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Term insurance provides coverage for
a pre-specified period. For example, term insurance is
designed to protect a mortgage
or provide income for your family in case of your
death. You pay the term insurance premium each month
and as long as you pay the premium your policy will
stay in force.
Term
insurance provides
coverage for a pre-specified period. For example, term
insurance is designed to protect a mortgage or provide
income for your family in case of your death. You pay
the term insurance
premium each month and as long as you
pay the premium your policy will stay in force. Once
the contract reaches maturity (usually in 10 years)
you need to renew your policy at a higher price. If
you die while you're paying the premium your estate
gets a large sum of money.
In contrast,
permanent or whole
life insurance remains in force until
you die. You pay the premium on a monthly basis for a
pre-specified term, which can range between 10 to 20
years. A portion of your monthly payment pays the
insurance and the life insurance company that provided
the insurance invests the remainder. Eventually you
don't pay any premiums but your estate still receives
a large payment upon death.
Whole life polices have been criticized
because their investment returns are low. Thus you
were often advised to buy life insurance protection
with a term policy and invest the difference between
term and whole life payments in a separate investment
vehicle, such as mutual funds, stocks, or bonds. Once
you have built up a large pool of assets you don't
need the insurance because the assets will provide
security and stability in the event of an unexpected
death.
However, there is a new, more
flexible product called universal life insurance.
While the life insurance company controls the savings
in a whole life policy, the savings in a universal
life plan are owned and controlled by the
policyholder. Insurance companies offer a large
variety of investment options for this savings
component, including mutual funds. Thus, you have the
ability to meet your life insurance needs and increase
your return on investment.
The major advantage of a universal life
policy is tax-advantaged growth. When you pay the
policy premium, a portion of the premium pays for the
insurance and a portion is invested. However, when you
are ready to withdraw the money from your investment,
your cost basis ( the portion not subject to tax) is
higher with a universal life policy. The cost base for
a universal policy is equal to the sum of all your
premiums - the amount of money you have invested plus
the money you have used to buy life insurance. This is
very useful because increasing your cost base will
ensure you pay less tax once you sell your investments
within the universal life policy.
Universal life insurance provides a
powerful combination of life insurance and
tax-advantaged investment opportunities. Investors
should realize that universal life insurance premiums
work twice as hard as other premiums. They should also
know that choosing the right product is an important
element in the overall success of this strategy.
Finally, the benefits of this strategy are magnified
if you are in a higher tax bracket.
By Tony Reed
About the author: Tony Reed is the author of "Life
insurance as an investment", please visit
his website Life Insurance for more information.
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