. If you’re healthy and don’t smoke, you can get a 20-year term policy for $131 a month for a 30-year-old man or $99 a month as a woman. But smokers pay a serious premium for the same level, with a man paying $621 a month and a woman paying $485.
* Based on sample rates from Policygenius, August 2020
How much coverage you need depends on your family’s lifestyle, future financial needs and how much your family depends on your financial contribution. Estate planners recommend buying coverage at five to 10 times your annual salary, but here are additional expenses to factor in:
How much coverage you’re eligible for depends on two main factors: your age and your annual income. Because coverage is based in part on your earning potential and present and future financial obligations, starting your policy younger increases your eligibility for a higher coverage level.
Your current income is also a factor in eligibility. Insurers typically offer between 10 and 20 times your current annual income, which means you may need to make close to $250,000 to $500,000 a year to be approved for a $5 million policy. Where you work also matters, since some insurers see working for a corporation as more stable than being self-employed.
No. A $5 million policy usually requires a medical questionnaire and a 20- to 30-minute medical exam that you can schedule at your leisure. You may even be able to request smaller, temporary life insurance coverage while you wait for the results of your exam.
Policies that don’t require medical underwriting, such as simplified issue and guaranteed issue life insurance, usually cap at around $250,000 of coverage.
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