Term Life insurance has been with us for a long time. It is the least expensive of all the life insurance policies. Term life insurance is life insurance that provides protection for the named insured over a stated period of time. That is what differentiates it from other forms of life insurance. Term insurance has no equity or cash value accumulation and so it is primarily purchased for the security provided by the death benefit. There are three basic forms of term life insurance.
1. Decreasing Term This policy is most commonly associated with mortgage protection insurance. The face amount decreases over a stated period of time. A thirty year mortgage for a homeowner is appropriately insured by a thirty year decreasing term policy for the same mortgage amount. The mortgage balance and the term policy decrease at about the same rate and so the homeowner can be assured that his home will be paid for whether he or she lives or dies.
2. Level Term Level term insurance also provides protection for a specific time period. The face amount remains level throughout the stated period. This policy is often purchased for short term debt or intermediate term debt. You can...