What Is Whole Life Insurance Versus Term Life? 
Lets use the analogy of living in a home . You basically have two choices : to buy , or to rent . Suppose you rent . Why would you do that ? First of all , you dont have to put any money up . Nor do you have to pay any real estate taxes . Nor do you have to pay for any maintenance . Its basically a cheap way to put a roof over your head . But , you always have the option to buy . Suppose now you buy . Why would you do that ? Equity . You have something to show for your money . Your home attains a monetary value that can be exploited . Of course , it costs more . But you get more . And you still get a roof over your head . This model is useful for understanding life insurance . Term insurance is like renting a home . Its a pretty cheap way to get the coverage you need . No equity , no added value . But you can convert it to a permanent policy . Whole life equates to buying a home . You pay more , but you get more . There is cash available for you to use , in addition to the survivor benefit for your heirs - that roof over your head . Make sense ? 