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Life Insurance Gifting For Charity

David — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 17:20:20 +0000

Are You Interested In Charitable Life Insurance Gifting?

Stretch Your Charitable Gift With Life Insurance Gifting

Giving some, or all, of the proceeds of a life insurance policy is one excellent way to support your favorite charity or organization.

You may not have a large lump sum of cash to leave behind, but you can still leave a large sum of money behind if you use the death benefit of your policy as a gift.

This article is not meant to give advice, but just to expose you to a new thought. You should discuss your thoughts and questions about life insurance gifting with a good insurance agent.

I plan to highlight the following points in this article:

You can amplify the money you have to give a much larger charitable gift.
You may be able to take advantage of some tax deductions now.
Your family may save money on estate taxes later.
You may be able to give your gift with no out-of-pocket expenses.
You may also have a good way to keep your family happy while you are giving away assets to charity.

How Does Life Insurance Gifting Work?

There are actually several ways to do this, and you may be able to benefit from one of them while endowing your favorite charity at the same time!

Simple Beneficiary Assignment

Look at a simple example. Let us say you could set aside $500 a year to give to your favorite charity. You could also, in this example, purchase a $250,000 life insurance policy with that money. You have turned your money, and affordable premiums, into a large gift.

No Cash Out Of Pocket Strategy

If you do not want to use any cash out of your own pocket, and you already have a permanent, cash value policy, you might assign the dividends (gains) to the charity. You could do one of two things this way.

The dividends could go right to the non-profit so they get money right away.
You can even have these dividends purchase a new policy so they can benefit from the proceeds later.

Keep The Family Happy

Here’s a strategy that should keep your family, and other beneficiaries, happy in case they were expecting the proceeds from your life insurance policy. You could give other assets to the charity, like real estate, vehicles, stock, etc. Your family members will still be named on the life insurance policy so they will get cash. This strategy is used in charitable giving, as well as in business.

Tax Deductions

Some of these strategies can benefit a charity, and they can also save you money on income or estate taxes. Some laws which govern this are federal IRS rules, while others are state laws. Either way, the situation is complicated, which is why you should consult with a good financial professional before you act.

Either way, life insurance can be a great way to give!

Other Uses For Life Insurance As A Gift

Instead of, or in addition to, these strategies, you may also want to explore other common uses of life insurance gifting. Instead of giving the proceeds of your policy to charity, you may actually want to give grandchildren life insurance.

Advantages Of Single Premium Life Insurance

David — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 14:09:10 +0000

What Is Single Premium Life Insurance?

Find Out If SPLi Is Good For You!

This website has already explained single premium life insurance. If you are unfamiliar with the topic, you may want to go back and browse the basics.

One Payment Equals Lifetime Coverage

Basically, a lump sum of cash is put into a cash value life insurance policy a the very beginning. This is usually a whole life policy with some sort of indexed or percentage return.

This funds the actual coverage for the rest of the insured person’s life, and it should also start the policy with a cash value. Here are some basic things to note before we discuss the advantages of getting life policies this way!

This cash value will be somewhat less than the original cash funding amount because of administration feeds and the cost of coverage.
However, in simplest terms, now the cash account should have the opportunity to grow quickly because the coverage is already funded.

This probably all seems a bit odd. Most of us are used to purchasing our policies with an agreement to making monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, or yearly payments. For some people, this odd way of doing things can have some advantages though.

Single Premium Life Insurance Disadvantages

Here are the main disadvantages of single premium life insurance. They will only be disadvantages for some people, so you need to consider them carefully to see if they would be drawbacks for you.

You do need that lump sum of money to fund the policy, usually at least $5,000 – and probably more. If you do not have a sum of cash that you have set aside for long term use, then you should probably pass.
Since you fund the policy in one step, you may not get the full tax advantages of normal life insurance policies that get funded over a period of 7 years or more. Your earnings should be tax deferred while in the cash account, and your beneficiaries should still get tax free proceeds if you pass away. However, your withdrawals may be taxed. This is NOT meant to be tax advice, but just a heads up you need to look into the current rules where you live.

Single Premium Whole Life Insurance Advantages

Now we get to the good part! There are some benefits of being able to fund your lifetime coverage right away.

You may choose a fixed interest rate return (fixed) or a market return (variable), or some hybrid with market-like growth but guarantees. This means your cash account will have an opportunity to grow, tax deferred, within the account.
You will also, of course, immediately have fully funded life insurance for the rest of your life. Your own beneficiaries will be able to collect the proceeds without having to pay taxes, and without going through the hassle of probate, etc.
Many single premium life insurance policies also have provisions to withdraw some, or all of, the cash value in case of illness or long term care expenses. This means your policy may do double duty as a life insurance policy and a long term care insurance alternative.
Your policy may also allow you to withdraw some cash for daily living expenses. So it may be useful as an income source.
Since you have a funded cash value policy, you may also be able to use it in a senior life settlement, so you can get some percentage of the actual death benefit. This death benefit amount should be higher than the cash account or surrender value.

This article is intended as a very basic 101 of some of the disadvantages and advantages of single premium whole life (SPLi). Hopefully, now that you understand the basics, you can find a good life insurance agent who can give you in-depth information that has been tailored to your individual situation.

Life Insurance For Seniors

admin — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 14:25:57 +0000

Seniors Life Insurance

Why Buy Life Insurance For Senior Citizens

Why would anybody look for life insurance for seniors? It is actually a common misconception that senior citizens have outlived their need for life insurance policies. However, this attitude ignores many changes in the productive lives of older people today.

Actually, many of the top life insurance companies recognize that older customers have many different needs, and they eagerly court this booming market! If you need to buy a life policy for an older person – yourself, or somebody you care for – you can use this competition to your advantage.

You may also want to explore life insurance for seniors at a page where you can get free quotes for a variety of products.

What Type Of Life Insurance Do Seniors Buy?

There is never one simple answer to most insurance questions. This one is no difference. Each individual will have different reasons they want to purchase a life insurance policy.

Consider a few things that senior citizens may be looking for.

Some older people simply want a way to provide cash for final expenses. These smaller policies will pay the beneficiary cash that can be used to pay for a funeral, settle debts, etc. This may seem trivial, but these expenses can mount up. They may be a burden for cash strapped families and seniors on limited incomes.
Other seniors have plenty of cash set aside to cover a funeral and other final expenses. They are looking for more sophisticated uses. Some may want to enjoy tax advantages, transfer wealth, or even provide for a business.
There are even some uses of life policies that you can enjoy while you are still alive.

Burial Life Insurance For Seniors

These are simply intended to provide cash to pay for expenses after the insured person passes away. In the world of life insurance, the death benefits are considered small. They usually range from a twenty-five hundred to twenty-five thousand dollars. The policy owner, which could be the family member or somebody with a close relationship to that person, may name policy beneficiaries. The beneficiary will usually be the person who is expected to handle final arrangements.

You can learn more about burial insurance for seniors here.

Estate Transfers And Business

There are also some very sophisticated and useful reasons that older people want to be covered by life policies. It is easy to illustrate this with some simple examples.

Pass On A Business: Let us say that Mr. Brown wants to pass his widget business on to a daughter who has been very involved in the business for most of her life. His two other children are not involved, but he still needs to leave them a legacy. He could purchase a life insurance policy to settle with the two children that will not own the business, and basically – buy them out – in that way. This is a strategy he could use to make sure his intended heir gets the business, and his two other children are satisfied.

Tax Advantaged Wealth Transfer: In another case, Mr. Brown would just like to leave a legacy to his heirs, or perhaps even a favorite charity. He could name the beneficiaries in his policy. Normally, the proceeds from a death benefit are not taxed.

Key Man Insurance: In order to protect a business financially, against the loss of one of the owners or top experts, some companies purchase key man insurance.

Use Of Senior Life Insurance While The Insured Person Lives

This is a more pleasant topic to discuss. There are many uses of life policies that can actually benefit the insured person while they are still alive.

Senior Life Settlements are transactions that allow older people to sell their policy for some percentage of the face value. You may also be able to borrow against the cash value of your permanent policy.

Riders (policy options) that provide for the use of some percentage while the insured person is still alive. Some may actually allow the insured person to use some of the death benefit while they are still alive in the case of an illness. This could be a long term care insurance alternative, for example.

Finding The Right Life Insurance For Seniors

Before you set out to buy a new policy, be sure to think about the reasons you may want to be covered. Also think about other alternatives to life policies, like simply establishing a savings account. You should know that there are even brokers that specialize in the senior market, and you may find they can save you a lot of time. Otherwise, a good life agent should be able to help you.

We also offer more information and free online insurance quotes here: Life Insurance For Older People.

Retirement Planning Life Insurance Products To Consider

David — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 15:20:53 +0000

What Are Popular Life Insurance Products For Retirement Planning?

Can Life Insurance Products Provide You WIth Retirement Income?

There are many life insurance products that are popular with retirement planners. These products may give you several benefits that you cannot get from other financial planning products and services. Most retirees want to maximize gains while minimizing risks. They want to make a profit during good years, but also know that their savings are secure during down years.

Since we have had our share of downturns lately, the emphasis on minimizing risks may even be more important. We already know that we cannot count of getting good returns from our bank savings accounts or the appreciating value of our homes.

What Can Life Insurance Products Do For Retirees?

Here are some potential benefits of the life insurance products we will discuss. Not all of these products have all of the benefits, or some may emphasize some more than others.

An actual death benefit that provides a way to transfer wealth, or simply to provide beneficiaries with some security.
Most life insurance products come with some tax advantages over other types of savings.
Many products come with guaranteed returns, even when the market goes down. The trade-off here, is that these products will not make the greatest gains during good years. In recent years, many retirees have been satisfied with this trade-off.

Cash Value Life Insurance

When we are younger, with large mortgages and growing families, term seems attractive. It allows us to buy more coverage for less money. You can still find term life for older people. However, cash value life insurance policies, like whole and universal life, may start to seem more attractive to older people.

What are some benefits of whole or term life insurance policies as we approach, or enter, our retirement years?

Cash value policies can grow a cash value! This means that the policy provides life insurance for our whole lives. But it may also have actual money in it that can be used while we are still alive in a variety of ways.
Some ways to use the cash are borrowing against the account, surrendering the policy for money, or using it in a senior life settlement! Any of these transactions may reduce or eliminate the actual death benefit, but they give you the flexibility to determine which is more important at some future date.
Senior life settlements are transactions in which the policy owner may sell some, or all of, the death benefit in exchange for a payment that is some percentage of that death benefit. You can learn more about senior life settlements for seniors here.
In most cases, the death benefit will be a tax-free transaction for the beneficiaries. In many cases, you can also get money out of the policy without having to pay income taxes on the money.
Sometimes you can leave the death benefit as income over a period of time, or even income for life, for a beneficiary. This may be a good way to provide for a spouse or disabled child.
Some policies have riders that also allow the insured person to collect some of the death benefit while they are still alive. These riders may cover the person in the event of a severe illness. This may be used to help pay for medical or nursing care.
Of course, cash values policies also provide a death benefit as long as they are kept in force. That means you do not have to worry about the contract expiring at some future date, leaving you without coverage. `
Some older people do not have a lot of savings or a high income. They cannot depend upon their families to come up with cash for final expenses and funerals. They just want a burial insurance policy in order to provide cash to settle debts and pay final expenses.

Single Premium Life Insurance

There is another type of life policy, called single premium life, which has some attractive advantages for some retirement planners. It usually competes with annuities (discussed below) for attention. You may want to consider the pros and cons of single premium life vs. fixed annuities for retirement planning.

Fixed Annuities

In there basic form, annuities are meant to provide an income or account growth. Some are actually tied to a market index, so they can provide near-market returns. They may also have a guaranteed minimum payout, so they will actually grow during down years. The trade-off of being protected during downturns, but enjoying growth during good years, is attractive to many people who count on having this money for the future!

They are considered life insurance products, though they may or may not provide an actual death benefit for beneficiaries. Still, fixed annuities can provide you with some tax advantages over other forms of savings.

You can learn more about how fixed annuities can provide you with some security and growth here : Annuities Explained

How To Learn More About Life Insurance For Retirement Planning?

You can find a lot of good information on the web. We think this website has covered many of these topics, and you may just want to use the search feature. You can also find a good financial planner or insurance agent who can listen to your concerns, evaluate your current situation, and make valuable suggestions.

Life Insurance Company Ratings

FinanceGuy — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 13:59:47 +0000

How Does Your Life Insurance Company Rate?

Which Life Insurance Companies Get A Star?

With all the news about bank and financial institution failures, you probably want to make sure your own life insurance company rates high for financial strength. In addition, if you or your family needs to make a claim or get help, you will also want an insurer who is earning gold stars in the customer service and claims handling department!

Note About Life Insurance Company Failures

I would like to note that there is a bit of misinformation about what happens if life insurance companies fail. I am not going to name names, but I have seen this misinformation on financial sites that appear very credible! States usually have a guarantee system so actual insurance policy holders do not lose their coverage. If you already have a policy, but are worried about the company, jump over to your state insurance department to figure out how they handle these things

How Do We Compare Life Insurance Company Ratings?

Note that we think several factors will be important. Eve though most policy holders are protected from failure, many policy owners do benefit from a stronger insurer. This is especially true if you hold cash value policies! We certainly care about financial stability. We also care about the billing system, claims handling, and general customer service and ease of making contact.

Life Insurance Company Ratings By Financial Strength

We will go with Weiss Life and Annuity Financial Strength Ratings here. They tend to say that any insurer with a B+ (good) or above rating may be considered. Many customers only want an A+ rated insurer. However, some experts note that companies with slightly lower financial ratings may have it because they spend more money on paying claims and providing customer service.

Also note that not all insurers may be on the market for all customers or locations. These are meant to give you general information, and not because we are recommending any particular company.

As we said, sometimes the B student tries harder. So our listing of the A+ companies should be taken for what it is worth. On one particular scale, these may be the best companies, but they may not always be the best life insurance company for you! You will have to do a life insurance comparison for yourself.

What Gets The A+ Financial Rating As A Top Life Insurance Company By Financial Strength?

Teachers Ins & Annuity of AM — NY	A+
State Farm Life & Accident Asr — IL	A+
State Farm Life — IL	A+
Physicians Mutual Ins — NE	A+
Country Life — IL	A+
American Family Life — WI	A+

Life Insurance Customer Satisfaction

Again, sometimes the A student is not all that popular. Agents tend to comment informally that some customers are much happier with slightly lower rated companies that invest more capital in good billing practices, handling claims, and providing a good customer experience. Let us see who really made customers happy.

It seems difficult to find published, 3rd party customer satisfaction polls, reports, or surveys. However, you can certainly do your homework on any insurer you consider.

Your state insurance department will have information on insurers in your local area.
The company website will have an “ABOUT” page which will certainly brag about their ratings. An insurer’s website will be a good source of information, though of course it will only tell you the good things!
There are several consumer protection websites that allow the general public to report negative experiences with life insurance companies.
You may get some great information by asking an independent agent, or even your neighbors, about their experiences. People who work with, or use, companies, usually have great stories to tell!

If you would like more information, here is an older article describing the top life insurance companies in the US.

Do Work At Home Moms Need Life Insurance?

David — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 14:34:31 +0000

Do You Need Life Insurance If You Have No Actual Income?

Work At Home Parents And LIfe Insurance

Nobody needs to tell me the value of a work at home mom and wife! However, since these women do not usually generate an actual income, many families do not think the spouse needs life insurance. They figure that the only reason to get covered is to make sure a family can replace actual income. However, they may be missing the true value of the work that mom does, or the security that a policy can provide.

A recent article from Forbes estimates that stay at home moms would be paid salaries over $100,000 if they actually got paid! By the way, I do not mean to be sexist. The same logic applies to stay at home dads as it does to stay at home moms,

How much would it cost to replace the work that mom does at home?

If your family had to replace the car pool driver, tutor, home maker, cook, shopper, etc. in your family, how hard would that be? Sure, you may be able to get family or friends to pitch in and help, but you cannot rely on free services to replace all the chores that a stay at home parent does.

If the income generating parent is still at work, who will plan meals, go grocery shopping, make sure the kids get to school, help with home work, and keep cob webs off the light fixtures? I assume that some of these services will have to be replaced. This is always a lot more expensive and complex that anybody who is not responsible for these tasks ever thinks!

How To Get Insurance For Stay At Home Moms And Dads

You may decide to add a rider to an existing policy that covers the other parent. On the other hand, just to prevent future problems, it may make more sense to get the stay at home spouse covered with her (or his) own policy. Nobody can ever really predict the future, and this solution gives the spouse coverage no matter what the future brings.

Actually it may be a good idea to add a child rider for kids. Life insurance for children is usually very cheap, and some companies will allow this to be used to get the child his or her own guaranteed coverage when they become adults too!

Simple term or fairly small whole life policies should be fairly cheap for parents who are still in child raising years.

Life insurance quotes online are a fast and simple way to determine how much local companies charge to cover people in your family. You can get individual quotes, quotes for different types of life insurance, or see how much a bundle of coverage costs.

Seniors Life Insurance: Guaranteed vs. Simplified Issue

FinanceGuy — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 17:18:14 +0000

What Are Guaranteed and Simplified Issue Senior Life Policies?

Guaranteed or Simplified Issue Life?

Several of the most popular life insurance companies realize that seniors and middle aged people are still looking for life policies! In response to this demand, the insurers have come out with a lot of affordable and convenient options so they can court this growing market.

If you are an older person who is shopping for a policy, or if you are helping an older person shop, learn about simplified and guaranteed issue life insurance for seniors.

Why Buy Life At An Older Age?

Older people have many different reasons for buying life policies today. They may just want to be sure they have covered the cost of funeral expenses. These are very modest sized policies, and they are usually fairly easy to obtain. Sometimes they are called burial or final expense policies. When many people think about buying life insurance for the elderly, this is what they think of. Because the death benefit is fairly modest when compared to other types of life policies, the premiums are also kept fairly modest.

Others have much more complex reasons for buying a new policy at an older age. They may want to use their policy to transfer wealth, protect a business, or realize financial advantages while they are still alive. These may be larger and more expensive policies, but the potential applicants are convinced they will benefit. Whatever the reason, lots of older people are shopping for life insurance!

Underwriting Life Policies

You may remember going through a complex underwriting process when you purchased a policy. In order to get the very best rates, younger and healthier people may find that they can save a lot of money by submitting to a long health application. Some may even submit a medical exam. However, many older applicants will have developed some health issues Even if these health issues are under good control, and the person can still expect to live a long time, they may not ever qualify for the cheapest rates.

Guaranteed Or Simplified Issue

Insurers know this. So they have come up with simplified and guaranteed life insurance for seniors. These products allow an older person to qualify for coverage without having to submit to a comprehensive underwriting process. These two types of policies are similar, but have some very important differences you should understand.

A guaranteed issue policy does not have to ask any health questions at all. You have certainly seen ads for senior life policies on TV. They are usually sold to people who are over age 50. The maximum age varies, but may go up to age 80 or age 85. Instead of using health questions or a medical exam, the insurance company will impose a waiting period before the full benefits will be paid. For some older people who cannot qualify for a normal policy because of health problems, this can be a good deal.

However, a lot of older people are fairly healthy. They can choose to apply for a simplified issue policy instead. They will only have to answer a few heath questions, and will not usually havve to have a medical exam. The advantage is that there is usually no waiting period. Premiums are also usually cheaper.

Middle aged people, and even senior citizens, can still qualify for many types of life insurance policies. It is important to understand how these policies work so you can find the one that will benefit you for an affordable price.

Deciphering Life Insurance

myfreeforum — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 14:52:49 +0000

Obtaining insurance has long been known to be a pretty laborious task; riddled with all sorts of hassles and terminology to try to understand. There may not be anyone who enjoys doing it, and it is known to suck all of the energy out of a person.

In any event, it’s crucial for a person to try to do a good job of shopping for a policy, and skipping it is very dangerous. In some cases, such as auto insurance, it’s mandatory by law in a plethora of countries. With this being the case, people find themselves shopping around to find something that will be there when they need it, but some people honestly don’t spend enough time getting to know their policies, specifically when it comes to the amount of insurance that one may have.

Life insurance is probably the most important of all types of coverage, perhaps taking a backseat to health insurance, but no one wants to really talk about it. We need to perform a good life insurance comparison before we buy!

Why the Hush About Life Insurance?

Namely, people really don’t want to think about death. It’s the end of everything, and people generally get a little somber talking about that. With there being a general social hush on the subject; one can easily determine why people may have inadequate life insurance policies. If it’s something that a person doesn’t want to have at least a fleeting conversation about, they probably won’t make any investments in it until they really need it. Granted, it’s a little understandable for those who do not have dependents, but no one really knows when that could change, and there’s never an early time to obtain insurance. Even some of the people who have life insurance may find that they don’t really have as much as they think they do.

What’s enough Coverage?

There’s no way to determine whether what the right amount of life insurance that one may need, as there are some factors that play a part in the equation. Some of it may depend on what a person may have counting on them, such as a family or any other dependent. What one has to think about is the future, and namely the likelihood of one having a family. It happens to most people, and it’s always best for the person to be thinking ahead. When it comes to the actual amount of coverage, it’s always best to consider the support that the policy will grant to your loved ones. For most, they find that 15 years is sufficient coverage, but that’s just one particular idea. One great way to ascertain how much insurance a person would need would be through the use of a life insurance calculator. They’re helpful in determining how much a person should be purchasing, and they have saved litanies of people a lot of time.

Life insurance is considered by most to be the necessary evil, but it’s assuredly one of the most responsible things that a person can do for the people that they love the most. While it certainly is no easy task, due diligence will make the process sufficiently easier.

How to Make the Task Of Understanding Life Insurance Easier?

You can use online life insurance quote forms. You simply answer some simple questions about yourself, and then let the system match you with good companies and local agents! Let computer systems and licensed professionals help you find the coverage you need! You can find out how much life insurance costs and what type of coverage you need!

Buy Cheap Senior Life Insurance?

FinanceGuy — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 14:24:02 +0000

Can You Buy Cheap Senior Life Insurance?

Low Cost Senior Life Insurance?

A lot of older people get offers in the mail, magazines, or from TV ads. They are advised to buy senior life insurance for rates that will be low cost and affordable. Sometimes the offers even advertise the first month of life insurance for $1 or .37 or something like that. Trust me, those $1 offers do not last long, premiums will increase, and the low cost senior life insurance may not seem that affordable in the end.

Is Senior Life Insurance Really Affordable and Low Cost?

Well, you know what seems low cost to you may not seem that way to me. Most of these advertised offers are for fairly low face value policies anyway, and they won’t be that attractive for more affluent families. Lower income families, especially seniors on a fixed income, may not find the rates that affordable.

Senior Life Insurance Brokers

I am not suggesting that there are no low cost and affordable solutions, but they may not be the ones that are aggressively advertised. You may do better to find a broker who can shop different companies to find you the best deal! A good broker may also find you a higher face value policy if that suits your family needs a larger policy for estate or business needs. I would urge you to compare senior life insurance quotes before you buy!

That is the way to really find cheap senior citizen life insurance!

Our online quote systems can help you compare insurers online, and they also give you contact information for local professionals who are eager to do business with people like you! The forms only take about 5 minutes to complete, and they can save you time and money! Visit here: Affordable Life Insurance For Older People

Compare Senior Life Insurance Rates

Consider an example of a common policy marketed do seniors through AARP. This is not meant to be an illustration of any particular policy or company because rates will vary by insurer, gender, and state! But it is a common example.

For an $11,000 policy, the rates for an 80 year old female would be about $95 a month. The policy lalso advertises that it will be paid up at age 95. So if the insured person survives until 95, he or she will still be covered, but will not have to make more payments. Is this a good deal?

Well, if the insured person would pass away a year or two after they purchased the policy, they may have only paid one or two thousand dollars. Their family would get the $11,000 death benefit. But if the insured person survives to age 95 to enjoy a paid up policy, this also means they would have paid over $17,000. The family would still only get the $11,000 policy death benefit.

Contrast this to saving $95 in a savings account. That same $95 dollars a month, at a modest two percent interest rate, could add up to almost $20,000 over 15 years! In this case, the family would have been better off by saving the money instead of purchasing a policy.

This is also a lesson about how insurers make their profit. They do have to pay out death benefits when covered people pass away. But they also get to charge premiums, and in many cases, invest those premiums over many years.

Is An Affordable Senior Life Insurane Policy The Right Thing For You?

Some families have a hard time saving money. This is particularly true of seniors on fixed incomes. It may be better for them, or their families, to make premium payments to be sure they have cash on hand for burial and final expenses. Other families may be much better off by simply saving cash for future needs.

Shop For Low Cost Senior Life Insurance Rates

The real point that I am trying to make here is that you should compare insurance rates to make sure you have the best deal. Please do not take the first policy you see advertised on the web, TV, or in a magazine! We always work to give you the best insurance quotes here!

Best Term Life Insurance Rates (Really!)

FinanceGuy — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 20:16:24 +0000

Beware of The Best Term Life Insurance Rates!

Beware The Best Term Life Insurance Rates!

That may sound like a severe warning, to ask people to be careful of the best quote they got for a term life insurance policy. But policies and pricing schemes different. What looks like the best rate today may not look so good in 5 years. And yes, we have said before that insurers are different, and you can save money by comparing rates. But just be sure you are – as they say – comparing apples to apples.

Note: Take Advantage of Our Life Insurance Rate Quotes

Does The Term Policy Have a Conversion Option?

Some cheaper term policies do not have an option to convert, before the policy expires, to a permanent policy without having to resubmit to health underwriting. That cheap 10 year or 30 year term policy may be great now, but it is also prudent to keep your options open the future.

Many peope don’t even consider the value of an option to covert later. If you are healthy today, that’s great. But it is hard to know what will happen in a few decades, and it is nice to know you have left the door open to buy permanent coverage at standard rates, even if you do happen to get sick or old (as we all must).

Sure, rates for whole life will be higher, per amount of coverage. Most people solve this by settling for a much smaller death benefit to cover retirement needs. They an also use the permanent coverage in a senior life settlement, and actually sell that permanent policy for a percentage of the death benefit while they are still alive.

Are The Best Term Rates Guaranteed To Be Level Through The Whole Term?

Most of the time, the rates you are quoted in year one of your policy, will also be the rates you get in year 20. But sometimes, we have seen cheaper quotes because the quote was only guaranteed for 5 years! That means the price could go up in year 6, go up again in year 11, etc. Over the whole term of the contract, the policy owner would actually pay more.

Are You Really Qualified for That Super-Preferred Rate?

We have seen a lot of ads for cheap term life insurance that promoted the very best rate that only 6 people in the whole state would every qualify for. Once people applied, the actual price came back quite a bit higher, and those applicants were unhappy. But those best rates could be reserved for people who had no bad health habits, no family history of disease, great credit, and the perfect height and weight. Can you control all of this? We do not think that most people can.

The Term Period Matters Too

Even if you are comparing identical products, you must know that the best 10 year term rates will be lower than the best 20 or 30 year terms. The longer the insurer takes a risk, they more they will charge for that risk. The ten year term policy will be cheaper because the insurer only has to guarantee the price and coverage for one decade, and not for 2 or 3 decades.

Other Term Life Riders

Some policies may also come with other valuable features that make them more expensive, but more useful. Return of premium, waiver of premium, disability, or critical illness riders can add more coverage, but raise the premiums. If you do not want to pay for these options, that is your choice.

We just want you to be sure you understand what you are paying for!