Category: Life Insurance Guide

Jul 06 2011

Whole Life Insurance

Whole life insurance, also known as cash-value insurance is a basic and consistent type of permanent life insurance which remains in effect your entire life at a level premium. This life insurance is a good choice got you if you do not expect your life insurance needs to diminish over time. A portion of your premium goes into a reserve fund called cash value that builds up over the years your policy is in affect. Your reserve fund is tax-deferred and you can borrow against it, until you withdraw it.

The premiums must generally remain constant over the life of the policy and must be paid periodically according to the amount indicated in the policy. You may also have the option of a single premium —– paying all of the premiums at once with a single lump sum. Your cash values will grow to equal the amount of the death benefit when you turn to age 100.

Although, whole life insurance is very expensive, and if you’re on a limited budget, you may not be able to afford all the insurance coverage you actually need. But the plus point is that the death benefit is guaranteed as long as premiums are met. Also death benefit will never decrease if you don’t borrow against it.

Whole life insurance policy’s returns will fluctuate with the markets and will usually follow returns available from other investments like equity mutual funds. However, if you decide to quit your policy, your cash value can be paid in cash or paid-up insurance.

Whole life insurance is most suitable for you, if you want to:
use it as a tax and estate planning vehicle,
accumulate cash value for a child’s education or retirement,
pay final expenses,
provide money for a favorite charity,
fund a business buy/sell agreement,
provide key person protection.

Before buying the whole life insurance, you need to think carefully about choosing your level of coverage. Too often people make the mistake of insufficiently covering or even worse, financially overextending themselves. This would be a tragic error with whole life insurance policy because defaulting on premium payments can mean policy cancellation and the loss of your entire investment. So be careful and make sure you:

pick a life insurance policy that has a guaranteed cash value starting at the very first year,
choose the one with the highest cash value in the very first year,
consider “participating” insurance policies which can pay dividends, increasing your policy’s value by boosting both the total cash value and the death benefits,
beware of any insurance policy that levies “surrender charges” when you cancel.
if you ever need to stop paying premiums, your policy lets you use the accumulated cash value of the life insurance policy to pay the premiums, thus keeping your coverage current.

Jun 29 2011

Whats The Lowdown On Variable Universal Life Insurance?

If permanent insurance with flexible premiums and options is important to you, youll want to choose a variable universal life insurance policy. This type of policy combines features of universal life insurance with investment options, so you have the potential for a larger death settlement than you would have with an ordinary policy. It is called a variable universal life insurance, because your investments and premiums are not fixed. They are variable because they depend on the current market conditions.

Variable universal life insurance has advantages over other life insurance policies, such as Globe Life Insurance or whole life insurance. With this type of life insurance you get to play the stock market and choose the investment funds where you want to put your money. With universal life insurance on its own, you cant control how your cash value is invested. When you combine it with variable life insurance, you can switch investments two or three times a year if you wish to get a higher life insurance settlement.

As with 30 year term life insurance and others, you do have a guaranteed death benefit. This amount could rise drastically if you have the right investments with a variable universal life insurance. The amount of the cash settlement varies, so that you could have lots of money one day and the minimum life insurance settlement the next.

The life insurance cost associated with variable universal life insurance is higher than other types. However, along with this comes the advantage that you have a tax shelter. The money you make through investments will not be taxed until you cash in the policy. The monthly premium you pay also varies, depending on market conditions. This may not appeal to you if you are on a fixed income and have to budget for the premiums.

Variable Universal life insurance is not for everyone. If you want to make sure that there is a death benefit to protect your family in the event of your death, then maybe you should look at a 30 year life insurance or ask for a whole life insurance quote. This way your money is guaranteed and you dont run the risk of losing it. The way market conditions are operating today, the many falls seem to indicate that the cash value of the life insurance policies are falling as well. Its better to be safe than sorry.

Variable universal life insurance gives you choices.

Jun 22 2011

What’s The Difference Between Whole And Term Life Insurance?

It’s important to know the difference between whole verse life insurance before you start to shop.

Whole life (also called permanent) policies are insurance policies that accrue cash value over time and usually pay dividends. Buying a whole life policy is an investment. As the named insured, you have the ability to draw against the cash value. Whole policies are more flexible and more expensive than term policies.

Term life polices are less expensive and inflexible. Term policies are bought for a designated period of time. If the named insured dies before the policy expires, the benefits are paid. However, if the policy expires before the death of the insured, there are no return premiums. As the insured you have the option to renew the policy for another specified period of time, or let it expire.

The difference between whole life and term policies is similar to the difference in buying verses renting a house. A whole policy would be like buying a house. The purchase of a house is an investment. Usually the house appreciates in value. You can borrow against the growing equity in the house. When you decide to move, you sell the house and reap the financial rewards of the investment.

Renting, on the other hand, is like a term policy. You rent an apartment or house for a specific period of time (lease). You do not have the option to borrow against the equity. When the lease is up, you either renew the lease, or move. If you choose to move, you do not get a portion of the rent back.

Term policies do, however, allow you to upgrade to a permanent policy without the need for a physical exam (similar to renting a house with the option to buy). A change in your financial condition may allow you to afford a whole policy that was out of your financial reach a few years earlier.

Jun 15 2011

What Factors Determine Term Life Insurance Rates

Term life insurance policies provide a limited coverage period, which is determined by the policy owner. Term life insurance rates are actually the cheapest form of life insurance, but there are different rates for different people. This is because once the term of the policy is up you dont receive any payout from the policy. If you take out life insurance at a young age, you will get much better term life insurance rates than if you wait until you are older.

The total cost of your term life insurance rates can be tricky. Some term life insurance policies appear to cost more, but may, in fact, be cheaper when you look at the total cost of the term life insurance policy. For example, annual renewable policies increase your premiums every year and thus may appear to be more expensive than level term policies where the premiums never increase (although the initial premiums for a level term policy will be higher). But, in fact, level premium policies may involve higher costs over the policy’s full term, and become particularly expensive when you try to renew your policy at the end of the term. This is why you do have to compare term life insurance quotes.

Some of the factors that influence your term life insurance rates are:
Whether or not you smoke. Tobacco users are twice as likely to die as non﷓tobacco users while they are insured. Life insurance companies take this into account when they set their premium and cash benefits levels. You can save from 20% to 30% on premiums by quitting smoking.

Medical Record. If you have a terminal illness, it is unlikely that any life insurance company will issue a policy. In the case of heart disease, you will get a policy but your rates will be high

Occupation. if you work in a dangerous occupation, such as working on a ship that carries gas, this will put you into a higher bracket when it comes to getting rates for term insurance. You will have to shop around to compare term life insurance quotes if you are in this category.

Term life insurance rates vary a lot, and you can do something about your premiums by taking some decisions to become more healthy, like giving up smoking.

Jun 08 2011

What Does Insurable Interest Mean on a Life Insurance Policy?

What Does Insurable Interest Mean on a Life Insurance Policy?

People often have many questions about life insurance policies because of how intricate and complex these policies and contract can be. One of the most popular questions that many people have when it comes to life insurance is what insurable interest means or refers to within the terms and context of a life insurance policy. Insurable interest refers to those who are potential beneficiaries with a vested interested in the life, rather than the death, of the person for whom the life insurance policy has been filed. The individual(s) defined as insurable interest in these cases are those who will suffer, either emotionally, mentally, financially or otherwise, should the person who is applying for whom the policy is applied die. The reason this provision was put into place was so random people cannot purchase life insurance policies for strangers and collect the life insurance payout when the person passes on in death. Insurance companies would not be able to stay in business very long if they were constantly paying out multiple life insurance policies on a single person, especially if those insured were elderly or facing imminent death. This clause can also help to prevent people from taking out life insurance policies on someone and then acting in specific ways to cause or to hasten that person’s death.

If you purchase a life insurance policy for yourself, it is often assumed that you have insurable interest and that is why you are purchasing the policy since the individual cannot collect their own life insurance payout when they are deceased. If you are purchasing life insurance for another individual, most often you will have to prove that you are to be considered insurable interest by the insurance company. That is, you need to demonstrate your relationship to the individual for whom you are purchasing the life insurance policy. You need to have a sufficient interest in the individual, such as specific and close relation, marriage or monetary interest from a joint business venture. The individual for whom the policy is put in to place, essentially, need to be worth more to those who qualify as insurable interest alive rather than dead.

Most life insurance policy companies will require insurable interest and some of the most common examples of insurable interest include children, spouses, parents, business partners and other such groups of people. As time goes on, more and more life insurance policy providers are becoming increasingly liberal and loose in relation to their definitions of insurance interest. However, interest in the individual or whom the life insurance policy is being drafted still needs to be proven. When investigating different life insurance policies, it is important to first discuss your specific types of insurable interest with the representative that is helping you. If the company does not accept your situation and personal examples of insurable interest, there is no reason to go through all the paperwork and physical exams required. It is important to remember that the person needs to be established as insurable interest when the policy is filed, not at the time of the person’s loss or death.

Jun 01 2011

What Can Globe Life Insurance Do For Me?

Globe life insurance offers adults term life insurance coverage with no medical exam required. Your coverage can never be reduced or cancelled due to your health or occupation. Globe Life Insurance offers people age 78 or under up to 30,000 of term life insurance with no exam required.
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Many individuals and couples choose Globe Life Insurance protection because it’s fast, easy and very affordable. Globe Life offers a 30﷓day money﷓back guarantee, for return of life insurance premium, which is unusual for a life insurance company to offer. This fact in addition to no medical exam life insurance lets you get the life insurance you need with no health questions asked.

With Globe Life Insurance you apply online and get approved in 5 minutes. Can you imagine that 1 starts your term life insurance coverage? This life insurance company has more than 2.5 million satisfied policyholders. This is not surprising due to the return of life insurance premium and no medical exam life insurance clauses that it contains in its life insurance policies.

No matter what stage of life you are in, Globe Life Insurance has a plan that is suited for your needs. Globe offers affordable life insurance policies for individuals and families all across the country. And now, you can apply right on﷓line. Just view the information and choose what you are looking for, then you set the pace on how to apply for the life insurance you need.

Now more than ever, it is important for people to prepare for the future ﷓﷓ especially people with families or added financial responsibilities. One way to prepare for tomorrow is to purchase Globe life insurance. There is no medical exam and the premiums are very affordable. What have you got to lose? With over 50 years experience in selling life insurance policies of different kinds, Globe is one of the top-rated companies in the country allowing you to purchase life insurance policies for your children as well as yourself protection for everyone in the family.

May 25 2011

Veteran Universal Life Insurance What Is It And What

Veteran Universal Life Insurance What Is It And What Are The Advantages?

Veteran Universal Life Insurance is insurance that works for veterans to aid them in their post military endeavors. Universal life insurance means that you can vary or even suspend your premium payments depending on the financial pressures you face. Unlike typical life insurance, which pays out only on the demise of the policy holder, or at a nominated age, veteran universal life insurance is an investment scheme as well as life insurance.

This means that you build up a balance which you can borrow against or from to finance various purchases. The flexibility that is built in with payments is unparalleled in the insurance world, and can really help you and your family financially. If the policy is performing well, your beneficiaries may even receive more than the nominated death benefit.

You can also borrow on the balance of the insurance, for things like post retirement income. These withdrawals are deducted from the death benefit which is paid out to the beneficiaries. All these benefits do come at a cost however, a cost that you bear in the form of higher premiums than normal life insurance.

Where the advantage comes in is that you can effectively combine life insurance and investment together, not only that, but the policy can be tailored to suit the needs of a growing family. You can often choose which investments your policy goes towards. You can choose from stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. Not only that, but you can often change which investments your premiums go towards if you so desire.

This means that you can choose the amount of risk you take on, all whilst reaping the rewards that come with investments. Veteran universal life insurance can be an excellent investment and means of safeguarding your family financially, but it does pay to investigate the ins and outs of the particular policy offered to you, and also to learn a little about investing before you take the plunge.

May 18 2011

Top 5 Jobs Which Require Life Insurance

Life insurance is an important aspect of everyones lives and is something which everyone will have to face at some point in time throughout their lives. This point may come sooner rather than later for some individuals because of the job they perform on a daily basis.

While some individuals start everyday by putting on their suits and racing to get to the coffee shop for their morning coffee, others are strapping on their work boots and preparing themselves for a day of excruciatingly hard labor. As scary as it may sound, there are many individuals who are willing to put their lives in danger every single day when they get up and go to work.

The following is a list of the top 5 jobs which are considered to be the most dangerous jobs in the world. Individuals who perform these jobs are highly recommended to have a life insurance plan incase (god forbid) anything goes wrong on any given day. These are the 5 occupations which made the list:

1.PoliceDetectives Police Officers face life threatening situations almost everyday. They are highly trained to defend themselves and are equipped with protective equipment at all times. Life insurance and disability insurance are crucial for individuals working in the field of policing.

2.Airplane Pilots Believe it or not, airplane pilots require life insurance because they are dealing with such powerful machines which have been known to have mechanical glitches. Airplane pilots are also highly trained in their field to make sure they do their best to fly safely.

3.Construction Workers Construction workers are somewhat unappreciated for the amount of hard work they do everyday. They not only put their lives in danger from all the machinery they are expected to operate, but they also face many factors which will affect their health in the long run. Overexposure to sun, heat and excessive lifting are just a few of these factors.

4.Farm Workers Much like construction workers, farm workers are at high risk of injury or death due to the fact that they are constantly operating heavy machinery. There are hundreds of farm work related deaths a years and thousands of injuries for individuals working in farm fields. Life insurance and disability insurance are important for individuals in this occupation.

5.Fire Fighters It is a known fact that fire fighters put their lives on the line everyday to save the lives of others. Knowing the potential consequences and performing the job anyways indicates that these workers deserve the highest level of respect from others. Individuals who have chosen careers in firefighting are also likely to have a life insurance policy.

Is your job dangerous? Is your life on the line everyday? Maybe not, but there are many other factors other than your occupation which may indicate you need life insurance. Life insurance is a plan which will ensure your loved ones are taken care of incase anything happens to you. Wouldnt you like to know your family would be looked after should this type of situation occur?

May 11 2011

Texas Whole Life Insurance

Before you decide to buy whole life insurance over its counterpart, Term Life Insurance, it is crucial for you to understand the basics about Whole Life Insurance in Texas.

The first type of whole life insurance is non-par or non-participating, whereas the second type is participating. The major difference between these two types of whole life insurance policies is that you cannot change them. In terms of a participating type of whole life insurance, the insurance firm will share the dividends with you.

While term life insurance only offers death benefits, whole life insurance creates money value and therefore, offers benefits while you are still alive. Usually, it takes around 10 years or more for whole life insurance to create a money value (also referred to as cash value) for the insurance buyer.

Another advantage of whole life insurance is that, you can lock the price of premiums, thereby paying the same for the coverage annually. Like term life insurance, you have a death benefit which will be given to your beneficiaries in the event of your death. However, with whole life, your cash value increases with time and can barrowed, barrowed against, or withdrawn for your retirement.

Further, depending on the type of whole life insurance that you select, your insurance premium may be able to be paid out of the monthly earnings of the cash value account attached to the whole life insurance policy.

Whole life insurance has higher premiums and offers higher pay out. Premiums are paid for the entire duration for which the person holds the insurance. However, there are certain types of whole life insurances that offer a set amount of payments, whereas the insurance continues for a lifetime, but the premium does not.

The best place to start is a life insurance agent who can explain in detail the differences between whole life insurance and term life insurance. Its also helpful to have an agent in Texas that is a phone call away and locally positioned to answer your questions after you purchase the policy.

May 04 2011

Term Life Insurance: The differences between Term and Whole Life

Term Life Insurance: The differences between Term and Whole Life policies

Life Insurance quite generally is a policy whereby you pay a company a premium so that if you die while covered your descendents receive financial benefits. Within the larger Life Insurance window there exist two broad categories of policies, Term and Whole life (Whole Life is also known by the equivalent term Universal Life Insurance). Term Life is exactly what its name implies, valid only for a certain period of time, whereas Whole life lasts the duration of one’s life.

Price Differences

Because Term Life has a structured beginning and end, typically from 1 to 30 years, it is normally quite a bit cheaper than Whole Life. That is because under Whole Life it is assured that the insurer will eventually pay out (as we all eventually die). Under Term Life, however, there is a very good chance that you will live through the period of the policy and thus the insurance company can simply take your premiums without ever having to pay out anything.

Benefits Differences

Another important distinction between Term and Whole Life is the fact that at the end of the Term Policy, the policyholder is left with nothing but his own health. On the other hand, with a Whole Life Policy the insurer often takes a portion of the premium and places it into a savings account for the policyholder. In case of emergency later in life, the Whole Life Policy Holder can access that money to meet some needs while still living. As you can imagine, the Insurance Company raises the price they charge for access to all of this.

Deciding Between the Two

So, how does one decide between Term and Whole Life Insurance? To best answer that question it is important to ask why you need the insurance in the first place. Is it because you have young children and a spouse who does not have the earning potential to get your children through college? Or is it because you work in a dangerous industry and will regularly face the prospect of death over the next few years? These are both excellent candidates for Term Life Insurance. In the first case, it is important that the provider ensure enough financial support for approximately 10 years and then the need drops off, while the second example may require a shorter 3 – 5 year Term Life Policy.

On the other hand, let’s imagine that you have a mentally handicapped person you will support indefinitely, or a spouse that has never worked at all. These may be better candidates for Whole Life as the financial need they feel responsible for extends not only to some definite period in the future, but as long as the other person is alive. Under these circumstances, paying the premium for Whole Life might be worthwhile.

Term and Whole Life Insurance fill an important void in many lives by providing some assurance that in case of an accident, loved ones will not be left stranded. It is important to remember, however, that the policies are not panaceas. The savings rate on Whole Life Policies is usually dismal compared to open market rates, and with Term, you are making payments on a product you may never use. Ultimately, the decision to purchase either of these products should involve weighing your personal risk and health, your current and expected financial situation, and alternative uses for funds you have earmarked for a policy.