So you’ve come to the realization that you need to buy life insurance.  You’ve read and educated yourself at www.lifeinsurancethinktank.com and have some basic ideas of what types to review with your Retirement Life Solutions Specialist.  Before you make that call, there is one more thing you might want to get together before you meet with them.  You’re going to want to have a basic understanding of how much life insurance you need to buy. 

There are many calculators on the web and they all require that you enter a lot of information.  Life Insurance Think Tank has put together a simple and effective Life Worksheet for you to gather that information onto so you can use the best life insurance calculator on the web to come up with a starting point.  More complicated situations such as businesses, land owners, high net-worth clients, estate planning etc… will always need the assistance of Retirement Life Solutions Specialist to help you create and use tax advantaged life insurance products. 

Click here to find a Retirement Life Solutions Specialist who is an expert at working with tax-free retirement products.

Download our Life Insurance Worksheet to begin your planning. 

Remember, your family is depending on you.

What is Life Insurance?

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When you’re considering term life insurance, you need to understand the different types of term life available today.  Term life is the least expensive insurance available today and if used correctly could be the best insurance for you.  In fact many people supplement permanent life insurance (universal, indexed universal or whole life) with term life insurance.

Term life insurance provides coverage for a defined term, i.e. a period of time. It does not accrue cash value like a permanent life insurance policy does. The basic premise is you have a financial risk you want to insure for a period of time in case you die prematurely.  The risk might be your mortgage, a vacation home mortgage, your children until they have moved out, kid’s college education, etc.  Once you determine what the length of time you need to cover the risk, you purchase a term life insurance policy for that period of time.  If your untimely death occurs, the insurance policy will pay your beneficiaries the tax-free insurance benefit.

There are several different types of term life insurance to consider when educating yourself on what is necessary for your specific situation.  Different insurance companies will have one or all of the following available:  Guaranteed Convertible, Annual Renewable, and Level are the common types of term life insurance.

Level Term Insurance

Level Term Insurance requires payment for a fixed period for the duration of the term.  Common terms are usually in 10-year increments because 5-year increments are more expensive than.  Premiums are level during the term of insurance and do not increase.  If you decide to cancel the policy, you just let the insurance company know, any time during the term of the policy, and stop paying the premiums and the will policy lapse. 

Convertible Term Insurance

Most companies offer convertible term insurance.  Here the insured is eligible to convert all or some of the amount of coverage to a permanent universal or indexed universal life insurance policy during the term of the insurance policy.  Most insurance companies allow this during the first 10 years of the term or possibly the first half of the term policy.  If it is converted, the premium will be higher because it is permanent insurance for the rest of your life. 

Annual Renewable Term

Annual Renewable Term is a one-year life insurance policy where the insurance company guarantees to insure the covered person for one year and will issue the same or higher policy at the end of the term without regard to health of the insured.  This is similar to a guaranteed renewable term life policy.  However, the premium will increase because the age of the insured has increased and if the amount of insurance is increased.

Return of Premium Term Life Insurance

This is the newest term life product on the market today and can be quite useful for certain situations.  First thing you need to know is that it will cost more than a standard term life policy for the same amount of insurance benefit.  The unique feature of this policy is that if you pay the premiums through the end of the policy and you are still alive the insurance company will return to you 100% of every single dollar you paid into the policy… TAX-FREE.  There are some very specific advantages for using this type of policy.  Talk with your Retirement Life Solutions Specialist before you decide to buy this type of policy.  If you cancel the policy during the term, the insurance company will not return any of the premiums to you.

Our final Thoughts

Unlike universal life insurance, term life does not provide the tax benefits or cash value buildup of permanent life insurance.  Term life insurance is useful for people who need life insurance at the least expensive price for a specified time frame.  It can also be useful to supplement a universal policy for a defined period of time. 

Besides speaking with a Retirement Solutions Life Specialist, you’ll also want to consider the following factors as a starting point:

• Are you still young and in good health?
• Are you looking for simple, inexpensive insurance to protect your family?
• Is permanent universal life too expensive for you today?

Finally, don’t be misled by a common misconception you may have heard, “buy term, and invest the rest.”  Sometimes this may not be the best choice for you with the uncertain economic times present today.  Who can afford to put their retirement money at the risk of market volatility?  If you can afford a universal or indexed universal life insurance policy, there are some excellent tax-deferred benefits you can maximize no matter what age you are.  If you are able to purchase a universal life policy at a young age, you have the flexibility to increases the cash you add to it (max fund it) and significantly increase your cash value in a safe and guaranteed method to create an additional stream of tax-free income ready for your retirement.

Make sure you speak with a Retirement Life Solutions Specialist to determine what life insurance is best for your specific situation.  Click here to find one in your area.

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Remember… “You do it For Love”

Here are a few short videos that will bring a smile, laughter, and maybe a tear to your eye about some things you may not have thought about this year as you decide what to buy your loved ones for Valentine’s Day.

What would you do for love?

Bad Cupid

A Meaningful Gift

Crazy 4 Love

We’re glad we’re able to share these heartfelt images from The LIFE Foundation’s web site with you about this year’s Valentine’s Day gift.

Thinking of you always,

Your friends at www.lifeinsurancethinktank.com

What is Life Insurance?

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But what if that didn’t happen tomorrow?  What if you died tonight and were no longer around to provide all those things that you’ve been doing for your loved ones? What if you were a single parent, now who would be providing for that loved ones left behind?  Without your income and all the other things you provide, would they be able to maintain the comfortable and special family lifestyle and togetherness that you were able to provide for them?

That’s where life insurance helps you help your family.  It can’t put your loved one’s life back the way it was, but it can make sure they have the world they’ve always known.  So if you think you need life insurance (or need more than you have), do something about it today.  Your family is counting on you.

With Valentine’s Day next week, besides bringing home that romantic gift to surprise your loved one.  Do something permanent for them.  Buy them a life insurance policy to protect them in case you aren’t around to.  Talk to your Retirement Life Solutions Specialist today to determine the best insurance for your family.

What is Life Insurance?

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An ROP Term Life insurance policy costs a bit more than a standard term policy.  Depending on your specific situation, it has its place among the varieties of life insurance.  There are many reasons why you might choose a ROP Term Life policy.

For example, many people going through a divorce and consulting with an attorney may have to carry life insurance on one or the other spouse for a period of time.  A divorced spouse may be required to purchase a term life policy on the risk that they might die during the time they are required to pay for alimony and/or child support. In these siutations, the beneficiary is the other spouse or children.  This insures that if they were to die, the insurance policy would cover the remaining alimony or child support. 

However, if the paying spouse is still alive at the end of the term, than the money paid for the life insurance policy could be considered wasted since “risk” they paid for did not occur.  By using a Return of Premium Term Life Insurance policy, the divorced spouse who paid for it would receive all the money back used to pay for the insurance policy. This money is TAX-FREE!

• In-depth review of using a ROP Term Life Insurance in a divorce decree.

Check with your Retirement Insurance Solutions Specialist to determine when and why you might want to use a ROP Term Life Insurance policy for your specific situation.

What is Life Insurance?

Cost of Life Insurance?

There are several decisions that you need to make.  The first and easiest is if you don’t need that amount of death benefit anymore, you can let the policy expire at the end of the term since it fulfilled its purpose of providing your family a financial security blanket during that period of time.

But what if you decide you still need life insurance?  Well… now we have good news and bad news. 

• The Good News – most life insurance companies will allow you the option of renewing your policy when you reach the end of the term. 
• The Bad News - it will probably cost you significantly more in premium than your original policy did because age is the primary tool used to determine premium.

Additionally, you would need to have a basic health exam, answer lifestyle questions, and go through underwriting to determine your health risk at your current age and health.

If you are still in great health:

• You may qualify for insurance at a reasonable rate. 
• If your health has deteriorated, you may have higher costs that might not be affordable, or you could be uninsurable because of poor health.

If you’re considering Term Life Insurance, make sure you are talking with a Life Insurance Solutions Specialist who can help you carefully consider how long you will need the coverage.  They have the ability to help you create strategies for your specific needs.

What is Life Insurance?

Cost of Life Insurance?

For generations, people have always asked, “When is the best time to buy life insurance?”  Although the most common answer is usually “Once you start a family”, the correct answer is “It is always a smart time to buy life insurance”.  However, there are many times in history where you could get a better rate (aka better deal).  Similar to fluctuations in money markets, certificate of deposits, and other financial vehicles that change as outside forces such as interest rates change, life insurance is no different.  So it is time to stock up on life insurance today?  And what kind of insurance?

Term life insurance rates have been falling for years.  In fact, they are near all-time lows today and many have claimed they have finally hit bottom.  And here is why – due to the low interest rates (that don’t seem to be moving up anytime soon) insurance carriers aren’t making the kind of returns they would like to see on their bond portfolios.  As they are forced to invest in bonds during these wild low interest rates, it almost forces them to start raising the cost of insurance.  We have heard a few carriers who have already made the decision to raise term life insurance rates anywhere from 5 to 10 percent.

So if you are even considering life insurance, especially term life, now is a great time to buy!

Life Insurance Quotes

Many people use this type of policy for a specific need that they have for a period of time.  For instance, you may determine that you need a specific amount of insurance only until your children have graduated from college, or a specific debt is paid off (typically a mortgage).

Talk with your Life Insurance Solution Specialist to determine when a Term Life Insurance policy may be in your best interest.

What is Life Insurance?

Cost of Life Insurance?

As our average life span continues to lengthen insurance companies have updated their Mortality Tables.  These tables help insurance companies determine the amount of premium to charge for a life insurance policy.  As the insurance companies continue to recognize that we are living longer they are able to significantly lower the premiums they charge.  Make no mistake, life insurance premiums are at the lowest they have been for both new buyers and people who are looking to improve their current policy. 

If you bought a term life policy two or more years ago, depending on your health, it is very likely that you would be able to purchase the same amount of overage for less cost now than your current policy premium.  Or on the other hand, you may be able to purchase a larger death benefit for your family for the same cost as your current policy.

If you have a current whole life or universal permanent life insurance policy, you may have built up significant cash value.  Many people don’t realize that the cash value in most policies is actually used to pay a portion of the death benefit to their beneficiaries.  For example, a policy that has $20,000 of cash value in it and a death benefit of $100,000 will commonly be paid to the beneficiary as follows: 

• The beneficiary will receive the $20,000 cash value and the insurance company will pay out of their pocket $80,000 for a total death benefit of $100,000.
• This is what they agreed to pay in the life insurance policy contract. 

Many people can help their family by improving their life insurance policies by using the cash value that has been building in their current policy.  Remember, the cash value is your money. 

So how can you use your own policies cash value to your advantage and still own a life insurance policy to protect your family? 

• You can use your policies cash value to purchase a new policy with the same amount of death benefit you currently have and reduce your current cost for it. 
• You could use your policies cash value to purchase a new policy with more death benefit for your family and pay a similar cost as you are currently paying.

All it takes is a conversation with a life insurance solutions specialist who can determine if the life insurance policy you currently have is the best available for you, or if there is a better product available now that may be better for your specific situation. 

If you have not had your policy reviewed within the last 2 years it is very likely that you are missing out on significant savings.  If you are one of these people, you should take a few minutes and find out if there is something better out there for you. 

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Life Insurance Education