You’re Retired. Should You Ditch Your Life Insurance Policy? (at Forbes.com)


SourcedFrom Sourced from: Yahoo! Finance: Life Insurance Industry News

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Term Life Insurance and Home Mortgages


Term life insurance is a great way to protect against a mortgage or home loan default in the event of death of the main income earner.  The proceeds of a life insurance policy can pay off the balance or provide supplemental income for the monthly mortgage.  Although, many people cannot afford whole life insurance, especially young homeowners, term life insurance is a good, inexpensive alternative.

You can purchase a level term policy with one premium and one death benefit for the term of the policy.  Terms usually run from a choice of 10, 15, 10, 25, or 30 years.  Another option (although not necessarily the best)is to buy a decreasing term policy in which the premium stays the same and the death benefit decreases annually along with the mortgage balance. However, if the mortgage balance increases because it was refinanced, or a second mortgage is taken out, or the interest rate increases (e.g. adjustable rate mortgage), or if you buy a new home with a new mortgage balance, the decreasing term would no longer provide adequate protection.

Term insurance should not be confused with PMI, or Private Mortgage Insurance, usually required by the mortgage lender for people who put less than 20% down.  It does not pay off the mortgage in the event of death or disability.  The lending institution is the sole beneficiary of this policy.  Try to avoid the expense of PMI by making a larger downpayment if possible.

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How does a life insurance broker or agent get paid? Does it affect my premium?


Question: Can you tell me how a life insurance agent gets paid?  Does it affect my premium?

Answer: Whether a life insurance agent works for a specific insurance company (captive) or is an independent, he earns his money from the sale of an insurance policy.  Those earnings are in the form of a commission paid directly by the insurance carrier. Commissions are built into the policy and will not change the premium rate you are quoted.  In other words, there is no surcharge and commissions are not paid directly by the client.  Because commissions are built into the policy and cannot be altered, neither they nor the premium rates are negotiable.  The best way to get the lowest premiums is to shop around and get quotes from multiple insurance carriers.

Amounts of commission vary by insurance carrier, but agents generally receive up to 55% of your first-year premium for permanent cash value life insurance policies. After that, agents usually receive 3% to 5% in renewal commissions for the next five to ten years.  Commissions for term insurance are typically around 35% of the first-year premium and are not renewable in the following years.

Agents also get paid sales bonuses for reaching high production goals set by insurance carriers.  Production incentives like exotic trips and luxurious gifts are also awarded.  It is safe to assume that your premiums indirectly reflect the cost of these bonuses  in addition to the cost of the agents’ commissions.

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The Need for Life Insurance – Just Ask Ann Landers


lifeinsurancenoexam.biz is holding its $100 Writing Contest to demonstrate the need for life insurance.  Entrants are writing about the impact of life insurance on family, friends, or clients.  If Ann Landers was still alive, we’re sure she would have loved this contest.  Take a look at some of her columns on the subject –

Here’s one column reprinted by Prudential entitled The Importance of Life Insurance.

And here’s a response to that letter.

Widower wishes he had prepared for the worst

Dear Ann Landers: I am a male reader who is very much interested in the letter signed “Finding My Way in Tampa.” The writer was saying how important it is to have life insurance. Please let your readers know that it is a good idea for a man to carry life insurance on his wife, whether or not she works outside the home.
Several years ago, my wife died of breast cancer, leaving me a widower at the age of 35. We had two children, 6 and 8 years of age. I did not have life insurance on my wife. Fortunately, I had enough savings to take care of the funeral and burial expenses without borrowing, but there wasn’t much left over.
I soon discovered I could not provide the stable home-life environment that my wife had supplied, and went through one child-care provider after another. I had to cut way back on my working hours, which did not endear me to my employer and co-workers when they had to pick up the slack. I became dependent on a lot of people for a long time.
My advice is this: Both spouses should get life insurance policies that will enable either one to maintain the independence and lifestyle he or she has today, in case tragedy strikes. It seems my experience with the untimely death of my wife is becoming all too common.
— J.A. in Pensacola, Fla.
Dear Pensacola: No one can sound a warning as effectively as someone who has “been there,” and you certainly have. The idea that a wife who is a homemaker should be covered by insurance may seem like a needless luxury, but you have pointed out that it could be a godsend. Thank you on behalf of all my readers who heard your wake-up call.

Take a look at another Dear Ann Landers about the importance of life insurance.
And here’s another-

Life insurance is money well spent

Dear Ann Landers:
I am a 48-year-old widow with four children.  My husband died suddenly of a heart attack last year.  Needless to say, this has been a very difficult time, but thanks to my husband’s loving foresight our family is doing well.
Throughout all the years of our marriage, in spite of tight budgets and financial difficulties, he maintained substantial life insurance policies on both his life and mine.  Even with my fulltime job, I would not have been able to manage had it not been for his insurance money.  At least our children’s grief over the death of their father was not compounded by the loss of their home and friends.
I am shocked by the number of women who have told me in confidence that they are concerned because their husbands have little or no life insurance.  They have two cars, a boat, and costly vacations.  They give their children music lessons, dancing lessons and orthodontic braces, but they ignore the possibility of what their children would do if the principal breadwinner were to die or become disabled.
Many people have small insurance coverage through their work and believe it is enough.  They need to wake up, Ann.  It cost me $15,000 just to bury my husband.  I’d hate to think of where I would be now if that dear man hadn’t loved us enough to make sure we were provided for after his death. – Carol in Martinez, Calif.
Dear Carol:

If ever there was a wake-up call, your letter is it.  Thank you for a letter that could make a big difference in the lives of my readers.  Reprint with permission

We hope you’ll write your about  your own experiences and enter lifeinsurancenoexam.biz “Why Life Insurance” Writing Contest.

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Life Insurance Quotes


Life insurance has always evoked a lot of emotion.  Here are a few quotations from people born in the 1800’s.  Have any of your own you’d like to add?

“Fun is like life insurance; the older you get, the more it costs.”

Kin Hubbard quotes (American Humorist and Writer, 1868-1930)

“Asking Europe to disarm is like asking a man in Chicago to give up his life insurance.”

Will Rogers quotes (American entertainer, famous for his pithy and homespun humour, 1879-1935)

“I detest life-insurance agents; they always argue that I shall some day die, which is not so”

Stephen Leacock quotes (Canadian humorist, 1869-1944)

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Lifeinsurancenoexam.biz Sponsors $100 “Why Life Insurance” Writing Contest


Lifeinsurancenoexam.biz announces its  “Why Life Insurance” Writing Contest to run through September 30th, 2009.

Life insurance is considered a necessity in today’s world by most financial experts. After all, what would happen to your family if you pass away and they no longer had your income for support?  In most cases it would mean economic disaster.  But merely explaining the need is not nearly as compelling as a real life example. That’s why Lifeinsurancenoexam.biz is sponsoring the “Why Life Insurance” Writing Contest.

Just describe how life insurance has impacted the lives of family, friends, or clients.  It can be any length.  Short is fine; the entries will be judged on how compelling the story is.  The winner will receive $100 through PayPal and their winning entry published on lifeinsurancenoexam.biz/blog.

Rules:

1. Entry must be posted on another blog or website.

2. Entry must begin with the following and include the 2 anchor links.Lifeinsurancenoexam.biz has asked the following – How has life insurance impacted the lives of family, friends, or clients?  Here is my story:”

3.  Enter by emailing info@lifeinsurancenoexam.biz with notice of your entry posting and url.

4. You may enter as often as you like.

5. Deadline is midnight, September 30, 2009

6. Entrants give permission to http://lifeinsurancenoexam.biz to use and reprint entries on their website and any other promotional materials.

7.  Judges decision is final.

Please contact info@lifeinsurancenoexam.biz with any questions.  Lifeinsurancenoexam.biz gives free, online life insurance quotes.  Get instant term life insurance or whole life insurance without an exam.

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From the Mailbag: Life Insurance Times 2


A reader asks:
Can I have more than 1 life insurance policy? What “gotcha’s” should I be aware of?
Yes, you can certainly have more than one life insurance policy. For example, lots of folks have one through work (usually as part of their group medical plan), and another they bought on their own. The advantage to the former is that the rates are usually low (since the face amount is usually only $10 or $15 thousand). The advantage to the latter is that it isn’t tied to your job, so you don’t give it up if you change employers.
Also, many people have more than one kind of policy: for example, a term plan to cover the mortgage, and a permanent one for longer term needs (income replacement, final expenses, etc). Some folks also find variable policies (which have sub-accounts that mimic mutual finds) to be useful in retirement planning.
If there’s any “gotcha” (and I’m not saying there is), it’s that carriers generally try to avoid over-insuring folks. That is, having so much insurance – in total – that one is “worth more dead than alive.” So they’ll ask about other plans already in place, and whether the new policy replaces or supplements those.
It’s also a good idea to review your policies on a regular basis. One’s needs, goals and desires change over time, and one’s insurance policies should reflect these. And that’s also a good time to make sure that beneficiary designations are appropriate and up-to-date.

SourcedFrom Sourced from: InsureBlog

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