A few months ago, the word was spreading throughout the industry.  There were magazine articles, and nightly news reports sending out the story that term life insurance rates were on the rise, after more than 10 years of declines. 

But honestly, there’s very little historical information about the cost of life insurance.  It’s not like the stock market, that’s tracked every moment of every trading day.  And different life insurance companies charge differing amounts for the exact same coverage on the exact same person.  So in a sense, it’s hard to say what’s truly going on, except in the most general of terms.

One article I read talked about how in the mid 1990s, the cost of a $500,000 term policy for a healthy 40 year-old man was close to $1,000 a year.  By 1999, the article continued, the cost had dropped to about $425 per year for the same coverage.  And by 2009, the cost had dropped further, to about $360.  The alarming thing, according to the article, was that at the start of 2010 the cost had risen to $400.  

Much of the decline in price can be attributed to the fact that people are living longer these days.  The more time that exists between when you start paying for your life insurance policy and when the life insurance company has to pay your claim, the less expensive the life insurance can be.

And much of the increase can be attributed to what’s happening in the financial markets these days.  Insurance companies are facing the same tight credit market that the rest of us are.  Understandably, insurance companies have to be more concerned about their own financial futures than they needed to be just a few years ago.

So if the costs of life insurance really are on the rise, should you rush to purchase a new life insurance policy?  Ask a local agent, and the answer is very often going to be “yes.”  Ask us, and the answer is going to be “it depends.” 

Ask yourself these two simple questions,  First, is there someone or something that you care about that would suffer if you were to die?  Think about your family, your business, your favorite charity or religious organization.  And second, do you have enough money right now that you could set it aside for them? 

If you answered “yes” to the first question, and “no” to the second, then I’d say it’s time for you to buy life insurance, regardless of what’s happening with the overall costs of coverage.  Buy the policy that best fits your needs now.  If prices go down later, you can “refinance” your policy and lock in the new, lower premiums.     

And if you already have insurance, but haven’t checked prices in recent years, take a look at a new policy.  You may find that there’s money to be saved.  It all starts with a quick phone call to BeamaLife!

I was listening to a personal finance podcast the other day, and the question was raised again about what kind of life insurance someone should buy.  The host went on for the next couple of minutes talking about how everyone should “buy term and invest the difference.”  Now I’m a fair person, and I admit that there are many, many times when that makes more sense than any alternative. 

But if there were a doctor out there who, for every patient, wrote the exact same prescription, it wouldn’t be long before that doctor would be out of patients at best, and in jail for malpractice at worst!  In my experience, absolutes only work as descriptions of reality.  One plus one equals two.  The sun is the center of our solar system.  Beyond things like that, absolutes just don’t work.

And when it comes to financial planning, it makes sense from my perspective to take a long, hard look at the patient before recommending a course of treatment.  Whole life insurance sales, according to recent figures, are now selling at a rate that is much higher than the year before. 

Here’s one reason why.  In order to beat the return on your investment in a whole life policy, you’d have to average 10% or more on your investment of the difference between what you’re paying for term life and what you would have paid for a whole life policy.  Can anyone show me an easy way to make that kind of return these days?  I can’t think of one.

And here’s another reason.  The Pollyanna mindset that says “let’s not worry about today, because tomorrow will be even better!” has all but disappeared as the various sectors of the economy have fallen like dominos over the past couple of years.  Stocks are just now beginning to recover, but jobs are still nowhere to be found, real estate values are not even beginning to show signs of growth, and with looming changes in heath care and taxes, the average American has very little hope that the next five years will bring prosperity back.

At BeamaLife we’re experts in all kinds of life insurance products term life insurance or whole life insurance, and we know how to help you find the one that makes the most sense for where you are financially right now.  So don’t buy into the “buy term and invest the difference” mentality.  For many people, it’s more like “buy term, plan to invest the difference, spend the money on other things, and then find yourself without the coverage you need when you need it most.” 

Call one of my experts today at (866) 972-3262 for a free, no-risk review of your life insurance.  We’re your best resource for advice, and the surest way to get the coverage you want for a price that you can afford.  Your family and your financial future deserve nothing less!

Most of the time we view life insurance as an expense - especially the term insurance but the greatest strength of life insurance is the ability to pay a specified amount on the death of an insured. For what can be a relatively small amount of money each year, your beneficiaries (your family and loved ones) can receive a large death benefit. Depending on how soon or how far out in the future that death benefit is received, the dollar paid toward life insurance have the potential for you and your family and loved ones to receive a tremendous risk shift to life insurance company.

You might think of life insurance only as a way to provide for a surviving family after the death of a breadwinner. But, rich families are increasinglyusing life insurance as an “asset” to create wealth for their beneficiaries. By taking a portion of your assets each year to cover the cost of life insurance premiums, you are able to potentially transfer your wealth and would able to create additional wealth.

Please let me know what you think. Do you own life insurance? What kind?

Life insurance needs will change but it is best to keep life insurance policy instead of dropping the coverage when you grow older. When an individual ages, a permanent policy becomes an increasingly important asset, because a person’s insurability tends to decrease over time. A term policy provides temporary coverage, but relying on term insurance to help offset other expenses can be a risky move. Why? If the term policy expires, the individual loses the ability to utilize the tax efficiencies of life insurance that increase with age and over time. Following are some other important reasons why you should have whole life insurance policy.

1. It helps to counter inflation and its effects on other assets that are used to supplement retirement income by providing stable cash value accumulation.
2. The tax-deferred treatment of life insurance versus the taxes generated by other kinds of assets (CD, Mutual Funds, Savings Accounts).
3. A valuable financial tool when illness or disability strikes (if the appropriate riders are attached).
4. It provides a legacy to your children/grand children or charity, and offset estate taxes.
5. Greater financial protection in the event that Social Security benefits are reduced.

Please let me know your thoughts and comments.

Employees often think that insurance offered by their employers is cheaper than purchasing individual plans. Certain types of insurance are cheaper when purchased through a group plan including Health, Disability, Long-Term Care and, in some cases, Life Insurance.  If your employer provides free insurance, you should certainly accept it. However, if you are in good health and are paying for life insurance coverage through your employer (most likely through payroll deduction), you may be paying too much and could save up to 60% on your term life insurance by purchasing an individual policy.

Group life coverage, like most things in life, has its positives and negatives. Often available in multiples of your annual salary (2X, 4X etc.) it may seem like the best and most convenient option, unfortunately, it may not be the most cost-efficient and the great way to have insurance for long time. Group policies are based on the general statistics of the overall employment pool of the company and do not consider an individual’s personal health. In a group policy, everyone is combined into one category regardless of key factors (health history, gender, etc.) As a result, individuals in good health are often paying more than they need to for coverage and individuals in poor health are paying less than they should.

Individual term insurance policies, on the other hand, are underwritten to assess the applicant’s individual health circumstances. That means individual coverage for those non-smokers with good habits and above average health can cost considerably less than group coverage, most of the times up to 60 percent less.
According to life insurance industry statistics, the overall cost of new group life coverage remained virtually unchanged during the last decade. In contrast, the average premiums for an individual term life policy have dropped approximately 50%. An individual with an annual income of $100,000 who needs coverage equal to 7 to 10 times their income level may end up paying nearly $500 to $700 more per year if they insure themselves through a group policy.

Another point to consider is that most group term costs increase as an individual enters the next age group (35, 40, 45, 50, etc.) and the prices are not guaranteed, they can be increased. Coverage via a group plan may not be portable should employment terminate, and the cost to convert from the existing group policy to an individual permanent insurance plan can be substantial. Additionally, your coverage usually ends when you retire from the company. Once that happens, you will have to apply for an individual life insurance policy at age 62 or 65 and your age and existing health conditions may increase the risk of being turned down for a policy.

Individual term coverage premiums can be guaranteed to remain level for varying lengths of time; they can be purchased for level premium periods guaranteed for 10, 20 even 30 years. For these reasons, it’s smart to obtain your own life insurance policy in addition to or in place of the coverage offered by your employer.
So, if you are in good health, don’t pay more for your insurance to offset the cost of people who aren’t in as great a shape.

There are several reasons why you may want to replace your current life insurance policy with a new one.

If you have term life insurance, you may want to replace your policy to reduce the price, extend the coverage period, or increase the amount of insurance. Keep in mind, though, that you likely will be required to go through a medical exam.

Replacing your permanent life insurance gets more complicated and careful consideration should be given:

• Unless you’re considering whole life insurance, the current interest rate that your cash value earns is not guaranteed. There is a guaranteed minimum interest rate that is usually considerably lower than the current rate. A Life Insurance Agent may show you projections of what your cash value will earn over the next 15 or 20 years in Variable Policy but it is not guaranteed.
• The initial costs of a life insurance policy are high. As a result, your cash value could be reduced.
• If you cancel a life insurance policy early, you’ll have to pay a surrender charge, a fee that can be expensive.
• Make sure you have the new policy in your hand before you cancel the old one.

Remember that incontestability and suicide clauses will be in effect for the first two years of your new policy. An incontestability clause states that the insurance company may not contest the policy after it has been in force for two years. The only exception is for nonpayment of the premium. A suicide clause states that the insurance company will not pay the death benefit if the insured dies by suicide within the first two years of the issue date.

Please call BeamaLife Sales Specialists at (866) 972-3262 and they will help you to make right decision.

The price or premium you pay for life insurance depends on your age, your health, and your lifestyle. However, there are ways to lower your life insurance premiums. The following are some simple suggestions.

Often, you’ll actually pay less for a little more insurance as you approach multiples of $250,000 in coverage. For example, $240,000 of coverage might cost $275 per year, while $250,000 in coverage might cost only $260 per year. Find out the rate per $1,000 of coverage, which often drops when you pass a certain level of coverage.

Some life insurance companies offer competitive life insurance rates for conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. These companies employ underwriters who are trained in analyzing people on a case-by-case basis, rather than combining everyone with a particular condition into one group. If you have a health condition, BeamaLife Specialist is your best bet to reduce your premium. You can call (866) 972 – 3262 or complete life insurance quote request now.

You might be surprised to find out how much you can save on your insurance premiums if you quit smoking, start exercising, and lose weight. Many insurance companies charge smokers double the nonsmoker rate for insurance. Similar discounts can apply if you lose enough weight to fall into a preferred category. If you quit smoking or lose weight, contact your current insurance company to see if it will reduce the premiums accordingly.

Riders can add value to your life insurance policy by covering situations that a standard life insurance policy does not insure. However, when purchasing a rider, you should be careful not to duplicate your existing coverage, resulting in wasted premiums.

Your insurance could end up costing you more if you choose to make convenient monthly payments rather than pay the entire premium annually. Before you choose a payment plan, compare the single payment price to the total cost of the monthly payments.

Time magazine had a wonderful article explaining why the life insurance industry is so much safer than all the other financial service industries. The article explained that insurance companies only held about ten percent of total assets in the real estate investments that pulverized the bank and investment industries. The article even explains that AIG, the insurance company, was solvent because of insurance companies and life insurance part of the business is still solvent according to New York state insurance department. Insurance companies are  required by law to have money set aside to pay claims. That is very different from credit default swaps, which had no money set aside to pay claims. It also explains that insurance companies contribute to state guaranty funds, which come into play when an insurance company becomes insolvent. This make life insurance ideal not only for death benefit purpose but also for safer savings and risk management purposes. Learn more about whole life insurance, term life insurance and find the best life insurance rates and term life quote & whole life quote.

http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1849023,00.html