Women today face unique financial challenges-be it managing her career or raising family or caring for her aged parents. They often forget their own financial affairs and thus there is a strong need for women to think of becoming financially independent.

The foundation stone can be laid by going for life insurance. If your spouse, children or aging parents depend on your income, you probably need life insurance. Once you know that your heirs won’t be burdened by debts and that after your death, you may still be able to provide them with a source of comfort, the rest of the financial concerns like saving for a new home, reducing debt, investing for retirement, will automatically fall in place.

Women in various stages of life should consider life insurance:

• Single mother with dependent kids: As the bread earner, your children depend on you for their financial security. Life insurance can help cover child care and other costs, as well as future needs such as college tuition.
• Young families: Life insurance policy can prove to be a safety net for young families with little savings and large responsibilities-like kids and hefty mortgages. If the spouse dies prematurely, the insurance money can help the surviving spouse to pay ongoing bills and support the kids.
• Unexpected death of spouse with kids in college: It could deplete entire savings of the surviving spouse to pay for college expenses of children. Life insurance helps ease that burden.

If you are a woman who is married to an unemployed spouse, and work from home or have significant assets, you should go for life insurance for your own safety.