How much insurance?

When I first got life insurance, I was totally clueless about how much insurance I should get.

The internet provides general guidelines like "30X your income between the ages of 18 and 40; 20X income for age 41-50; 15X income for age 51-60; and 10X income for age 61-65".

The real estate world also provides some guidance on this topic. The BARE MINIMUM insurance coverage should be able to cover 3% of the value of all your real estate assets based on the zonal value.

Why 3%?

Because it's half the estate tax, your heirs have to pay to be able to transfer the property to their name. This amount covers your 50% share of conjugal properties.

But what if the asset increases in value over time?

Then you should increase your insurance coverage each time the zonal value increases.

I've heard countless stories of "cash-poor, asset-rich" decedents (people who passed away) who have left the burden of estate settlement. In most cases, the heirs had to sell the properties they inherited at considerable discounts to get by. The last thing you want to happen is to leave the burden of how to settle the taxes of your estate.