Smart Money: What is life insurance?

When it comes to life insurance, there is a lot of misinformation and lack of education. There are 5 types of life insurance available on the market: term, whole live, universal life, variable universal life (I do not offer this product.), and indexed universal life. Term is the cheapest, but it expires after a certain period and you may be left without coverage or your coverage premium spikes. Whole doesn't build as much cash value, but these are the two most people know about. Variable is invested in the stock market and if you die at the wrong time, you could have less than your face amount to leave behind. Universal life builds at a set percentage, and indexed builds at a percentage based on the market. Of course if you just need coverage, you should find an agent who is honest and willing to share all of this with you so you can plan accordingly. I would love it if people did pay their policies for the year at tax time.

When I meet with potential clients, I start by completing a financial analysis. This is a very important tool when deciding which of these products best fits their current needs and their goals.

I use the DIME theory of insurance.

• Debt - how much consumer debt do you have? This can be covered with a term insurance policy.
• Income - how much income needs to be replaced for 8-12 years? This  needs to be covered with a permanent insurance policy.
• Mortgage - how many years and how much remains on your mortgage? This can be covered with a term insurance policy.
• Education -  how many children do you need to fund through college if you pass away before they get there? This can be covered with a term insurance policy.

Some people are firmly set against life insurance, and of course it's their right to choose one way or the other, but we readily insure cars, phones, homes, apartments and all kinds of material possessions without regard for the vehicle that we use to make the money to make these payments: our bodies/lives. If an individual has other means to replace their income, pay off their home, settle all their debts, pay for their children to maintain life and attend college after they are gone, and have their money work for them, I applaud them! The benefit, in my opinion, of investing with life insurance is that it gives you protection on your life while making you money at the same time. It's a great place to start your investment plan!

Life insurance is a contract that you purchase from an insurance agency that allows them to invest your money for a certain period of time. In exchange, the agency promises to pay your beneficiary upon your death and to pay you interest along with payments for any other provisions specified (disability income, long term care, children's insurance, etc) for a specified amount of time and money. Term contracts do not offer cash value accumulation. You can pay for your contract in small increments or in a lump sum.When you die, the company will then pay your beneficiaries your contract. This is how and why wealthy people (white or black or other) pass down wealth to their families. You don't pay $250k for a $250k contract, you only pay $26,520.95 and you own it. These are the things that more people need to be aware of! Let's kill the stigma around life insurance by becoming educated about how to use it and protect ourselves and our families while we can!

***UPDATE***

Oh my goodness, I didn't realize that I'd allowed 3 months to pass by with out posting to my blog! What on Earth was I doing? Well, I'll let you know exactly what I was doing: building my knowledge of Finance! In the past three months, I've spent countless hours going back over what I learned in college and putting it with what I am experiencing in the field, and I have to say that I've learned so much since I became a licensed life, health, & annuities agent than I ever did in a classroom!

When I go out and talk to people, I get the opportunity to see real world scenarios (not the simplified examples that we get in textbooks!). I have the opportunity to see in real time what the stock market has done, is doing, and will do to the retirement plan for the working class (401(k)), and I see the inequality in financial services that the middle class and lower income Americans receive EVERY DAY!

The systems in place are being re-written by a select few companies, and I am thankful that I partnered with one of them! I'll be talking a lot more about finance and many of the different ways to make your financial goals a reality! STAY TUNED!

~Shanta

The Reaper Effect

What happens when a person dies? Their families lose everything they've ever worked for and move to an apartment a few blocks away from the projects, the children leave their home, their school, and their friends, and the remaining parent or caregiver struggles to make ends meet while the child struggles to cope with the loss of a parent and making new friends!

Wouldn't it be terrible if that was the grim reaper effect? Total loss? For far too long people have lived this reality and families have gone without proper protection from the reaper, and this has to stop! With the growing rate of single parent homes, we need to be educated on how to properly plan for our futures so that our children can grieve us properly! Death is inevitable, but it doesn't have to effect our children's lives any more than our loss already does.

Over the next few weeks, we will be talking about life insurance: dispelling the rumors, educating the masses, and how to get people the coverage they need on their budget! Let's change the reaper effect from total loss to plain grief. You can rebound from both, but loss lasts much longer!

As a single mother, this information truly changed my perspective on some things! Now I can truly say that my son will be financially established if I pass away.  Let's start the talk about insurance! Let's not stop until everyone has the coverage that they need!

~Shanta