Length of Term

• Term life insurance may be purchased to cover a term of one year to up to 30 years. The most popular term today is 20 years.
  
  

Reasons to Buy Term Insurance

• Term insurance is less expensive than whole life insurance. This makes it attractive to young married couples who have children, and want to provide for their family in case something should happen to the insured. It can also be used to cover a large loan balance, as in a mortgage.
  
  

Benefits

• The need for life insurance fluctuates through the years. If you have small children, you need more insurance to take care of them and your spouse should something happen to you. As children grow up and leave home, the amount of life insurance needed is reduced.
  
  

Return of Premium

• Term insurance goes away at the end of the term, but some insurers offer a "return of premium" feature on your term life insurance. With this, you get all of your premiums back at the end of the policy term, although premiums may be higher than without the feature.
  
  

Warning

• Many term insurance policies end coverage at age 65 or 70. Prepare for this by buying whole life coverage along the way to cover any final expenses.