Optimal Finance Daily · Wednesday, July 15, 2026
Erik Carter highlights that employer-provided life insurance, often capped at an individual's salary, is typically insufficient for income replacement for dependents. He suggests that term life insurance is relatively affordable for healthy individuals, with a $500,000 policy costing less than $70 a month for a 40-year-old non-smoking male in California.
“Too often, people just have whatever their employer provides to them, which is usually equal to their salary.”
“The bad news is that if you need to provide income to dependents, this won't be enough.”
“For example, a 40-year-old non-smoking male with average health can purchase $500,000 of life insurance for less than $70 a month in California.”