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Advantages and Disadvantages of Single Premium Life (SPLI) Insurance

admin — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 14:43:19 +0000

What is Single Premium Life Insurance?

Single premium life insurance, or SPLI, is whole life insurance that is funded – as the name implies – with one large premium right up front. This is different than the way we usually think about paying for our life insurane premiums with multiple premiums paid over a span of years, or even a lifetime. For more information, refer to Single Premium Life Insurance Explained.

Aside from the most obvous difference, the way it is paid for, what else is different?

Because it is funded right away, with that one large payment, an SPLI policy has the potential to build a cash value very quickly. Some policies earn money on the cash portion at a fixed interest rate, and some will be tied to a market index, like the S&P 500.
The money grows tax deferred. There will not be the need to pay taxes on growth in the account like you would have to on a regular bank savings account.
This cash value gives the owner some options. In the future, it could be used as an asset. That means it can be borrowed against, cashed in, or sold in a life settlement.
So in addition to paying for life insurance, that premium can actually help build an asset that can be used while the owner is alive.
As for the insurance part, it can be used to turn one sum of money into a much larger estate. Let us say a 65 year old has $12,000 in cash that is not needed to live on. This is just an example, but that $12,000 might be turned into a $100,000 face value life insurance policy. Of course, you understand that actual rates depend upon many factors like the insurer, current premium charts, age of insured, health, etc.

So what’s the downside of single premium life insurance?

Well, of course, the insured person needs to have the money to set aside. If you do not have the cash to fund the policy, that you do not expect to need for several years, this may not be a good option for you. A traditional life insurance policy, and more liquid forms of savings or investments, could be a more flexible and better option in that case.

If a product like this interests you, you can get exact quotes from insurers or agents in your local area. Visit here: Over 50s Life Insurance.

Top Life Insurance Companies List Rating

admin — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 16:15:10 +0000

Why Rank Top LIfe Insurance Companies?

If you want to buy life insruance, you probably want to find a top company! The problem you may have is determining how to rank life insurance commpanies! You may start with the size of the company, and you can look at a top life insurance company list like the link that shows revenue and assets. But is company size the only thing we need to know?

Ways to Rank Life Insurance Companies:

Size of company by revenues or assets.
Premiums Amounts for Policies
Customer service rankings (high) or Lower Consumer Complaints.
Friendliness to tougher insurance cases to place, like life insurance for older people or for people with health conditions.

What Do Consumers Want?

Most consumers want cheap life insurance policies too. It is important to find the company that will offer competitive rates for an applicant like you, and that operates in your local area. Really, the only way to determine this is by comparing life insurance rates and policies in your local area.

Finding Top Life Insurance For You!

Of course, our fast, safe, and free online insurance quote forms can help. It takes about 4 minutes to fill out a simple form, and then you can sit back and let the best companies compete for your business!

Do Retired People Still Need Life Insurance?

admin — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 20:43:45 +0000

WHY DO SENIOR CITIZENS NEED LIFE INSURANCE?

Too many people assume that the golden years bring an end to responsibility. They picture grandma and grandpa sitting in their rocking chairs out on the porch, with grandma knitting and grandpa looking out into the sunset. This is a great scene, and it can be a wonderful image of retirement! However we all know that this picture of grandma and grandpa is hardly complete. American seniors are living longer, staying healthy, and being quite productive well into their traditional retirement years.

>>> Find Final Expense Insurance Rates <<<

During these hard times the children and grandchildren are moving back in with the grandparents as they still need their support. The picture of grandma and grandpa attending school functions,

like, picking up the children when they are sick may be created because these days multiple generations are still living with them.

Funeral and other expenses can cost thousands of dollars today. The average cost of a funeral in the US can cost $8,000.00 and many can cost much more. In addition to the cost of funerals, other bills may have to be paid. Medical bills can arrive in the mail for months on end after a loved one passes away. The person who passed away could leave debts that need to be settled and assets that Need to be handled. Family members may need to travel; either for their jobs or they might need to take off work it is an incredible burden to have to come up with thousands of dollars to settle all of these bills during a very sad and stressful time.

Many seniors may want to transfer their wealth to the next generation. A tax free way to transfer their wealth is by cashing in your life insurance policy and giving them the cash. Paying life insurance

premiums, with the assurance that heirs can inherit the money, are an affordable way to plan for this.

Some life insurance policies have a cash value, or they can be settled for a cash value. Some types of life insurance, like whole life and universal life policies, actually build up a cash value. This value

can be borrowed against or cashed in when the policy owner needs money. In addition to providing valuable coverage, it can also be a way to build up and asset. Many people like this idea of

combining coverage with a savings or investment plan. Tern life does not usually have a cash value, but some may have an option to convert to a permanent type of life insurance. So universal life insurance, whole life insurance, and some term life, may be sold for a cash settlement to an investor. In other words, some policies may be sold for more than their cash value.

Seniors may still have a need for life insurance because responsibility does not end at 65! The good news is that insurers are extending affordable coverage to older people. You can even find term life insurance for older people

Explain Kinds of Life Insurance

admin — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 18:53:13 +0000

Explain Kinds Of Life Insurance

This article was written by InsureMe.com personnel for informational purposes only and not intended as professional advice.

Purchasing life insurance is the best way to ensure your loved ones are adequately provided for in case of your death.

You can also find additonal information about the various types of life insurance. Universal life insurance Explained is good to understand the newest kind of life insurance with a cash value. On the other hand, if you want more information about they oldest kind of life coverage, look at: What is Whole Life Insurance? For the most popular kind of life insurance that many people purchase for its low rates, review this article: Define Term Life Insurance.

How does life insurance protect your family? By guaranteeing your family’s survival in your absence. Life insurance can help your spouse pay off your home mortgage, provide an education for your children, supply monthly income for a period of time, or even leave your family savings.

Let’s face it, no one ever plans for their family to go unprotected. But that is exactly what happens every day due to lack of preparation. That’s why it’s so important to get educated so you can find the life insurance protection that fits your family’s needs.

What’s Available?

There are many different types of life insurance available, each designed to fit unique circumstances and individual needs.

Depending on whether your goal is to leave money so your family can pay your final expenses or simply to provide them with savings, one of the following types of life insurance should be just what you need:

Term life insurance: the simplest form. You purchase coverage for a specific period and, if you die during that time, your beneficiary receives the policy’s value. Term insurance includes no investment component.

Whole life insurance: a policy purchased to cover you for your whole life, not just a set period of time. Premiums remain level while the policy is in effect, and the insurer invests a portion of your premiums, building the policy’s value over time.

Universal life insurance: used to accumulate investment. You pay a minimum premium plus an amount you would like invested. The insurer chooses the investment vehicle, usually only bonds and mortgages, and both your investment and its returns are placed into a cash-value account. This account may then be used to pay future premiums, or it may continue to build.

Variable life insurance: similar to universal life insurance, but includes a broader selection of investment products, including stocks. Beneficiaries receive the policy’s face value, OR that amount PLUS the value of your investment account.
How to Get the Best Rates

There are five ways to ensure you get the best rates, along with the best life insurance coverage:

Always tell the truth when applying for life insurance. Lack of disclosure can cause your policy to be revoked within the first two years.
Go over your policy and reapply for lower rates when there are changes in your health.
Schedule required medical tests for first thing in the morning. During this time, your blood pressure and cholesterol levels are lower and you’re less stressed.
Use an insurance shopping service like InsureMe to shop around for your life insurance. This purchase represents a big decision and a large financial commitment, so comparison shopping just makes sense!
Prepare for the Future

Now that you better understand your life insurance options, make an informed decision and leave your family protected.

After all, they deserve your best!

Why Do Seniors Need Life Insurance

admin — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 18:54:31 +0000

Why Do Seniors Need Life Insurance?

A lot of us though we would not need life insurance in middle age or retirement. We figured that we would be fine once the house got paid off and the kids were grown. So the large term life insurance policy we purchased was fine. It would expire in a few decades, but by that time we would have saved plenty of money to protect our family if we passed away.

The problem is, this way of thinking just did not work out for a lot of older people. For instance, many people purchased a mortgage life policy. They planned to have their home mortgage paid off by the time that policy expired. But then they extended their loan, bought another house, or had to take out a second mortgage. Now the find that their policy is gone, but their mortgage is still with them. They know that if they should pass away, their family still depends upon their income to keep the home they have paid on for so long.

Some Reasons Older People May Want More Life Insurance Coverage

Pass tax free wealth on to their heirs
Pay for funerals and other final expenses.
Protect a business if the owner or partner should pass away.
Make sure that a spouse or other family members have money to live on.

Can Seniors Buy Life Insurance?Younger and healthier people will always be cheaper to insure. But we have good news! Americans are living longer and healthier lives than they were a decade ago, and of course, in any decade before that! Middle aged people, and even people in their senior years, can still choose between many life insurance options. Even if you already have life insurance, your needs may have changed. Even though you are 10 years older than you were a decade ago, if you need less coverage, you may be able to find a new policy with less coverage at a lower rate.

What Kind Of Life Insurance Can Older People Buy?

Term Life Insurance For Older People - Large insurers are willing to extend affordable 10 to 20 year term policies to people in their 70s. The applicants must be reasonable healthy for their age, but if so, an older person can still find a few hundred thousand dollars worth of term life.
Senior Life Insurance – These are usually whole life ins
urance policies that were specifically designed for older people. The underwriting is simplified, and some policies do not require underwriting. The face values on the policies tend to be smaller, but the premiums are reasonable, underwriting is relaxed, and this is cash value life insurance that does not expire after a set term of years.

So, if ten more years would get the house paid off or get the kids educated and on their own, coverage may still be available in the form of a 10 year term policy. If an older person decides they like the idea of passing on a tax free estate to their children when they die, and also to leave money so their final expenses can be paid for, a whole life policy may be the right answer.

Average Funeral Cost in the US for 2008

admin — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 15:23:08 +0000

So What Is An Average Funeral Cost Anyway?

I wanted to do some research on US funeral costs for a few reasons I won’t go into here, but what I did find was that it was very difficult to come up with current numbers. For one thing, consumers really do have a lot of options which can affect funeral costs. For another thing, it seems to be one of those things that is not discussed a lot out in the open. Considering that some funerals can cost as much as a car, it does seem odd that we do not see the same resources for comparison shopping that we do buy a 2 year old minivan. There are no funeral listings on EBay or or Nexttag, at least not that I could find while I was researching!

Funeral Cost Options

Let’s look at a very vague average funeral cost figure that excludes some pretty expensive items. In 2006, if you exclude the casket, cemetary plot, monument and other extras like flowers, the figure of a bit over $6,000 was arrived at. Of course, caskets can cost anywhere from $600 – $10,000, with a loose average of a bit over $2,000. So now we are up to well over $8,000. You have to add a burial vault or grave liner to that, which will average another $1,200. So it looks like a funeral can approach $10,000 or more. And I haven’t even found the average cost of a monument, though I know they can range from a few hundred dollars to several thousand dollars.

Of course, some things can reduce that cost. The funeral can be held at the gravesite, another venue besides the funeral home (like a place of worship or community center) to reduce the cost, or even in a home. Some people choose cremation for economic or philisophical reasons, which will elimiate some costs.

One good way to reduce costs is to consult with your place of worship or communit center. Clergymen, for instance, should be able to guide you during a time of funeral planning, and they won’t be motivated by profit like a funeral home is. This is a delicate time, and many people feel guilty about shopping after their loved ones have pass away. But still, think about your loved ones. Would they want you to overspend on their funeral, or would they just appreciate a pleasant funeral to show love and respect? Would they really care if their casket was plain or fancy, or if their monument was ornate?

Planning Ahead for Funeral Costs

If you are concenred about funeral costs because you are doing your own financial planning, or because you are planning for the death of a loved one, it really is a good idea to be prepared. Death and burials are a delicate subject in many families, and nobody wants to be seen as planning a party upon the passing on of a friend or family member. On the other hand, loved ones will have plenty of grief and stress right after a friend or family member dies without having to worry about where 10 grand in cash is going to come from to pay for the funeral, burial, and associated expenses like travel, meals, and time off of work.

What About Funeral Plans?

Some people plan for funerals by making sure they have a bit of cash set aside. This is a great situation, but many seniors are on fixed and reduced income and would find it very difficult to save $8,000 – $10,000 or more so they can plan for their own funerals. Of course, families step in to help, and the family and friends may contribute to the pot.

Pre-planning is popular these days, either though pre-need plans or final expense plans for seniors. Pre-need arrangements may be made with a funeral home or cemetary by paying for some or all of the costs in advance. Final expense plans are a form of senior life insurance which pays out a cash death benefit that can be used at any funeral home, and for other expenses as the beneficiary sees fit. In addition, any excess money from the policy can be used as a (usually) tax free way to inherit money and leave an estate!

Look at: Final Expense Insurance Rate Quotes

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Types of Life Insurance

admin — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 21:23:08 +0000

You may realize that you need to be responsible to your family and start shopping for life insurance. Or maybe your group benefits package came around, and you have some options to consider. Either way, many consumers need to put together a life insurance plan so their loved ones will be covered in case they lose their breadwinner. However, a lot of consumers feel as if life insurance agents talk to them as if they already understand the products as well as a licensed professional does. Many consumers have no idea how to choose the best type of life insurance, or even what the different types of coverage are!

Term life insurance is a popular product these days, and that’s because it is usually the most affordable. The reason the product is cheaper is because it is, by nature, a temporary protection, even though the term may last for decades. However, since insurers do underwrite it first, they are gambling that the insured person is healthy enough to survive the term, barring some bad luck, an accident, or unforeseen illness. They offer coverage for less because they do not plan to pay out. Of course, some small percentage of covered people will die, and then the insurers do pay the agreed death benefit. But most people survive the policy, and that is how top life insurance companies make money.

Whole life insurance costs more, but it is a permanent product. It will cover insured people as long as they keep the policy in force. In general, keeping the policy in force means paying the premiums. Some whole life policies can also be paid off over a span of years, and 10 to 20 year paid up policies are common. Whole life policies can also build up a cash value over time, and may grow at an interest rate. So some people consider a whole life policy as a combination of insurance and savings, but many financial professionals do not think of them as top investment choices.

Universal life insurance is also permanent life insurance, and it was designed to combine insurance with savings or investments. The cash value of the policy is unbundled from the insurance part of the policy, so it is easy for policy owners to see which part of their premiums go to pay for premiums, and which part go for cash value. The cash may grow, according to some index, like the S&P 500, but usually at a bit lower rate. Many policies also have a minimum guarantee, so they do not lose money in bad years.

This article is only intended to introduce you to the common types of life insurance you can find on the market today. Before you chose your own protection, you should learn more, and also find out which plans are the most competitive ones in your own area. An easy way to do this is with an online life insurance quote form. You can enter your information one time, and then sit back, and get competitive life insurance quotes.

What Kind of Life Insurance Is Best?

admin — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 17:39:19 +0000

We have a lot of questions from people about life insurance, and one of the biggest questions is: What Type of Life Insurance Is Best for me? To answer this question, I would have to know what you expected to get out of your coverage. People want to use their policies for different things, and people want different amounts of coverage. Let me get you started on things you should consider.

Term Life insurance is best for many people who just want to buy life insurance for a set amount of time, usually the term of a mortgage payoff or working years or the years when children are young. That is because term policies are pure life insurance, and as the name implies, they are in force for a set term of time. So a 35 year old with a mortgage and two young kids and a spouse who stays home with the kids would probably consider term for the buld of their coverage.

But why do I say the bulk of coverage? That is because a permanent policy has uses too. Whole life insurance lasts as long as it is kept in force (premiums are paid, or the policy is paid off), and does not expire after a term. It can also build a cash value, and even be borrowed against. Many people want permanent coverage to transfer their estate to their heirs after they pass away in a way that has many tax advantages. If you are not familiar with permanent coverage, look at whole life insurance explained.

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Burial Insurance For Seniors

admin — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 14:17:22 +0000

Burial Insurance For Seniors – Final Expenses Explained
By Final Expense

If you care for an aging person, or if you are a senior citizen yourself, then you have probably noticed ads for burial policies. These are also called financial expense insurance. The offers look attractive because they promote a way to take care of funeral expenses by making affordable monthly payments. If you have done any research on the price of funerals, you know that they average around $8,000, and can cost much more. Beyond just the burial expense, when somebody pass away, many family members have to travel on on little notice, and that can get expensive. The departed may have left some debts or other affairs to be settled, which is another thing to deal with. Nobody likes to think about the death of a loved one. However, this is a very stressful time, and a little prior planning can relieve a lot of pressure.

These types of policies are, simply, types of whole life insurance companies that have been designed to be easy to apply for. They have also been designed with older people, usually 50 – 80, in mind. Simplified issue policies ask few health questions, and most elderly people can qualify. Guaranteed issue means that no health questions will be asked. They use a waiting period instead of health questions to qualify applicants. With guaranteed issue, the insured person will have to survive a specified amount of time before the full death benefit can be paid out. Otherwise, the policy will refund premiums plus a specified interest rates. Since the face values are small, every effort is made to keep the premiums affordable.

If possible, look for simplified issue, because the premiums cost less and they payout with no waiting period. However, if the applicant is already very ill, or in a nursing home, then a guaranteed plan is still a no-lose deal. The beneficiary will still collect the premiums plus interest if the insured person passes away before the waiting period, and if not, they will get back the paid premiums plus interest.

Of course, you have other options to plan for final expenses. The money could be saved into a special account. Existing savings could also be placed into an account that is earmarked to pay for a funeral. This is a good option if the money is available because savings can earn interest! The problem is that many older people lived on fixed incomes with limited savings, and somehow, this money tends to get dipped into because of emergencies like medical bills and home repairs.

Funeral homes also sell a product called pre-need or pre-paid burial plans. These work for some people, but may tie you to one funeral home or company. In addition, they will only plan for the actual burial, and not other expenses like travel or debts. Sometimes, clients even have to pay interest on these accounts, and so they may end up costing more in the long run.

There are advantages and disadvantages to these methods, and if you are unsure what you should do, consult with a financial professional. Really, the best option depends upon the individual’s financial situation.

Learn more about Burial Insurance For Seniors Since prices depend upon location, age, and health status, you can use our fast, safe, and free online quote form to compare plans and prices.

http://www.bestquoteus.com/finalexpense.html

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Marilyn_Katz
http://EzineArticles.com/?Burial-Insurance-For-Seniors—Final-Expenses-Explained&id=926441

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Mortgage Protection Explained

admin — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 03:13:23 +0000

If you have purchased or refinanced a home, you have probably found some offers for mortgage protection insurance in your mailbox. The product promises to pay off your mortgage if you die, become disabled, or ill. It probably also mentions protection in case of unemployment. This product generates a lot of interest, but is it what you think it is?

Unemployment Mortgage Protection is one product, which either provides you when cash when laid off or is designed to make payments to your lender. Of course, we like the sort that pays the consumer cash, because the other sort just seems designed to protect the lender, and not the home owner!

But most mortgage protection insurance is simply a form of term life insurance with a face amount that covers a mortgage balance. Sometimes a decreasing term life insurance policy is used because it will decline as the mortgage declines, and so the premium is cheaper. Riders, such as a disability or critical illness rider, are attached to these policies to cover the insurance policy owner in case of these events, as well as death.

Of course, we also have people who think that mortgage protection is homeowners insurance. This is not true. Homeowners insurance covers property, where mortgage insurance covers the homeowner! Look here for the best homeowners insurance quotes.

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