Life Insurance Math: Find Your Number Before Your Health Sets the Price
How much life insurance do you actually need?
You might be thinking, "Ralph, I have a policy through work. I'm covered." Maybe. Probably not enough, and probably not for long.
Start With DIME
Four letters. Add them up.
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D is debt. Everything you owe except the mortgage.
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I is income. Your annual income times 10.
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M is mortgage. What's left on it.
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E is education. What you want set aside per kid.
Then subtract your savings and any coverage you already have.
A Quick Example
Say you have $25,000 in debt, an 80,000income(800,000 with the times 10), a $250,000 mortgage, and $100,000 for education. That's $1.175 million.
Subtract $50,000 in savings and a $250,000 policy through work. You need a policy that pays $875,000.
The Work Policy Has a Catch
It's cheap and there are no health questions. It also disappears when you leave the job.
Keep it. Just don't make it your whole plan.
Why Waiting Costs You
About 19 years ago I bought a $1 million, 20-year term policy at around $300 a month. It ends next November.
When I went shopping for more, I was 200 pounds overweight with type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. My broker quoted me $2,000 a month.
That number was my wake-up call. In January 2025 I got serious about my health. I'm down 200 pounds, and both conditions are under control. My rating looks a lot better.
Poor health doesn't mean you can't get coverage. It means different coverage, and it costs more.
Before You Apply
Expect questions about your medical history, your family's history, tobacco, and risky hobbies. Expect blood work, a pulse check, and blood pressure.
The day before, sleep, hydrate, skip the caffeine and alcohol, watch the salt, and skip the hard workout.
Tell the truth. If you pass away, the insurer can pull your records. No-exam policies exist, and you'll pay more for them. Work with an independent agent who can shop around.
Start With the Numbers, Not the Shame
Run your DIME number.
Check what you already have through work.
Update your beneficiaries, especially after a divorce.
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Licensed Public Accountant
Ralph V. Estep, Jr. is a Delaware-based Licensed Public Accountant (LPA), author, rancher, and media host with more than 30 years of experience in finance, taxation, and small-business leadership. As the founder of Saggio Accounting+PLUS and the creator of the Ask Ralph Media network, Ralph helps entrepreneurs, creators, and everyday families replace money confusion with clarity, confidence, and practical next steps — without shame and without hype.
Ralph's work blends deep professional expertise with a coach's mindset and a communicator's heart. He has held leadership roles across public accounting, financial institutions, law firms, and technology organizations, bringing a rare combination of traditional accounting rigor and modern systems thinking to the people he serves. A graduate of the University of Delaware and Wilmington University (MBA), he is known for turning complex money topics into simple, repeatable frameworks that help people make wiser decisions and build lasting financial stability.
He is the host of Becoming Financially Confident, a live weekday show built on a single conviction: most money stress is not a character problem but a systems problem, and shame is what keeps people from fixing it. The show grew out of Financially Confident Christian, which Ralph hosted for more than 1,200 episodes across eight seasons and earned national recognition. The new show offers the same host and the same feed, opened up to a wider audience.
Through Ask Ralph Media, Ralph hosts several other programs. Grit and Growth Business… Read More
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