Speak with an experienced advisor! A Guide to Buying Life Insurance
When it comes to purchasing life insurance, a guide to buying life insurance would be helpful. This information will help eliminate much of the confusion associated with buying life insurance for your family. It should also speed the process of obtaining life insurance for your family if you have recently purchased a new home and have a mortgage payment or if you are new parents. Determining what type of policy is the best choice for your family and figuring how much insurance is needed can cause many to give up. Many have not moved forward and purchased a policy to protect their families.
When it comes down to it, buying life insurance can be very simple. Or as complex as you want to make it. Many do not know what type of policy to choose, let alone what insurance company to choose. Many are not aware that physical exams are not always required with accelerated underwriting or easy issue term. It’s easy to and up getting confused with all the details. Some parents end up collecting volumes of material researching life insurance. Unfortunately, deciding how to move forward becomes virtually impossible due to the confusion.
It is not that complex. There are all kinds of various opinions on the subject, and volumes of material written about life insurance which
can research till the “cows come home,” but it is simple. Insurance is a necessity, and there is no reason not to move forward and proceed with a plan in place. Hopefully, this guide to purchasing life insurance will help move the process forward and get the coverage you need.
There are two primary types of policy to choose from, term life insurance (which does not build cash value) or whole life insurance (which builds cash value). Both term and whole life will offer excellent levels of coverage for most people. Let’s take a closer look at your options.
A Guide to Term Policies, The Number One Choice
When buying life insurance, the most popular type of life insurance is, without a doubt, a term policy. Many people opt to take out a term life insurance policy because they know that they will no longer have a great need for insurance at the end of the specific term. It is also less expensive than whole life or universal life policy; you are paying for “pure” protection as opposed to a buildup of the cash value within the policy and last till age 100. A whole life policy will cost ten times the amount of a term policy!
For many people, this kind of policy will end at around the time that they retire, so their mortgage is paid, their families will be grown, and they won’t need to make provision for their family to have such a large lump sum or income if they die. So, a term policy can fit the financial situation very well, giving them coverage during the years when they need it and finishing with the protection when they don’t need it any longer.
Term insurance has a level death benefit.
- Level term plans have a death benefit that remains the same for the term of the policy.
- It offers many benefit riders to choose from, making the policy more attractive than just a death benefit. The most popular benefits parents add are the accidental death, the waiver of premium, and the disability benefit rider.
- It is Available in time or term periods of 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30, 35, and 40 years.
- It can be paid monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, or annually.
- It has a “grace” period typically of 30 days if you miss paying a premium, give you time to catch up, and not lose your protection.
- You can lower the death benefit as your debt decreases without affecting the term period.
- It can be converted to a smaller death benefit and last a lifetime.
- It can be issued with a medical exam and depending on the company and the amount of death benefit without a medical exam.
A Guide to The Conversion Privilege
At the end and during the term period at specific times, you can “convert” your coverage or keep or lower your current death benefit and continue your death benefit protection. With the conversion option, you have a choice depending on the insurance company to a move to a permanent plan of insurance like a universal life policy or a whole life policy. Health issues are usually not considered by the insurance company, so there is no physical exam required.
Again, the conversion privilege varies with each insurance company. It is essential to check out the conversion privileges the company offers before deciding on a company. One company currently has a term policy that changes to a decreasing term policy at the end of the original term. It maintains the initial premium and extends the time of death benefit protection, a great option. It continues at the original price until the death benefit reaches $10,000.
A Guide to Whole Life Policies, The Other Possible Choice
When buying life insurance, a whole life insurance policy is another choice for those parents who want protection for the rest of their life. This type is costly, but this type of life insurance will last until you die – so you’ll be covered in the short, medium, and long term. People who opt for this kind of life insurance do so to help with issues such as inheritance planning. Whole life policies are often the right choice for final expense insurance or elderly parents.
An “indexed Universal Life” is excellent for retirement planning. Many people prefer coverage that is guaranteed to return at some point so that they feel that they are getting something back on their policy payments. There is a guarantee of payment with a whole of life policy that isn’t there with a term policy.
MOVING FORWARD
The biggest obstacle in purchasing life insurance that people seem to stumble over is not knowing how long they are going to live. Something that can be estimated when looking at your family history but has so many utterly unknowable variables. If we could know, purchasing life insurance would be simple. If we knew we were only going to live ten years, the obvious choice would be to apply for a 10-year term policy.
How much life insurance do you need to purchase to replace your income?
Why Use Strahan Financial Services?
Independent agents have access to all the best possible rates. As independent agents, we have access to the latest technology and have our websites for comparing companies and company rates. Captive agents are limited in what they can offer you. A captive agent is required to use only one company. This limitation does not help you get the best possible rate for your life insurance. Companies employing captive agents almost always will have rates higher in price when compared to independent agents.
HOW WE’RE DIFFERENT
- We are professional
- We are knowledgeable
- We use the latest technology available
- We are customer-service driven
- We will earn your business
- We want to over-deliver on your expectations
- We wish to receive a genuine “Thank you!” at the end of the process
- We want to earn the opportunity to help your family and friends with their insurance
WE ONLY USE TOP RATED COMPANIES
We use America’s top life insurance companies. These companies are well known and financially stable. And, they are very highly-rated by impartial rating agencies. Of the 781 life insurance companies active in the U.S., we only use the top 1%. Companies we recommend have an excellent reputation at paying claims promptly. They have a long, dependable history of operation in the United States. Many have been around for hundreds of years.
Whether you choose a term policy or a whole life policy, the choice you make here will be a personal one. Your choice may well depend on your financial circumstances and future goals. The critical thing to remember is that some form of life insurance coverage is vital for most of us. Life insurance coverage is especially true when we have a family to consider. You can get adequate protection from either kind of policy. And by moving forward and purchasing a life insurance policy, you can do something today that will outlive your life.
