Life Cycle Financial Planners, LLC

Tag: term insurance

  • New Alternative Creates Customized Payouts of Life Insurance Proceeds to Protect Beneficiaries.

    New Alternative Creates Customized Payouts of Life Insurance Proceeds to Protect Beneficiaries.

    For the past 200 years, life insurance companies have only offered a lump-sum payout of policy proceeds to beneficiaries. For many, this is not ideal considering these income tax proceeds are squandered in less than 5 years. Ask any life insurance buyer if they intend for the proceeds to be spent in less than 5 years.
    Life insurance buyers want choices. In fact, a high percentage of life insurance owners do not want a lump-sum payout. Instead, they want a policy that gives them the option to create a customized and guaranteed income stream for their beneficiaries that cannot be mismanaged. The Installment Option instructs the insurance company to make guaranteed, pre-determined income payments over time. These payments are selected when the policy is issued by the policy owner. The best life insurance policies today give policy owners flexibility and options; the more, the better.


    The Installment Payout Option allows policy owners to create a customized schedule to fit their family needs and guarantee a protected income stream for their beneficiaries, up to 10, 20 or even 30 years.
     Premiums payments – up to 50% less for guaranteed results or the
    total benefit is increased as much as 50% for the same premium.
     The annual payments are pre-determined and guaranteed,
    regardless of economic conditions or other variables.
     Ability to customize the death benefit payments to meet individual
    planning objectives.

    Proceeds are paid according to a pre-determined schedule, selected by the policy owner at the time of purchase. In the past, a lump-sum payment was the only option available. The Installment Option eases concerns about lump-sum payments being mismanaged.

    Protect Proceeds For Beneficiaries

    What is the Installment Life Payout Option?
    Rather than your beneficiary receiving a lump-sum payment at the time of
    death, the Installment Payout Option gives you the power and control to choose guaranteed, pre-determined installment payments when the policy is purchased.
    Is the Installment Option Less Expensive ? Can I Buy More Life Insurance With the Same Premium Payments?
    Yes, this option is less expensive. The longer the deferral period, the lower the premium payments will be. Premiums can be as much as 40% less on an annual basis.

    Is the Installment Option Better Than a Lump-Sum Option?
    Neither option is “better” than the other. An increasing number of life
    insurance buyers are concerned about the risks of leaving a lump-sum death benefit to their beneficiaries. For them, the Installment Option may be best. Life insurance owned for estate tax planning is a good example of when a lump-sum option may be a more appropriate alternative.
    How is the Deferral Schedule Determined?
    We encourage every life insurance buyer to meet with a life insurance professional to consider these options, and others. Your income, debt levels,
    other assets, fixed and variable expenses, education, retirement assets and inflation are some of the elements in the calculation.
    Can I Change the Payout Option from Installment to Lump-Sum?
    Some insurance companies allow for this. Unlike the lump-sum option that is very limited from a planning perspective, the Installment Payout Option allows for customization by each policyholder.
    Can I choose a Blend of Lump-Sum and the Installment Option?
    Yes. Most people appreciate the ability to customize their life insurance
    policy by combining a lump-sum payment with installment payments over time.
    Can I Upgrade My Existing Insurance to the Installment Option?
    Yes. By doing so, you may be able to lower the premium payments or
    increase the death benefit for the same premium you pay now.
    Can a Beneficiary Make Changes to the Installment Schedule?
    No. However, the installment payments are an asset that can be sold at a
    discount. We recommend a trust be considered as the policy owner, with an
    informed trustee to ensure the insured’s intent is honored.
    What if My Health Has Changed Since Last Purchasing Life Insurance?
    If you have had a material change in health, be cautious about giving up
    any existing coverage without a careful analysis. Consult with us to help evaluate your options. By choosing the Installment Payout Option, you may be able to neutralize the impact of a higher premiums.
    What Insurance Companies Underwrite the Installment Payout Option?
    The Installment Option is available from several of the most highly rated life insurance companies in the United States.

    Please call me at 561-869-4500 or email me, Ted Bernstein, about a complimentary review of your existing policies.

  • The Best Life Insurance is No Medical Exam, No Blood, No Wait. In One Phone Call Get Covered Up To $5Million.

    The Best Life Insurance is No Medical Exam, No Blood, No Wait. In One Phone Call Get Covered Up To $5Million.

    What do Barbara Eden and Elizabeth Montgomery have in common with buying life insurance today?

    Magic!

    As fast as they blink and twitch is all the time it takes to buy the best life insurance available in the market today. Apply and Buy is done without a medical exam, without lab tests or without the traditional underwriting hassle. Everything is done online with the guidance of experienced professionals. Whole life insurance, term life insurance, permanent life insurance are all available, up to $5,000,000. For qualified prospects, no traditional underwriting means:

    1. No bloodwork, no needles. No other body fluids necessary.
    2. No visit from the doctor.
    3. For approved candidates, issued and paid in an hour.

    The Need For Speed.

    Consumers today expect everything done quickly. Many people do not review or upgrade their existing life insurance coverage because they dislike the process and it takes too long. But speed alone is not all it takes to make a great life insurance experience. Considering it is among our most important assets, quality is equally important. Without exception, the insurance companies underwriting these programs are market leaders.

    Welcome to the future where you can buy the most competitive life insurance coverage in a single phone call. By collecting information such as prescription history, DMV reports and typical credit and consumer information, you will get a policy in a fraction of the time and none of the aggravation.*

    Everything is done online. In one sixty minute phone call, you can apply and buy up to $5,000,000 of coverage. Everyone under age 65 is a candidate. Therefore, if you have been putting off the decision to review or upgrade your coverage, now is the perfect time to speak us.

    What Type of Policies Are Eligible for Accelerated Underwriting?

    Term and permanent policies are eligible, including whole life. There is no difference between these products and the ones available through traditional underwriting, which is the biggest concern people state for not upgrading their existing life insurance coverage. People realize that policies are better than ever before but at least 50% report taking no action. Enhancements like living benefits, vitality pricing, lifestyle credits and lower premiums are not enough to overcome the hassle of underwriting.
    The typical concerns stated by most people include:

    • the exam process.
    • aversions to needles for blood.
    • disclosing height and weight.
    • fasting.

    What About Living Benefits?

    Living Benefits are available with accelerated underwriting. The value of Living Benefits is that they allow you to draw against the face amount of the policy if you have a qualifying health emergency. Every life insurance policy should include Living Benefits, without exception, since there is no additional cost.

    Please contact me at 561-869-4500 or complete the contact form on this page to schedule a complementary discussion.

    * Applicants may not qualify. Insurance companies retain the right to ask for additional medical information based on the initial application.

  • What Happens When A Term Life Insurance Policy Is Ending?

    What Happens When A Term Life Insurance Policy Is Ending?

    I am often contacted by owners of term life insurance policies when the policy is nearing the end of its guaranteed term period. Whether that is 15 or 20 years from when it was issued, people want information about their options at this very important time. Like many things involving insurance, reaching out for a life insurance professional is your best bet. Understanding the options will provide comfort and clarity. Because nothing about life insurance is one size fits all, there are no simple answers here. The end of a term insurance policy brings the need for life insurance into focus again. Typically, healthy people have good options to buy new insurance. An expiring term insurance policy should be treated like the purchase of new insurance. How much coverage is needed, for how long and what type are important questions to consider.

    Deciding how long a life insurance policy should last is one of the toughest decisions we face when buying life insurance. The duration is a huge factor in determining the policy’s premium. The longer you want a policy to last, the higher the premiums will be. In contrast, the sooner you can lock in a permanent insurance rate, the less it will be over time. For those who prefer to minimize future costs, permanent insurance is more economical. Permanent life insurance has a much lower net cost than term.

    Knowing that permanent life insurance has a much lower net cost than term insurance, why do people stay with term longer than they should?

    In a perfect world, everyone wants lifetime coverage for the cost of term insurance. But, when we are young, term is easy on our budgets and life expectancy seems like a hundred years away. Younger insurance buyers are often led to believe they won’t need insurance in the future because:

    1. their kids will be grown
    2. other assets will have increased, and
    3. their spouse won’t need liquidity when the kids are gone.

    In reality, we get older quickly and our feelings about how long we want life insurance change – ask anyone over 50. In our 30’s and 40’s, we might think we only need coverage until retirement or when the kids are self-sufficient. In situations of divorce, everything changes. Many people choose term insurance hoping to replace it with a better policy when cash flow improves, before the term policy ends. Unfortunately, that is not what happens. Data strongly suggests that life insurance reviews are easy to kick down the road. Fifteen or twenty years passes quickly, making the flaws of term insurance painfully clear.

    The number one problem with term insurance is that it lapses before it is needed most. After the initial term period, the much higher renewal premiums may be unaffordable and they catch people surprised and unprepared. A 55 year old may now have health issues. If health has changed, the problems begin to compound. Older age and less healthy combines to make term coverage far less desirable, making this the first time people realize that term insurance may have cost less when they were younger, but it is not better value. It simply cost less in our low risk years.

    What to do with current, inforce policies?

    Life insurance buyers can benefit from innovation, technology and science. However, it is likely that your current policies are not receiving these enhancements. For example, new policies allow people to take an accelerated benefit against the face amount of the policy, at no cost, when they have a health emergency. In the proper policy, a $2,000,000 policyholder is eligible to take more than a million dollar advance from the face amount, under the illness rider. There may be zero cash value in the policy but it remains eligible for an advance because these advances come from the face value, not the cash value.

    In order to take advantage of these innovations, life insurance owners only have to let an experienced agent do a market review.

    Another innovation, apply and buy, allows people to get up to $5,000,000 of coverage approved and issued online, in one meeting, without submitting any doctor records, blood, urine, or taking a medical exam. The rates for expedited policies are exactly the same as they are for people who are underwritten traditionally. There is no additional cost for this remarkable convenience. Whether it is term, whole life, universal life or term to 100, the coverage can be applied for and issued in less than an hour.

    Innovations in cash value policies are equally remarkable. In the right indexed universal life policy, the insurance company GUARANTEES there will never be market losses, only gains. Indexing strategies are transforming the uses of life insurance.

    For people older than 70 with expiring term insurance policies, they should consider selling the policy in the secondary market rather than just letting it lapse. The policy may have no value, but it is possible. A few months before the policy lapses, getting a valuation makes sense.

    Give us a call at 561-771-4647 or email TB@LifeCyclePlanners to get started. I offer a complementary phone call about your current life insurance concerns.

  • How Long Should Your Life Insurance Policy Last? What You Need To Know.

    How Long Should Your Life Insurance Policy Last? What You Need To Know.

    Ninety seven (97) percent of term policies lapse without paying a claim.

    Determining the duration of coverage may be the most difficult decision you face concerning your life insurance coverage. Until you are certain about how long you WANT or NEED your policy to last, it is difficult to determine whether you should own a term policy or a permanent policy. The longer you want your policy to last, the higher its premium will be. But the sooner you lock in a permanent policy, the less it will be. For those who prefer to minimize and control their costs in the future, figuring out the duration issue as early as you can is wise. Permanent life insurance has a much lower net cost than term.

    Since the net cost of permanent coverage is much lower, why do people stay with term longer than they should?

    In a perfect world, we’d like guaranteed coverage to last for life at the cost of term insurance. If it weren’t for its higher premiums, everyone would prefer permanent insurance. As it is impossible to predict the future, maximum duration flexibility is an important feature to have in a policy. As we get older, our feelings about life insurance change. In our 30’s and 40’s, we may feel we only need coverage until retirement or when our kids are self-sufficient. Since term policies require less premium, we choose it hoping to replace it with a better policy before it expires. Unfortunately, that is not what happens. The low term premiums are enticing and the insurance industry is failing to communicate the risks of carrying term too long. This has led to a crisis defined by huge numbers of relatively young people being unable to secure a policy after their initial 20 or 30 year term policy expires.

    The biggest problem with term insurance is that it doesn’t last long enough. Consider that 97% of term policies will lapse before paying a claim. The renewal premiums become unaffordable and catch people off guard and unprepared for higher premiums. If their health has changed, the problems begin to multiply. Term insurance is not better value. It’s simply less costly in the low risk years.

    As we get older, we want life insurance to last longer. Waiting to tackle the duration issue can have sobering consequences.

    Innovation is completely changing the insurance industry but existing coverage must be upgraded as often as possible. Did you know that you can take a $2,000,000 advance against the right policy at no cost. If you have a health emergency, it could be a lifesaver.

    And, you can now get a $5,000,000 policy issued in one phone call, without a medical exam and pay the same rates as people who are underwritten traditionally.

    Give us a call at 561-869-4500 or email TB@LifeCyclePlanners to get started.

  • Term Insurance Rescue Ideas

    Term Insurance Rescue Ideas

    Worried that your term life insurance is expiring soon; without good options? Or it can’t be extended without paying 5x more premium?

    By taking control now, we will help you find the best solution the market offers.

    If your existing policy is going to expire soon because the conversion deadline passed and the term period will expire, there are good options even if your health has changed. Many people bought term insurance in their 30’s or 40’s who may have been advised that 20 years of coverage was sufficient. Today, if coverage is still needed, there are policies that have been designed for you. By following a few simple tips, you will NEVER have a gap in coverage again.

    Creating a customized plan is what people want today from their life insurance policy. Our goals and objectives change over time. Understanding this, we make sure the policies and plans we offer adapt to the changes in your family and business. The best life insurance policy offers maximum flexibility.

    “What is the best type of life insurance policy” is the most common question I am asked about life insurance and “How much should I own” runs a close second. Simply, there is no such thing as a “best” life insurance policy. Each one does very different things. The right insurance professional offers every type of policy because buying life insurance is not a one size fits all strategy.

    For example, if you want premium flexibility, you rule out whole life. If you need coverage for life, you rule out term insurance. The best life insurance policy is inforce when you need it and is competitively priced, today and tomorrow. The premiums can be structured to increase over time as income grows. Some people prefer to pay more today and eliminate or reduce premiums in the future. Customization and flexibility are the keys.

    Pro Tip: Review the policy at least every two years, it’s painless. Every owner of life insurance is best served by reviewing it on a regular basis.

    You want a life insurance policy where you will never have to provide additional medical evidence in order to keep it. This is the biggest problem with term insurance; it’s not affordable after the term period without more health evidence. If you own a term life insurance policy or you are considering a new term insurance policy, let us explain the options available that will put you in control, not the policy. Simple new innovations such as the Installment Payout Option can reduce the premiums annually and give you guaranteed protection for life.

    Term insurance or permanent insurance? Which should you buy?

    For many life insurance buyers, term insurance fails when it is needed most and permanent insurance is too expensive initially. Innovation has made customization possible. To get the best insurance policy for you, make sure to consider:

    All life insurance is NOT created equal. There is nothing to gain by working without a professional. Whatever compensation is paid to the agent is a built-in cost. It is ALWAYS paid whether the policy is purchased online or from a professional.

    Please contact me at 561-869-4500 or email me about a complimentary consultation.

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    Wiki

    Permanent Insurance

  • The Term Insurance Failure

    The Term Insurance Failure

    Buy Term and Invest the Rest – A Failed Theory.

    A growing number of life insurance owners are worried that their current TERM LIFE INSURANCE policy is expiring soon and they find themselves without good options for securing new coverage. Many of these people were sold a sales concept known as “buy term and invest the difference“. Instead of purchasing one policy that would last a lifetime, people were encouraged to purchase something like a 20-year term insurance policy and build up a separate savings account, outside the policy. To make this gimmick sound plausible, they were convinced they would not need, or want, life insurance later in life. Once they were near retirement or when their kids were independent, the term insurance was designed to lapse. For millions of Americans, this has proven to be nothing more than a sales pitch with very detrimental planning consequences. Not only are people forced to buy new coverage later in life, there is no side fund that is needed to pay for the new, and more expensive coverage. Adding insult to injury, some people will not qualify for a new policy.

    How Did This Happen:

    1. If there were side fund accounts, they did not grow close to 7%, after tax.
    2. Virtually no one “invested the difference” with any type of discipline.
    3. If there were side funds, they were often used for other things.
    4. The conversion deadlines passed in most policies.
    5. Health issues cause renewal premiums to be higher than anticipated.
    6. In divorce situations, the side funds were often divided.

    What Happens Now:

    1. Check the conversion language in your existing, inforce term policy.
    2. Determine your insurability for new coverage.
    3. Seek counsel from an experienced life insurance professional.
    4. Consider policies with different duration options.
    CALL NOW FOR A COMPLIMENTARY CONSULTATION AT: 561-771-4647

    Life insurance is a lifetime need. Ask anyone over 50 if they feel differently than they did at 35 about their need for lifetime coverage.

    Most people are unsure how some health issues might affect the rates for a new policy. A few extra pounds, controlled blood pressure or high cholesterol are common issues after 50. They may increase the premium for a new policy but not as much as you might think!

    More than 95% of all term premiums are wasted because they are NOT INFORCE as we get older. If you are currently facing any of these problems with life insurance coverage, contact us to discuss the options. There are solutions but acting now is essential.

    Without knowing the future, it is impossible to “predict” when your need for life insurance coverage goes away, if that ever really happens. If you bought term insurance in your 30’s or 40’s, you were likely told that term insurance was the best option. It was inexpensive because the premiums were low and the premiums were low because the chance of dying was remote. If you are currently in your 30s and 40s, now is a great time to consider options that are flexible and customized to meet your goals and objectives.

    “Buy term and invest the difference” or “buy term and invest the rest” was a marketing gimmick promoted by non-insurance personalities like Dave Ramsey and Suzy Orman. There were thousands of untrained agents promoting this marketing strategy instead of counseling people about proven solutions and guaranteed outcomes. It has taken 20+ years, but we now have a national crisis in coverage that has not been seen before. A large part of the uninsured class now consists of previously insured people in their 50s, 60s and 70s.

    Term insurance may be appropriate coverage for young people with children who may not yet have the financial resources to pay for permanent protection. It makes sense to cover bank loans, key-person life insurance obligations and for divorce agreements.

    Busting the myths about term insurance!

    Please complete the contact form on this page. Or, contact Ted Bernstein at Life Cycle Planners for a complimentary consultation.

    CALL NOW AT 561-771-4647 FOR A FREE CONSULTATION

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