Best/cheapest place to get life insurance?

I see the life insurance ads on the TV all the time. I have work life insurance but that would no longer be in effect should I no longer work there. I wonder how expensive it would be to take out a small policy say $10-20k, just enough to take care of funeral arrangments, any estate fees, etc? I'm going to call my local insurance agent whom I do homeowners and car insurance thru but wonder if anybody here had advice/recommendations. Like I said you see the ads on TV all the time. I'm 41, don't smoke and no major health issues.

Using an existing insurance provider might be your best bet. There is a good chance you'd get a multi-policy discount too.

-Keith

Geepondy, admittedly we all love a bargain. When you are talking about insurance though, you don't necessarily want to go with the "cheapest". The "cheapest" companies are frequently smaller, sometimes mismanaged, and almost never as well capitalized as the companies whose names we are all familiar with (i.e. - Met Life, Travellers Life and Annuity, Prudential, etc.). Try to go with a company that is at least 'A' rated by Moody's Investor Services. This will hopefully insure that your insurance company will be there when you need them. Take it from somebody in the 'know' on this one. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif Thanks.

I went looking for life insurance a few years ago. Some agents will give you a hard sell for permanent (whole, universal, etc.) life insurance. It may be pitched to you as an investment. "It's got a cash value! You can borrow against it! You can convert it to an annuity!"

All of that is true. However, most people shouldn't purchase life insurance as an investment. I think it's best to think of it as 1) risk management, and 2) income replacement for your family in the event of your untimely demise (for you, it's *always* untimely).

It's much cheaper to buy term life insurance. When the term is up, you'll have nothing left to show for it. But the way I see it, the purpose of the term policy is risk management to cover you during the years when the loss of your income would be devastating to your family.

I ended up purchasing term life insurance to cover my family until after my kids have graduated from college. I prefer to address risk management and investments separately.

Of course, your needs are likely different from mine. You might want to look up some information on estate planning, since those issues are the ones you mentioned.