Term life insurance

How long does your family need the protection to last?

Term life insurance covers a set number of years. If you die during that period, the policy pays a death benefit to the people you named. If you outlive it, coverage ends. It is the simplest form of life insurance, and for many households it is where the conversation starts. We begin with what you are protecting and for how long.

See whether term coverage fits your timeline

Cornerstone Capital is an independent life insurance brokerage, not an insurer. Carriers make underwriting decisions, and approval is never guaranteed. This form does not apply for coverage.

This page is for you if

Someone relies on your income, and that will not be true forever.
You have a mortgage or other debt with an end date.
You want the most death benefit for the premium while the need is largest.

Before anything else

Questions to ask yourself

Talk these through with a broker

Who depends on your income today, and for how many more years?
What debts would your family still owe if you were gone, such as a mortgage or car loans?
How many years until your youngest child is likely to be on their own?
Do you have coverage through work, and would it follow you if you changed jobs?
What would you want to happen when the term ends?
Is there a need that will last your whole life, not just a period of years?

01The problem

The years when the most depends on you

For most households there is a stretch of years when a paycheck is carrying a lot: children at home, a mortgage that is still large, savings that are still small. A death in that stretch does the most financial damage.

That stretch ends. Children grow up, the loan gets paid, savings build. The risk is temporary, so the answer to it can be temporary too.

02The tool

Term life is coverage with an end date

You choose an amount and a number of years. If you die inside that window, the policy pays the people you named. If you outlive it, the coverage ends and nothing is paid. That is the whole design, and it is why the premium is usually lower than permanent coverage for the same death benefit.

03The mechanics

How it works

You choose a term and an amount

A term policy is built around two decisions: how much coverage and for how long. The term is usually matched to a responsibility that has an end date, such as the years left on a mortgage or the years until children are grown.

Available term lengths and coverage amounts vary by carrier, age and health.

Premiums during the term

Many term policies are designed with a premium that stays level for the chosen period, as long as premiums are paid on time. Depending on the policy, coverage may be renewable after the level period, often at a much higher premium that rises with age.

What happens at the end

If the insured person is living when the term ends, coverage stops and no benefit is paid. Term insurance generally does not build cash value.

Some policies include a conversion option that may let you move to a permanent policy without new medical underwriting, within a time window set by the contract. The deadlines and the products you can convert to differ from policy to policy, so it is worth reading that section before you buy.

Riders and living benefits

Some term policies offer optional riders, such as an accelerated benefit for a qualifying terminal, chronic or critical illness. Riders may add cost, may not be available in every state, and using one reduces the death benefit.

What you may have heard

Said often. Worth a second look.

I have life insurance through work.

What is actually trueThat is a real benefit, and worth keeping. Two questions decide whether it is enough: how much is it, and what happens to it when the job ends. Group coverage is often a modest multiple of salary, and it may end or become costly to continue when employment does.

Term is throwing money away if I never use it.

What is actually trueMost term policies end without a claim. That is the policy working the way car or home insurance does in a year with no loss. What you bought was the certainty that the people who rely on you were covered during those years.

Concept names decoded

The names this goes by

Names you may have heard for what is on this page. Open one to see what it is and what it does not promise.

Income Replacement“Enough insurance to replace my paycheck.”

What it actually is: A way of sizing a death benefit around the income a household would lose and the years it would be needed. A method, not a product.
Common policy types: Usually term. Sometimes layered policies of different lengths.
What it may accomplish: Keep housing, food, childcare and ordinary bills going for a period of years.
What it does not guarantee: That the estimate is right. It rests on assumptions about expenses and inflation. It also does not cover disability or job loss.

Questions to ask

What does my household actually spend each month?
For how many years would support be needed?
How much of my coverage disappears if I change jobs?

Where this fits

Family Protection“Coverage so my family is okay.”

What it actually is: A general purpose, not a policy type. It usually means a death benefit large enough to cover income, debts and a period of adjustment.
Common policy types: Term for needs that end. Permanent for needs that do not.
What it may accomplish: Give the people who rely on you time and choices.
What it does not guarantee: Any specific outcome. The amount, the term and the beneficiary designations decide what it does.

Questions to ask

What exactly would go wrong financially, and for whom?
For how long?
Are my beneficiaries up to date?

Where this fits

See every name decoded

04Trade-offs

What it does, and what it does not

Advantages

A straightforward design that is easy to understand and compare.
Typically a lower initial premium than permanent coverage for the same death benefit.
The term can be matched to a specific responsibility with an end date.
Death benefits are generally excluded from a beneficiary's federal gross income, subject to exceptions.
A conversion option, where included, can keep a door open to permanent coverage.

Limitations

Coverage ends when the term ends, and most term policies never pay a claim.
There is generally no cash value to borrow against or surrender.
Buying new coverage later means new underwriting at an older age, and health may have changed.
Renewal premiums after the level period can rise sharply.
Conversion options have deadlines and conditions that are easy to miss.

05Fit

Who it may fit, and who it may not

Who it may fit

Households with children at home and an income that others rely on.
Homeowners who want coverage that lasts about as long as the mortgage.
People who want a meaningful death benefit while keeping premiums manageable.
Anyone whose workplace coverage is small or tied to the job.

Who it may not fit

Someone whose need will not end, such as lifelong support for a dependent.
People who want a policy that builds cash value.
Those planning for final costs late in life, when a term may have already expired.

How Cornerstone works

We are an independent brokerage, so we can look at more than one carrier, subject to appointments, product availability, licensing and eligibility. We ask about your situation first and explain the trade-offs. Keeping what you have is a fine outcome.

Our approach How we are paid Verify a license

Important to know

Eligibility, coverage amounts and premiums depend on age, health, underwriting and carrier criteria. Approval is never guaranteed.

Riders and conversion privileges vary by policy and state and may carry additional cost. The policy contract controls.

Cornerstone Capital is an independent brokerage and can evaluate options from multiple carriers, subject to appointments, product availability, licensing and eligibility.

The Cornerstone Journal

Basics

How Much Life Insurance Does a Family Actually Need?

5 min read

Basics

Term vs. Whole vs. Universal Life: Start With the Problem, Not the Product

4 min read

Income

Is Life Insurance Through Work Enough?

5 min read

Next step

See whether term coverage fits your timeline.

A few questions about who you are protecting and for how long. A licensed broker reviews it before contacting you.