Life Insurance for 60-Year Old Male, Why Get it and What to Get

life insurance for 60-year-old male

With life expectancy and quality of life going up year over year, being a senior isn’t as easy as it used to be. At 60 you may be close to retirement, just 5 years away from being officially considered as a senior. Gone are the days where you get to check out and let your kids take care of everything. In 2019, more seniors are continuing to work beyond retirement years and have kids and grandkids depending on them well into their 20’s and even 30’s. In fact, the number of Millenials living at home with their parents has been rising consistently since the year 2000. 

With that said, you may very well still have needs for life insurance beyond age 60. Let’s talk about getting life insurance as a 60-year-old male. We’ll dive into types of life insurance and what drives the costs involved, but first, do you need a policy? 

Do I Need Life Insurance When I’m 60?

Whether you need life insurance as a 60-year-old male will be completely unique to your situation. You may have dependents or a mortgage that you’re still paying down, and if you don’t, you may want to secure a policy to leave a legacy behind (amongst other reasons). At this age, you will find coverage can be more expensive so you will have to gauge the type of coverage you need to get and how much it will cost. You will also have to make sure to do a thorough needs analysis to make sure you’re not pverpaying for coverage that you do not need.

Let discuss a few reasons to get life insurance as a 60-year-old male. 

Dependents 

It’s not uncommon in this day and age for a man in his 60’s to still have dependents. Whether you had kids a little later in life or have dependents that are in their 20s/30s, you may want to secure a life insurance policy to protect them. You want to calculate the damage that would be done if your income was gone as a result of your untimely death. 

This should include a mortgage that you’re paying on, college tuition, and replacement of income for a minimum of 5 years, preferably for 10 or more. A lack of life insurance can be severely damaging to the future of your family and not having at least the minimum in place can have devastating effects. Having dependents is one of the main and most important reasons to get coverage. 

Legacy 

If your dependants are grown and off on their own with their own set of dependents, then you may not need a traditional income replacement policy, however, this doesn’t mean that you don’t need coverage at all. A lot of people over 50 get life insurance coverage as a legacy option. This can be to leave behind something for your loved ones, not because they would need it, but because you want to. Whether you know of a specific goal they have like starting a business or getting into philanthropy, this can be an option for you to get life insurance coverage in place. 

Business Needs 

Just because you’re nearing retirement age doesn’t mean you’re necessarily up for not working anymore. Maybe you have a business or are looking to start one, in which case you will need coverage. If you are already in business you may need key person or partnership coverage to make sure that everything would continue to run if something were to happen to you or a partner. 

If you’re just getting into business, you may need life insurance as collateral to secure a loan. 

What Kind of Life Insurance Should I Get?

The kind of life insurance you get will depend on your goals and preferences. Let’s discuss what’s available to you. 

Term Insurance 

Term insurance is what will be suitable for most people. Term life insurance is meant to cover you for a certain period of time where you need it most and then it expires. It can be in increments of 10, 20 and sometimes 30 years. Because it’s temporary, as soon as the term is up the coverage is expired and you will no longer receive a payout if the death occurs beyond your set term length. So if you have a 20-year coverage for $500,000, you will be covered during that 20 year period and your family will receive the $500,000 if you pass within that time. 

Term is a good option if you have temporary life insurance needs like covering a mortgage or your kid’s college education. Most people pick term insurance because it is also the most affordable type of coverage on the market. 

Permanent Life Insurance 

If you want life insurance that covers you no matter the time frame, then you will want to consider permanent life insurance coverage. Permanent insurance comes in a few different flavors so let’s dive into what you should expect when shopping. 

Whole Life 

Many people mistakenly think that whole life insurance is the only type of permanent life insurance on the market. The truth is that it isn’t, and in fact, may not be the best option for a 60-year-old male. This is because whole life insurance has something called cash value accumulation. Cash value is the savings portion of a whole life policy. Outside your death benefit amount, a whole life policy also accumulates cash value over time, so it serves as both life insurance and a savings component. Due to this, whole life policies also tend to be much more expensive. Part of your premium goes towards covering you, while the other goes towards the savings portion and any fees associated with it. 

The reason it may not be the best option is that it takes time to build the cash value into something significant, and in your 60’s, it may not justify the premium paid. 

This is why other forms of permanent life insurance exist. 

Guaranteed Universal Life Insurance 

There is also something called a universal life insurance policy, which much like whole life insurance, comes with a savings component. The difference is it provides a little more flexibility than a whole life policy. However, you will run into the same cost issues with this. 

The good news is there is something called a Guaranteed Universal Life insurance policy, also known as a GUL or “Permanent Term” coverage. A GUL is designed to provide coverage to age 90 and in some cases age 121. This product is designed to focus on pure protection over one’s lifetime, rather than adding any savings vehicles into the cost. Its the perfect medium between costly whole life policies, and temporary term coverage. It can often cost up to 5 times less than a whole life policy. 

The benefit of this policy is that it covers you for a long time and maintains a level premium through the length of the coverage. This can be a great option if you’re looking to leave behind a legacy or have dependents that will be counting on you for an extended period of time. 

No Exam Life insurance 

If you’re not a fan of medical exams then you have an option to get what’s called a simplified issue policy. The issue with these is they tend to have limits like caps on coverage and more strict limitations on your health. They will still check your medical history and normally charge a higher premium. Its a good potion for those who don’t want to deal with the medical exam and want coverage fast. Be wary as some no exam life insurance companies cut off coverage at 65, so it will depend on the type of policy and company to see if you can get coverage at 60 and at what rate. 

Keep in mind there are two types of no exam coverages. One is a simplified issue and one is a guaranteed issue.

Simplified issue no exam coverage is more fit for healthy adults that will normally have no issue qualifying for coverage. This type of coverage tends to be more strict with approval since the company has to forego the results of a typical medical exam. With this type of coverage, you also will be capped at the amount you can get. Some companies offer up to 1 million, but in most cases, you will be floating between a $250,000 to $500,000 coverage amount.

When it comes to the guaranteed issue, there is no exam and no medical questions. However, with this, comes a 2-year waiting period before you can receive payout. That means if you die within the first two years, your beneficiaries will only receive your premium payments. The coverage amounts are usually capped really low between $10,000 and $20,000 in most cases.

Cost Factors 

When it comes to what it will cost you, it will depend on a few factors. If you want to run the numbers yourself, you can run quotes on the quoter on this page, or up top, if you’re on mobile. You can also use this page to check the rates with all the companies we offer. 

Here is what will go into determining what your rate will be: 

Type of Coverage 

The difference in price between term and permanent is usually a steep one. It tends to be less steep the older you get so its best to compare between term and GUL plans at 60 years old to see what makes more sense. While GUL will probably be more expensive, if your needs are permanent, it will most likely be the better option. 

Health 

Your current health plays a major role in your rate. Companies will dive into your medical records and run a medical exam to see where your health is currently to determine the level of risk that they are insuring. The worse off your health, the higher the rate, but also the bigger the need for life insurance, so you don’t want to skip out due to high rates. Each company covers different risks at different health classes, so it’s important to work with agents familiar with the companies and what they insure at the best rates. 

Medical History

The medical history will play a big role in the rate that you get. Whether you go for a traditional policy or a simplified issue one, there will still be a deep dive into your medical records. Things like past surgeries and ailments will be considered when calculating your rate.

Medical Exam Results

Outside of your medical history, the life insurance companies will do a medical exam to determine your health use. The exam takes place at a location and time of your choosing and will run like a typical physical. They will check your height and weight, blood pressure, as well as take a blood and urine sample. Once all of that is collected it will be reviewed and tested. Make sure to not consumer any alcohol or have any junk food a few days prior to the exam as it can skew your results.

Lifestyle

One really important factor is your lifestyle, and this can mean a few things. On one end it can be things like any drugs or supplements that you take. For example, marijuana use tends to increase rates, in fact, you’d get smoker rates from most companies.

Also, if your job or hobby is dangerous, you can also expect to pay higher rates. For example, if you enjoy skydiving or do it as a profession, you can expect to be rated up by most life insurance companies out there. The same goes for pilots or even some extreme athletes.

Driving History

Life insurance companies are diligent, this is why even your driving history will be checked. This is to check the number of speeding tickets, driving infractions, accidents, or even the possibility of DWI’s that you may have. Any findings on the extreme end can influence your life insurance rate.

Background History

Lastly, the life insurance companies will do a deep dive into your background. Things like criminal history can play a big role in whether or not a life insurance company approves you. In some cases, you will be rated up, but it’s even possible to be declined depending on the type of crime you were involved in.

Face Amount 

The amount of coverage you want will also influence your costs for obvious reasons. The higher the amount of coverage you need, the higher the premium will be. Normally you want to stick to what you need rather than getting grandiose amounts just for the sake of having “more.”

Who You Work With 

There are other factors that go into it like background history and dangerous occupations or hobbies, but one of the biggest influences is who you work with. Working with the right professional can make a huge difference in what the policy costs you. The agents you pick to work with will influence your rate drastically for a few reasons.

For one, some agents are tied down to one company so they do not have the ability to offer you multiple quotes. Often times, for the same product and the same coverage amount, companies can have a 50%-100% difference in monthly premiums. That is a huge number to consider when shopping around and will make a big difference for your wallet.

Another reason is that some agents are savvier when it comes to high-risk cases. They know they’re way around the companies they offer and know that what’s on the quote engine isn’t the entire story. Some companies offer better rate classes for certain conditions, which can create great savings for you if you go with the right carrier.

Start Here

The good news for you is you’re in the right place. We specialize in working with people over 50 and can help you get the right coverage at 60 years of age. We shop with all the companies to get you the best rate, with no extra effort or cost on your end. Give us a call today or run a quote on this very page to get started with the shopping process.