Life insurance is a valuable estate planning tool providing peace of mind for individuals, families and employees. We provide online quotes on term life, whole life, universal, equity indexed, single premium and final expense insurance from several highly rated and trusted companies.
Some of our most affordable providers include Banner Life, Genworth, ING, John Hancock, MetLife, Midland National, Minnesota Life, Mutual of Omaha, Prudential, Transamerica and West Coast Life, but we represent several others as well.
Individuals, families and employer groups purchase life insurance policies for many reasons.
The most common is to ensure financial stability and provide protection in the event of an untimely passing.
Policy benefits can be used to cover a home mortgage, college tuition, vehicles, debt and other liabilities while also providing immediate and reliable tax-free funds for a loved one’s living expenses. There are few better assets that quickly provide financial security in times of need.
Others use life policies to pay estate taxes, transfer wealth, avoid inheritance taxes or to cover a key employee or business interest. The favorable tax treatment of life insurance is advantageous in larger estates. Policy owners use tax free benefits to bequeath larger sums to their children, extended family, a favorite charity or a business partner.
Business owners utilize life insurance to ensure the availability of capital in times of need. Key employee and buy/sell plans provide immediate liquidity for business succession and transfer plans.
Few other assets create instant tax free dollars as well as life insurance when planning for business continuation. These funds can be used to keep businesses thriving in times of need or to purchase a partner’s share from his or her beneficiaries.
Term life insurance is least expensive and is typically purchased for a set amount of time – usually 20 or 30 years. Families will purchase term insurance to protect a spouse and/or children in the event of an untimely passing.
Assuming the proper term has been purchased, there should be less need for significant financial protection after the term has expired. Most often this coverage is used to cover debts while providing families with the financial security needed in the event of loss.
Consumers who purchase whole life typically maintain the policy for their entire life. The policy cash value will grow each year and loans can be taken out against the policy if needed.
A whole life policy will never lapse as long as premiums are paid on time. After enough premium payments, many policies are paid up. Premiums are no longer due and the cash value and death benefit can continue to grow for the insured and the beneficiaries.
Universal life lets you choose the amount of coverage needed and can be adjusted if your insurance needs subsequently change. Universal life products can use an equity-indexed “engine” to potentially increase the policy value.
Variable universal insurance contracts mostly use mutual finds as their growth engine. These policies give consumers potential for a larger cash value and death benefit. Additional funds will accumulate tax deferred and can be used to help pay the cost of the insurance or to reduce premiums.
Like whole life, some universal life policies can be guaranteed for the insured’s lifetime. It’s important to understand the difference between guaranteed and projected rates of return when pricing a universal life policy.
Single premium life insurance is a tax efficient alternative to annuity plans, certificates of deposit, or stock market investments. Using SPL, you can deposit a predetermined lump sum into a life contract. An immediate death benefit is created that passes income tax free to a named beneficiary, charity, or funeral home.
The death benefit will vary depending on amount deposited, age, gender and overall health of the insured. The contract offers immediate cash value that increases through the life of the policy. Additionally, SPL can avoid state inheritance and federal estate taxes. In many cases, the value of the estate will increase substantially and efficiently when compared to other financial products.
Life products have several options which will ultimately affect the overall value of the policy to you while you are living (cash value) and the value to your beneficiaries at your passing (death benefit). Therefore, it is important to make sure you and your agent understand exactly what benefits you are expecting from your life insurance policy.
Our independent agency provides life insurance quotes online and direct from several affordable and highly rated carriers. We can also help you determine suitable policy types and amounts to fit your needs and budget.
