Do Stay At Home Moms Need Life Insurance
Do Stay At Home Moms Need Life Insurance?
While it is often said that life insurance is purchased in order to replace a breadwinner’s income, the proceeds from these policies are also used for many other purposes as well, such as paying for final expenses, reducing estate taxes, and keeping a business afloat should an owner or partner pass away unexpectedly.
One area where life insurance is not always considered – but should be – is with non-working, stay at home spouses. Consider, for example, the many important jobs of a stay at home mom. These duties typically include cooking, cleaning, driving carpool to and from school, arranging other daily activities for the children, and taking charge of overall child care.
If you were to add up the cost of hiring outside help to take over all of these essential roles, the dollar figure would likely be substantial.
Taking a closer look at each can give you a better idea of just how much life insurance coverage a stay at home Mom’s duties are worth solely from a financial standpoint.
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Cleaning
Depending on the size of your home – and the extent of the actual job – the tab for a single house cleaning typically runs between $50 and $150. Taking an average of $100 to clean your home one time per week comes to a total of $5,200 per year.
Cooking
Although early and mid-day meals for the children may be provided at daycare or at school, it is likely that meals would still need to be prepared in the evenings and on weekends both for children and for the remaining parent.
This would especially be the case if the remaining parent would need to work extra hours or take on a second job in order to make ends meet after the loss of their spouse. Here, too, the cost of meal preparation could easily average $100 per week – exceeding $5,000 per year.
Hiring a Nanny
Rather than separating out all of the individual duties of a stay at home mom, you could go an alternate route and hire a nanny to care for the children, as well as to cook and clean. According to Nannies4Hire.com, the national average gross weekly salary for full-time live-in nannies in 2012 was $652.
This amount varies, however, by area of the country, as large metro areas usually command higher salaries than smaller rural locations. The nanny’s experience and background will also play a factor in the pay that they command. Using just the average figure, though, the annual cost of hiring a nanny would be just under $34,000.
Taking the Next Step
While no parent can ever be replaced, it is necessary to plan for the unexpected. In doing so, an already difficult transition can be made at least somewhat smoother for the children that are involved.
In determining the amount of life insurance coverage to place on a stay at home mom, it is important to come up with the approximate costs that would be incurred to replace all of her duties, and then multiply those costs by the number of years that those services would be needed (likely until the youngest child turns age 18). It is also essential to factor in the effect of inflation on all of these expenses throughout the anticipated time period.
Because our lives are constantly changing, it is also important to regularly evaluate the amount of life insurance that you have. This is especially the case if you encounter any major life events such as marriage or divorce, a birth or death in the family, the purchase or sale of a home, or a change in employment status.
Just as with placing the proper amount of life insurance on the breadwinner, having appropriate coverage on a stay at home mom is an essential part of any family’s overall financial plan, as without it, other essential savings and assets could quickly go unprotected as well.
Liran Hirschkorn is an independent life insurance agent and founder of BestLifeQuote.com. His mission is to help individuals across the U.S in finding the best rates on life insurance as well as helping those that have previously been declined get approved for coverage. Liran looks forward to speaking with you about your life insurance needs.
- Do Stay At Home Moms Need Life Insurance - December 7, 2013
12 responses to “Do Stay At Home Moms Need Life Insurance”
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Definitely. I think that everyone could use at least a little bit of insurance, you never know what could happen.
Very interesting article. I happen to be a stay at home mom and never realizied how much I was worth relating to the various jobs mentioned in your article. I wonder if I ask my husband for a raise if I will get one. LOL We are believers in life insurance and have good coverage on my husband and I. We bought whole life policies when we were first married ( 20 years of age) and they were relatively inexpensive. They’re from an old established company that also pays good dividends. Appreciate this article on a topic that you don’t see too often.
I think you do deserve a raise! And smart buying policies while you were young!
I’ve never actually thought about it like that, and while certain aspects of parenting can’t be assigned a dollar value, there are some like you point out that can. Life insurance for both parents can be a smart move for the future of the family. Great points!
Thank you for this post. Once I was married, I made sure that we both had life insurance, just in case. Life can be so unpredictable. Making sure to plan ahead for your loved ones and know that they are protected, can give you peace of mind. This is a post that every married couple should read.
I think life insurance is needed by everyone. I understand your point though because most stay at home mothers are in a pivotal role and if something happened to them, it would be a loss that affected the entire family. I have to say that this is an interesting post and I think a subject that families should consider.
It was an eye opener to me as well. If you had to hire someone to perform all of the various tasks that a stay at home spouse does, it would be very expensive.
Wow i never thought of life insurance in this way. My sister is a stay at home mum and i will share this information with her. It really gave me some valuable information about the importance of life insurance even for parents without formal employment.
I will agree that even stay at home mom need life insurance. This will give her family the financial security that they need.
One of the great benefits of life insurance is that you do not have to worry about what if.
In the event a stay at home mom dies, it can pay a nanny to fill the needs of the family.
Great post!
Interesting post and one that makes a compelling argument, certainly many families with stay-at-home moms should consider life insurance. You never know what could happen and as the author rightly pointed out, it will make a difficult time somewhat easier.
I am a mom and I have a 5 years old daughter, so I can understand that for any mother how difficult it is to look after her children and going out for job. That is the reason I prefer to work from home that allows me to look after my child and make me independent as I can earn from home and stay updated with today world. If you are also in same situation I have a suggestion for you from here you can learn how to make money or get good earning from home based job, I am confident it will be of Great Value to you and yours. Respectfully, Enjoy: