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By Matt Cole State Farm
When Life Changes, Your Coverage Probably Should Too That promotion you landed last month feels amazing—until you realize your life insurance policy sti...
That promotion you landed last month feels amazing—until you realize your life insurance policy still reflects what you needed as a single renter making half your current salary. Life moves fast in Franklin, and your coverage needs to keep pace.
Most people buy a life insurance policy and file it away, assuming the job is done. But insurance isn't a set-it-and-forget-it purchase. Your policy from five years ago was designed for five-years-ago you. The question worth asking: does it still fit who you've become?
Closing on a house in Franklin, Brentwood, or Spring Hill this spring means you've likely taken on the largest debt of your life. The average home price in Williamson County puts most new homeowners well over $500,000 in mortgage debt—sometimes significantly more depending on the neighborhood.
Your existing life insurance policy probably wasn't designed with this number in mind. If you purchased coverage as a renter or when you owned a smaller home elsewhere, your death benefit might cover funeral costs and a year or two of expenses. It won't pay off that new mortgage in Westhaven or Thompson's Station.
Run the math on your current situation. Add up your mortgage balance, any home equity loans, and the other debts your family would inherit. Then compare that total to your existing coverage. The gap usually surprises people.
The goal isn't just keeping your family housed—it's giving your spouse the choice to stay in your home, in your community, near the schools your kids attend and the neighbors who've become friends. That choice requires enough coverage to eliminate the mortgage payment entirely.
A raise or career change that substantially increases your family's income creates a coverage gap most people don't think about. Your lifestyle has probably expanded to match your new earnings—a nicer car, contributions to college savings, maybe that beach vacation you take every summer now.
If something happened to you, your family wouldn't just need to cover basic survival expenses. They'd face the choice between maintaining the life you've built together or making dramatic cuts during an already devastating time.
Financial advisors often recommend coverage equal to 10-12 times your annual income. If you bought your policy when you earned $60,000 and now you're making $120,000, your coverage amount is likely half of what it should be. That gap represents real consequences for your family—potentially the difference between your kids finishing college or taking on massive student debt.
This matters especially for dual-income households where both salaries are necessary to maintain your current lifestyle. Many couples carry coverage only on the higher earner, leaving a dangerous gap if the other spouse dies unexpectedly. Both incomes probably support your mortgage payment, childcare costs, and savings goals. Both need protection.
A new baby—whether your first or your fourth—changes the insurance calculation dramatically. Each child represents roughly two decades of financial responsibility: food, clothing, healthcare, activities, and eventually some portion of college costs.
The average cost of raising a child to age 18 in Tennessee runs well over $200,000, and that's before any college expenses. Add tuition at a state school, and you're looking at another $100,000 or more per child.
Your existing policy might have included some buffer for future children, but "some buffer" rarely equals "enough to actually raise this child and send them to college." Parents in Franklin often want their kids to have options—whether that's Belmont, Vanderbilt, UT, or an out-of-state dream school. Those options require planning and protection.
Beyond the dollar amounts, consider what your death would mean for daily life. Would your spouse need to return to work full-time immediately? Pay for childcare that wasn't in the budget? Move to be closer to family who could help? Adequate life insurance gives your surviving spouse choices instead of forcing desperate decisions during grief.
More coverage doesn't automatically mean expensive coverage. Term life insurance—the type that provides protection for a specific period like 20 or 30 years—costs far less than most people expect, especially if you're in good health.
A 35-year-old in decent shape can often secure $500,000 or more in coverage for less than their monthly streaming subscriptions combined. The key is getting the right amount and the right term length for your specific situation.
Shaun Bishop at Matt Cole State Farm specializes in helping Franklin-area families figure out exactly how much coverage makes sense. He'll look at your actual numbers—your mortgage, your income, your kids' ages, your existing policies—and build a recommendation that addresses your real risks without padding his commission.
Reach Shaun by email at shaun@agentmattcole.com or text him directly at 615-801-4645. He can usually give you a quote within a day or two, and the conversation itself costs nothing but a few minutes of your time.
Your life has changed. Your coverage should reflect that.