5 things to do to make sure you have enough life insurance

ATLANTA - Life insurance; it provides peace of mind. When you die will cushion the financial landing. You know that part. But do you know how much you will need?

A million dollars in life insurance sounds like a lot, but it’s not really as much as you think when you talk about making it last for you and your children for the rest of your life.

Kristen Fricks-Roman is a financial advisor, but her experience with needing life insurance at a young age is personal.

“I had a husband who passed away when I had children in middle school and it changes your focus and wakes you up,” the Morgan Stanley executive told me.

I know. I know. It’s like planning your burial; it’s easy to put off. Who wants to talk about dying? Nobody, but if you don’t, living a life under-insured can be very painful. Here is what is covers. One of the biggest things is debt like your mortgage, but also future expenses.

Ms. Fricks-Roman added, “You might have young children. You have college funds. Have they been taken care of? And it’s also an income replacement. So how long is the money going to last? What kind of interest rate or return can you live off of?

That sounds overwhelming so start here. Bank Rate has a calculator that can get you going. I did it and found out that if my husband, God forbid, died today I would have to double the life insurance I have if I’m going to live to be 90, pay my mortgage and get my daughter through college. Oh,  and maybe pay for a wedding.

Many of you have put it off because you think it’s expensive. Well, here’s good news. Terminal diseases are now chronic. We live longer, so insurance costs are going down.

“If you had maybe looked at life insurance in the past and thought it was too expensive, you should really check it out again because it might not be as expensive as you thought it was,” our financial advisor expert from Morgan Stanley said.

Lynn Amoroso though can tell you first-hand when it can get expensive. She learned that buying it when you’re older as opposed to younger costs more.

“There was a hiccup about a year ago. We let our life insurance policy lapse. In the midst of college applications, with my youngest son, and just so much mail coming in and out of the house, it just got lost in the shuffle.

And they paid out of pocket for that mistake.

Now, here’s a down-the-road scenario.

If the two of you were married and going into retirement, you would have social security and he would have social security, right? So one social security payment is missing,” Fricks-Roman said.

Life Insurance 'To Do' list.  

• Tally the cost of burial expenses.
• How long will future income need to be replaced? 
• What are your current living expenses? That's mortgage, debts, future car payments, savings. 
• Add in the cost of college tuition for you, if you plan to go back, and for your children. 
• Now think ahead. Will you pay for a child's wedding or maybe a future a home renovation? 

Decatur resident Lynn Amoroso did that and now feels a lot of relief.

“I can sleep at night knowing if something were to happen to me, my family would have the resources to carry on without much difficulty.”