My wife and I are in our 70's and have very little life insurance. Our final resting place is paid for but not our funerals. I don't know much about life insurance except I just want enough to take care of both of our funerals. I don't even know what funerals cost these days. We are not being cremated so we need coffins. I know there are different life insurance policies (whole, term, etc) Morbid thoughts but you never know when your time is up. We do have AARP for our health care and prescriptions, USAA and State Farm is our insurance company. I don't know if we would get a favorable policy from them. Any insurance gurus out there.

 

Funerals with burials are expensive. They were in the 5K range when my father in law passed (14 years ago) and he already had the cemetery plot. Depending on what type of service/burial the price will vary. Purchasing insurance at the age of 70 won't be cheap. I'd ask the carrier you have, but it might just be less expensive to bite the bullet and prepay for the "box" and arrangements.

We have some life insurance, not a ton. We both have small whole insurance plans purchased when we were younger. We also have policies with SBLI insurance which we purchased when we bought the house. It is term insurance and it expires at age 70, even if we have not.....There are some insurance companies that advertise insurance with no physical exams...maybe something like that would work for you. Otherwise, expect to be "rated" based on age and any health issue you may have.

 

There are pre-need policies out there to pay for just what you want. They may be cheaper than life insurance. If you go for straight life insurance, stick with whole life. Term starts out cheaper but will increase with age and my stop while you're still alive. There is also single payment whole life which should be quite a bit less than the cost of burying you.
I am not, nor have I ever been an insurance agent. Best to talk to one recommended by a friend.

 

Thanks, good info I did not know about.

 

Morris' advice to talk to an insurance agent is good advice.

Here's a bit on the pre-need policy.
https://www.fool.com/investing/gener...insurance.aspx

 

Insurance is insurance. It should not be used, as it often is, as an investment asset.

Normally, term insurance is cheaper and if you are disciplined to invest the cost difference between term and whole life, you will be far ahead (including taxes) when the time comes to make an account of your life to God. You (or your estate/spouse) should be able to pay your funeral expenses and leave something for your family or other desired entities.

In all the years I have seen whole life insurance payouts (after full lifetimes) the amount in "todays" dollars are rather modest. A half a century ago the amounts were not that bad but there is no cost of living increases.

A significant risk of assisted living expenses decimating savings is perhaps, a larger fish to fry in my book. That is another thread!

BTW, I found out the hard way, very hard way, do not, DO NOT maintain a safe deposit box with all the goodies, pictures, and heirlooms for your family to unlock after you die. It is far better and safer to have a secure firesafe at home. The best are the ones that are in the ground/foundation with the door as the only access. Prevents theft and keeps internal temps low,

 

I strongly suspect 'final expenses" vary tremendously with region and services offered.
As for the coffin, check your states laws, you might find some surprises. as for me I want pine, as in pine plywood shipping crate.
4 yr ago, my inlaws were each in the 11-12k range with burial and two wakes blah blah blah.

 

My brother died ten days ago. He was cremated, no service. It cost $1,050 including all fees, and death certificates.

so others have shot down whole life, pre-need, but as you age, term can get very expensive. I think term is for younger folks, maybe with families. No matter what you do to pay for your last expenses, you should write down whatever it is you want. Helping your next of kin decide is most important. Burial, cremation, services, party, should Aunt Molly sing, what you want to wear? All these things should be decided by YOU so your kids shouldn't have to guess, when they are feeling sad. Also a list of your credit cards, bank accounts, loans/mortgages, where you hid your gold bars, and your will, all these will save your loved ones lots of time after you check out.

 

I have been selling all forms of life insurance for almost 40 years. I have never yet had a widow or widower tell me their spouse died with too much life insurance! With the low rates of returns banks are paying on deposits these days, permanent coverage can be attractive if you are healthy enough to qualify. Cash values grow tax deferred and death benefits are paid income tax free to the beneficiaries. One of the best features at no additional cost available on permanent life policies is a chronic care rider. For those seniors considering the cost of long term care insurance usually find it prohibitive in their 70’s. Especially when there is no assurance they ever collect on it. They could have paid $50,000 in premiums only to die by sudden heart attack or short illness and receive nothing! Also many well known LTC companies have exited the business and those that stayed have either raised premiums or reduced benefit payments. If they bought a $200,000 permanent life policy and need help with 2 of the 6 activities of daily living, they could access up to $40,000 per year for 4 years. Balance of their life insurance proceeds will be paid income tax free to their beneficiaries. This can save thousands in income taxes if they don’t have to liquidate qualified assets such as 401k and IRA’s.

Jim Paterson, Chartered Life Underwriter, Chartered Financial Consultant.

 

So Jim, what are you saying for someone 68 years old, spouse 68, no insurance, both currently healthy. Want a policy to pay say $25,000 just to bury themselves. What's the best thing to do?