LIFE INSURANCE

Life Insurance is something not a lot of people want to talk about. However, living forever is an ability no one can do and we have to come to a realization that we need to protect the ones we love when it is our time to go. Life insurance can help your loved one replace income, pay final expenses, create an inheritance for your heirs, pay federal/state “death” tax (estate tax), and create a source of savings just to name a few. We have term and permanent life insurance and can tailor coverage depending on your unique needs.

Why Life Insurance?

Many financial experts consider life insurance to be the cornerstone of sound financial planning. It can be an important tool in the following situations:

  • Replace income for dependents
    If people depend on your income, life insurance can replace that income for them if you die. The most commonly recognized case of this is parents with young children. However, it can also apply to couples in which the survivor would be financially stricken by the income lost through the death of a partner, and to dependent adults, such as parents, siblings or adult children who continue to rely on you financially. Insurance to replace your income can be especially useful if the government- or employer-sponsored benefits of your surviving spouse or domestic partner will be reduced after your death.
  • Pay final expenses
    Life insurance can pay your funeral and burial costs, probate and other estate administration costs, debts and medical expenses not covered by health insurance.
  • Create an inheritance for your heirs
    Even if you have no other assets to pass to your heirs, you can create an inheritance by buying a life insurance policy and naming them as beneficiaries.
  • Pay federal “death” taxes and state “death” taxes
    Life insurance benefits can pay estate taxes so that your heirs will not have to liquidate other assets or take a smaller inheritance. Changes in the federal “death” tax rules between now and January 1, 2011 will likely lessen the impact of this tax on some people, but some states are offsetting those federal decreases with increases in their state-level “death” taxes.
  • Make significant charitable contributionsBy making a charity the beneficiary of your life insurance, you can make a much larger contribution than if you donated the cash equivalent of the policy’s premiums.
  • Create a source of savings
    Some types of life insurance create a cash value that, if not paid out as a death benefit, can be borrowed or withdrawn on the owner’s request. Since most people make paying their life insurance policy premiums a high priority, buying a cash-value type policy can create a kind of “forced” savings plan. Furthermore, the interest credited is tax deferred (and tax exempt if the money is paid as a death claim).