Got Life?

Steve Spector   email | bio
Managing Director of Risk Management Services
April 2011 

These are challenging economic times. When planning for the future, we need to consider more than just the conditions of the market. We need to ask the crucial question, "Got life?"

"Got life" to pay that mortgage, family debts, or outstanding tax bills? "Got life" to keep the household income going? "Got life" to pay transfer taxes or to divide up family wealth equally among children? "Got life"  to move the business over to the next generation without having to sell assets to do so? "Got life" to keep your family and your legacy going?

Life insurance breathes life back into a family or a business when the future suddenly arrives. It restores financial security in the form of cash precisely when it's needed. Too many people become side-tracked deciding which product to choose or evaluating how much it costs. While these two things are important, the most important issue to remember is what life insurance accomplishes.

The proceeds from life insurance can do so many things. They pay a family income for a surviving spouse to keep the family hearth afire. They provide resources to fund an education or the care of a disabled child when the caregiver is no longer there. They help to fund retirement plans. They keep a business going when an owner or key person is no longer there to run it. They provide funds to charities. And, policies can be structured so you can receive the proceeds during your lifetime to pay for long-term care expenses.

Life insurance works with different sections of the tax code to provide timely cash efficiently. The death proceeds are tax fee and cash value policies may be tax favored. In some cases you can get your premiums back and then some. In some cases, life insurance is a nonreportable asset for financial aid purposes, and the policy may be protected from creditors.     

Life insurance is the security blanket that does not get tattered. It keeps promises from being broken and carries on legacies quietly. Have you asked yourself the question of your lifetime--"Got life?" – lately?