Should a stay-at-home parent have life insurance?

Yes — a stay-at-home parent often needs substantial coverage even without a paycheck. If they died, the surviving partner would face real costs to replace what that parent provides: childcare, after-school care, transportation, household management, and more. Depending on the number and ages of children, replacing those services can run $30,000–$60,000 a year or more, which adds up to several hundred thousand dollars over the years children need care. A common rule of thumb is $250,000 to $500,000 of term coverage for a stay-at-home parent, scaled to how many young children you have and local childcare costs. The mistake families make is insuring only the income earner and assuming the at-home parent's work is free — it isn't, it's just unpaid. Price out coverage for both parents at wealthserene.com/tools/insurance-calculator.